Page 31 - Tạp chí bonsai cây cảnh BCI 2017Q3
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Pre Convention at the Palace                attendance and the gift of a free book added to the
          Finally the day arrived and I moved into The Palace  whole event.
        Hotel Omiya. Giving myself plenty of time to settle   Yet on this day there was more to come and unique-
        in and catch up with friends, compatriots from Aus-  ly special as well. Back in Omiya and connected to the
        tralia and simply just to soak up the pre convention  Palace Hotel is Sonic City Hall. This was the location
        excitement we still had a few days to go before the  for the very grand opening ceremony featuring The
        unknown became known. Some of those gaps were  Crown Prince and Princess of Japan, The Prime Min-
        very quickly filled as our hosts were quickly setting  ister of Japan (via video link) along with the represen-
        up displays everywhere including the concourse in the  tatives of the WBFF, Host Committee, key sponsors,
        Omiya station with trees that could easily be in the  regional representatives, all featured demonstrators,
        exhibition, yet here they were for all to see and experi-
        ence. It seemed that nothing would be left to chance.
                                                                                                 Top; Opening ceremony and
        Thursday: A Royal Opening                                                                the man all had come to see,
                                                                                                 Master Masahiko Kimura
          Early on the Thursday morning, excited delegates                                       with his finished landscape
        all gathered to collect our registration and like every-                                 depicting the peculiarly-
        thing else in Japan the doors opened on time and with                                    shaped granite peaks and
                                                                                                 pines trees of Huangshan
        no fuss. On offer today was a free bus shuttle to the                                    Mountains in China.
        Omiya Bonsai Village where the Bonsai Museum and                                         Bottom; Taiko Drummers a big
        all the nurseries awaited. Given the weather was sunny                                   hit at the opening ceremony.
        the walk around the village took on the atmosphere                                       Power and concentration led
        of a happy day out for the hundreds who I passed and                                     to perfect timing which was
        said ‘guday’ to.                                                                         warmly received.
          It was at the Bonsai Museum that it started to hit
        home that this was to be something special with re-
        porters and television crews interviewing many in




















































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