Happy Birthday, America! Today is the 4th of July but here in Sasebo, where nothing is done in association with the real world, the base held it's 4th of July festival on the 3rd of July. But it had nothing at all to do with celebrating the birth of our nation - it was blatantly obvious that it all about opening the gates to the local Japanese community to get them on base to spend their money.
There were about 20 food booths, sponsored and run by various base organizations, all selling the same exact thing: hamburgers and hotdogs. OK, there were a couple of exceptions - one had BBQ ribs, one had $4.50 turkey legs and another had Girl Scout Cookies. But that was about it.
There was only a small percentage of the American community in attendance (not nearly as many as I expected to see), so it was completely dominated by the Japanese. Unfortunately, the festival was lacking an essential element - the staple of the Japanese festival diet - a yakisoba booth. I was bitterly disappointed.
Nevertheless, we spent a few hours there emptying our pockets of money as the kids played games. And as usual, I took a few pictures...the shots here are of the Saikai Shimamori Taiko Drummers and the Yosakoi Dance Team.
Hope that all of you enjoy your 4th, wherever and however you choose to do so!
