December 16th 2021
For the 3rd consecutive year, the Jordan Fair was held in the city of Noshiro on December 16th.
The fair took place at the Noshiro Cultural Center. The opening ceremony included a welcoming speech by Mayor SAITO Shigenobu which was followed by Ambassador Annab’s speech. A number of activities took place including a photo exhibition, a cooking contest of Jordanian inspired dishes prepared by local restaurants. Ambassador Lina Annab and 3rd Secretary Talal Masarweh joined Mayor SAITO and others from Noshiro as judges in this contest. Music by Jordanian artists as well as films on Jordan were played throughout the event. Also, local Noshiro experiences workshops such as making chopsticks using fresh Akita cedar and a traditional scraping tool called kanna were held during this Fair.
This year’s theme of the Fair was “Shoukran Noshiro” (Shoukran means Thank you in Arabic). We chose this theme in order to express to our friends and partners in Noshiro our sincerest thanks and gratitude for their friendship and continuous support throughout the preparations leading up to Tokyo2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. (Noshiro City, located North West of Japan in Akita Prefecture, was Jordan’s Host Town for Tokyo2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games).
Noshiro City and its mayor, Mr. SAITO Shigenobu, the municipal council members and staff and the amazing people of Noshiro were always there before, during and now after the Tokyo2020 games. They generously hosted a number of our athletes and they also held a number of events in support of our partnership and Olympic athletes and teams. The Embassy seized the opportunity of being in the City of Noshiro to meet the local people: visits included the Futatsui Elementary School, Futatsui City Hall, and the “Ribbon Center” which provide assistance for the disabled.
“Shoukran Noshiro” is only a small token of appreciation of the big and much appreciated love that has been generously extended to us throughout the past three years.
As we enter into the post Tokyo2020 phase of our partnership with Noshiro City, we look forward to building even stronger bridges of cooperation and understanding.