Only to see this, though:
April 3-4, 2004: The 11th Houston Japan Festival will be held at the Japanese Garden in Hermann Park. For two days in April, Hermann Park will be transformed into a Japanese village surrounding The Japanese Garden. Special highlights will include: a traditional Tea Ceremony, Koto music, dance groups, drummers, martial arts specialists, Japanese games, traditional Japanese arts and crafts, and many other cultural art demonstrations and displays. Food areas will offer authentic Japanese foods. For more information, please call 713-963-0121 (Japan-America Society of Houston) or visit http://www.jashouston.org/main.html?section=festival.
From the Calendar of Events page for the Consulate-General of Japan at Houston. I started feeling bad about mentioning all the stuff going on in Chicago around Ginger and Karin, so I had a look for the nearest embassy or whatevah. . .
Or I could have a look at the Japan America Society of Austin site, but have already mentioned how I'll be flying in to Austin for a visit. Because I am so not driving in -- hell, or to -- Texas.
Except, apparently, for the Festival. . .
Update: Oops.
This site last updated on 4/18/99.
Not much point visiting the JASA page after all.
Well, there's also a list of Cultural and Japan-Related Organizations in Texas and Oklahoma to look over.
Best I can tell from looking at other local sites, the information is correct and it's probably the update date that's bad.
But I would be EXTREMELY annoyed if you flew down here after I moved to New York, dammit!
When are you coming to Austin? Do you like cake?
Erm. Well, Ginger, in that case, I just won't go at all. . .
Susan, no real plans to visit Austin, just a vague notion. And I like vegan cake, yes. Especially carrot cake. Why do you ask?
Not sure what Susan specifically has in mind, but Kerbey Lane does a vegan chocolate cheezecake that's sufficiently good that even people who usually run screaming from that sort of thing like it. And Casa de Luz has a vegan key lime pie that I love. And they also have a killer vegan Sunday brunch. (Mm, tofu scramble.) (It really is delicious, I swear.)
I meant I would fix you a cake. I have this one recipe that's sort of like carrot cake without carrots but with fruit in it instead, which gives it a slight banana bread quality. If you're into that sort of thing.