Kadomatsu in the Japanese Garden • Albuquerque NM

What an exciting event awaits you. This is a great way to celebrate the new year with the Japanese tradition of kadomatsu. Kadomatsu is a Japanese New Year's tradition of pine and bamboo arrangements. The whole point of kadomatsu is to attract beneficial spirits. The tradition is full of symbolism and represents virtues like strength, flexibility, vitality and purity. You do not want to miss this very special experience. Let's face it, when is the last time that you could say that you have taken part in a 600 year old Shinto tradition. We know you are going to sense the honor of being at such a special event.

This event takes place at the Albuquerque Botanic Gardens which in and of itself is just a great place to get away and relax and breath for awhile. Let's face it, the stress of life calls us to a more sedate and tranquil environment at times. You can go to look at and ponder the arrangements or you can plan on attending the ceremony when the kadomatsu will be burned to release the spirits. Or why not plan on doing both.

Special Experience

Kadomatsu involves creating twin arrangements of bamboo, pine and sometimes ume or Japanese Apricost twigs. The whole purpose of the kadomatsu is to welcome ancestral spirits or kami. Some people refer to this as welcoming the spirits of the harvest which is very appropriate to have in a garden setting. At the botanical garden, the kadomatsu will be burned in a ceremony to release the spirits and also to cary prayers of good luck to the heavens. In the end, the goal is to send along good wishes for a vibrant and beautiful Botanic garden. If you have never experienced this before, you truly do not know what you are missing.

A lot of people do not realize the significance of the displays three elements. The bamboo carries strength, pine embodies logevity and plum blossom instills purity and hope. The arrangements are placed at both sides of an entrance to commemorate the new year. The display will be up from just after Christmas until early January. The pairs also symbolize male and female. This is an amazing way for you and your family to add a very special new years tradition to your end of the year schedule. We promise that it will provide that relaxing and peaceful event that everyone needs from time to time in such a busy and crazy world.

History and Getting There

Kadomatsu first appeared as a New Year's tradition way back in Japan's Edo period. That was more than 700 years ago. The very first kadomatsu were filled with sand and water and could be used to extinguish fires in case such an emergency arose. Over time, the arrangements became very powerful symbols to be placed outside a door's threshold for the purpose of capturing good spirits. At this event, you will learn more about the origins as well as learn how to make your own.

While we are sure that we have convinced you that this is an event you need to attend. The question you are now facing is the best way to get to the Botanic Gardens. After all, we know that you are going to want to gather your family and friends and have them go with you. That means the convenience of one of our phenomenal party buses is the way to go and we will explain why. First of all, carpooling anywhere has never been fun and it never will be fun. You also have to consider the nusiance of finding parking places for everyone. With one of out out of this world party buses, your entire group will be in one place and you will all be dropped off in a convenient location at the park. You are going to be blown away to find some very special amenities on board that will make your trip that much more enjoyable. So, between the amenities and having a professional driver making sure you arrive safely, you and your group will be able to kick back and enjoy every second of your experience. We look forward to hearing from you and to working out the details.

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