NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Since 2009, the Nashville Cherry Blossom Festival has put Japanese art and culture in the spotlight.
On Saturday, thousands of people gathered at Public Square Park for the return of the iconic festival.
"You can definitely tell there's a lot of people here. The garage filled up since noon," festival director, Ginger Byrn, said.
When Byrn started her role as the festival director, she said she didn't imagine the crowds she'd be in charge of one day.
"Well that was 2012, so it was very different because we weren't anywhre as big as we are now. We've grown a lot," she said.
This is the 13th year of the festival and it is all free. Last year more than 40,000 people attended the festival and this year organizers expect to set an attendance record.
It was a packed event that stood out even to the youngest attendees.
"We used to live in New York and it reminds me of the street festivals in New York," Witt Graves said.
For vendors, the well-attended event was a cheerful sight.
"We sold out of just about everything and last year by 5 o'clock we still had some stuff but 2:30, we're fresh out of stuff. So, really good this year," co-owner of April's Kitchen, Phon Kamphouthasak, said.
It's also an event close to Kamphouthasak's heart, because it allows him to share his culture with others.
"Sometimes Nashville doesn't understand some of the Asian cultures, but people who are here they understand, and they love this kind of food, and it's great that we can share these kinds of things," he said.
Everywhere you looked, you could see a celebration of artwork, fashion and music.
Byrn said that although the festival has grown, the purpose has stayed the same.
"We hope that people will appreciate both contemporary and traditional Japanese culture and also appreciate the relationship that city of Nashville and state of Tennessee has with Japan," Byrn said. "There's a lot of Japanese-owned businesses in the state. More than 50 thousand Tennesseans are employed by Japanese companies. So we have a good strong relationship with Japan both culturally and economically."
