BATH

The Bath community will have an opportunity to explore Japanese culture — without having to travel too far — thanks to the festivities of Japanese Culture Day this Saturday, hosted by the Bath- Tsugaru Sister City Exchange Program.

The organization oversees a traveling and host program every summer, where students and adults from Midcoast Maine and Tsugaru, Japan, participate in an exchange program that offers a culturally rich homestay experience.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the organization, and the friendship between the city of Bath and Tsugaru.

Bath’s first encounter with Tsugaru dates back to 1889 when villagers of Shariki, now modern day Tsugaru, rescued survivors of the “Cheseborough,” a Bath, Maine-built ship that wrecked on the shores of Japan after a tsunami.

The sister city relationship was proposed in 1989 when delegations from Shariki Village visited the city of Bath.

Andy Bailes, the president of the organization, said the celebration on Saturday will help honor and commemorate the relationship between the two cities and also encourage community members to get involved with the organization and learn more about the exchange program.

All activities will be located in Bath and will kick off with a mini “Manga Con” event and movie viewing at the Patten Free Library on tonight, where teens are encouraged to attend the event dressed as their favorite manga or anime character and participate in fun activities.

The library will also host a traditional Japanese storytelling event, an origami workshop, a Japanese “Go” board game demonstration and language lessons throughout Saturday afternoon.

Other activities include a Japanese archery demonstration called “Kyudo,” led by Tashi Armstrong at 10 a.m. Saturday, and the Cheseborough Cup Lap Swim, an all day event, where community members can swim laps in the pool and tally and log the number of laps swum. Both events will take place at the Bath YMCA.

A saké (an alcoholic beverage made from fermented rice) tasting will take place at Now You’re Cooking from 3-5 p.m., and “Chanoyu,” a traditional Japanese tea ceremony, will be demonstrated at the Mustard Seed Bookstore in two sessions at 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. Space is limited to eight people per session, so the public is encouraged to call ahead and reserve a spot.

With a diverse line up of activities, Bailes hopes the event will get more community members interested in the exchange program, being a host family, volunteering or just getting involved.

Bailes also said that he and the board members are planning to add more events throughout the year that are focused on celebrating Japanese culture all year-round to “make aware that the Bath student exchange program go hand in hand” with the Cheseborough event.

“We want to try to get the word out further and more often – to keep the event fresh in people’s mind,” he added. “What we want to do is to keep people interested and not let them forget.”

More information about Saturday’s event and the schedule of activities can be found at bath-tsugaru.org.