Attending 11th Annual Oita Japan Festival
2026/9/1
Oita Japan Festival Opening Ceremony VIP Panel
Consul-General Koyama delivers his remarks
Video Message from Oita City Mayor Adachi
Austin Taiko Performance
Japanese Calligraphy Experience
Macha Experience by Austin Japan Community
On August 30, Consul-General Koyama attended the 11th Annual Oita Japan Festival, recognizing 36 years of long-standing sister city relations between Austin and Oita City.
The opening ceremony was attended by Consul-General Koyama, Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, 126th District Court Judge Aurora Martinez Jones, Austin City Council Members José "Chito" Vela and Marc Duchen, and Austin-Oita Sister City Committee Chair Kristie Bryant. In his remarks, Consul-General Koyama emphasized the crucial role that grassroots initiatives, such as sister city exchanges, play in building trust between Japan and the United States, and expressed his gratitude to the Austin-Oita Sister City Committee for its long-standing support of the exchange between the two cities. The event also featured a video message from Oita Mayor Shinya Adachi and an award presentation that recognized Austin high school participants in the youth exchange with Oita City, as well as Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University students currently studying abroad at the University of Texas at Austin. Then, the ceremony concluded with a powerful performance by Austin Taiko.
The Consulate-General of Japan in Houston will continue to encourage and support sister-city relations as well as educational and cultural exchanges.
Photo Credit: Masa Kuwajima (https://www.photoncorral.com/)
The opening ceremony was attended by Consul-General Koyama, Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, 126th District Court Judge Aurora Martinez Jones, Austin City Council Members José "Chito" Vela and Marc Duchen, and Austin-Oita Sister City Committee Chair Kristie Bryant. In his remarks, Consul-General Koyama emphasized the crucial role that grassroots initiatives, such as sister city exchanges, play in building trust between Japan and the United States, and expressed his gratitude to the Austin-Oita Sister City Committee for its long-standing support of the exchange between the two cities. The event also featured a video message from Oita Mayor Shinya Adachi and an award presentation that recognized Austin high school participants in the youth exchange with Oita City, as well as Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University students currently studying abroad at the University of Texas at Austin. Then, the ceremony concluded with a powerful performance by Austin Taiko.
The Consulate-General of Japan in Houston will continue to encourage and support sister-city relations as well as educational and cultural exchanges.
Photo Credit: Masa Kuwajima (https://www.photoncorral.com/)