Japanese Culture Festival 2026
2026/11/11
On 7 and 8 November, the Embassy of Japan held the “Japanese Culture Festival 2026” in co-organisation with Times Square Shopping Centre. Marking its 12th edition, this year’s festival welcomed Yang Mulia Puan Hajah Noridah binti Abdul Hamid, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, to the opening ceremony as guest of honour. H.E. Mr KIKUTA Yutaka, Ambassador of Japan, and Ms Amal Majidah, representing the co-organisers, made welcoming remarks. HIBIKIYA, a wadaiko (Japanese drum) group based in Singapore, livened up the venue with a powerful performance.
Following a kick-off Ikebana workshop at Laksamana College of Business on 6 November, a wide variety of Japanese culture was introduced on the stage and at the booths, including calligraphy, orizome (fold-dyeing), judo, kendo and pop culture such as manga, Lolita fashion and plamo (plastic model). In addition, a temari sushi and maki sushi workshop by the official chef of the Embassy, consultations on studying in Japan, a session sharing experiences of Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholarship recipients, and presentations by secondary school students studying Japanese were also held. On the final evening, visitors joined in dancing the Soran Bushi, bringing the festival to a close.
Participating organisations: Brunei Association of Japan Alumni (BAJA), Brunei Darussalam Go Association, Brunei Darussalam National Judo Federation (BDNJF), Brunei Japan Friendship Association (BJFA) UBD & UTB Chapters, Brunei Kendo Renmei, Brunei Plamo Community, HIBIKIYA, Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), Ketsukira Artworks Enterprise, The Lace Society, Okayama University Japan Educational Information Center, Pengiran Isteri Hajah Mariam Secondary School, Sayyidina Husain Secondary School, SSEAYP International Brunei (BERSATU), Ms TANIGUCHI Chieko (Sogetsu School master instructor) (in alphabetical order)
Following a kick-off Ikebana workshop at Laksamana College of Business on 6 November, a wide variety of Japanese culture was introduced on the stage and at the booths, including calligraphy, orizome (fold-dyeing), judo, kendo and pop culture such as manga, Lolita fashion and plamo (plastic model). In addition, a temari sushi and maki sushi workshop by the official chef of the Embassy, consultations on studying in Japan, a session sharing experiences of Japanese Government (MEXT) Scholarship recipients, and presentations by secondary school students studying Japanese were also held. On the final evening, visitors joined in dancing the Soran Bushi, bringing the festival to a close.
Participating organisations: Brunei Association of Japan Alumni (BAJA), Brunei Darussalam Go Association, Brunei Darussalam National Judo Federation (BDNJF), Brunei Japan Friendship Association (BJFA) UBD & UTB Chapters, Brunei Kendo Renmei, Brunei Plamo Community, HIBIKIYA, Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), Ketsukira Artworks Enterprise, The Lace Society, Okayama University Japan Educational Information Center, Pengiran Isteri Hajah Mariam Secondary School, Sayyidina Husain Secondary School, SSEAYP International Brunei (BERSATU), Ms TANIGUCHI Chieko (Sogetsu School master instructor) (in alphabetical order)