2026 OJCA/OJCC Natsu Matsuri – Japanese Summer Festival
2026/7/4
On July 4th, in partnership with the Embassy of Japan, Natsu Matsuri (Japanese Summer Festival) was hosted by the Ottawa Japanese Community Association (OJCA) and the Ottawa Japanese Community Center (OJCC), at the Sandy Hill Community Centre in Ottawa. Despite it being rainy all week, the day of the event was clear and sunny, making it a perfect day for the outdoor festivities.
Ambassador Kanji Yamanouchi delivered opening remarks to commence the event, drawing attention to this year being the OJCA’s 50th anniversary, highlighting the association’s longstanding history and importance to the local Japanese community. He shared how Japanese summer festivals are deeply intertwined with local culture and traditions, including food and dance.
There were multiple dance performances such as yosakoi, bon odori, kagura, J-pop, and a special taiko drumming set in tandem with a Japanese sword art demonstration. Throughout the day, there were traditional martial arts demonstrations including karate, judo, aikido, iaido, and kyudo. The finale was the Yukata Fashion Show with many beautiful yukatas modeled by members of the community.
The embassy set up a booth with a wide variety of traditional Japanese festival games and activities such as ring toss, yo-yo balloon fishing, origami, and Japanese calligraphy. The embassy also promoted the JET Programme, the MEXT Scholarship, the Working Holiday Visa program, and touristic information.
Embassy of Japan booth (from top left): Japanese calligraphy, ring toss, yo-yo balloon fishing, information table
Ambassador Kanji Yamanouchi delivered opening remarks to commence the event, drawing attention to this year being the OJCA’s 50th anniversary, highlighting the association’s longstanding history and importance to the local Japanese community. He shared how Japanese summer festivals are deeply intertwined with local culture and traditions, including food and dance.
There were multiple dance performances such as yosakoi, bon odori, kagura, J-pop, and a special taiko drumming set in tandem with a Japanese sword art demonstration. Throughout the day, there were traditional martial arts demonstrations including karate, judo, aikido, iaido, and kyudo. The finale was the Yukata Fashion Show with many beautiful yukatas modeled by members of the community.
The embassy set up a booth with a wide variety of traditional Japanese festival games and activities such as ring toss, yo-yo balloon fishing, origami, and Japanese calligraphy. The embassy also promoted the JET Programme, the MEXT Scholarship, the Working Holiday Visa program, and touristic information.
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| Ambassador Yamanouchi gives opening remarks | Taiko performance by Oto-wa Taiko |
Embassy of Japan booth (from top left): Japanese calligraphy, ring toss, yo-yo balloon fishing, information table