4 Chtertainment Pink ukuleles will kick off blossom fest 25 strum their ukes as Umbrella Dancers perform for opening of Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival By SERA AKDOGAN nade hundreds of dancing umbrel- las under the cherry blossom trees at the Burrard SkyTrain station this Thursday. The Cherry Jam Downtown Concert is the kickoff event for the Cherry Blos- som Festival, starting April 4. It will feature fun outdoors events and music by students and instructors from Ru- by’s Uke’s Ukulele School. The founder and a teacher at the ukulele school, Daphne Roubini, calls the performances “a ukulele celebra- tion of cherry blossoms.” Ruby’s Uke’s r4 4 students are going to be playing at Testun pink ukuleles will sere- I like the Sakura Days Japan ; Fair, along with lo- idea of cal ukulele players cherry in Vancouver. blossoms Their popular song for the season, as a sym- “Sakura Sakura,” bol of will be performed at the festival. hope. “We first had a workshop, then a rehearsal with the students from our school and players from the Vancouver Ukulele Circle,” Roubini said. Tom Lee Music, which has agreed to donate eight ukuleles to the Cancer So- ciety for every person that purchases a pink ukulele, also sponsors the event. “T like the idea of cherry blossoms as a symbol of hope,” Roubini said. “Tom Lee has directed that we use pink uku- leles for the cause.” There will be 25 performers at the festival each day, and three different performances for a total of 75 ukulele players in total. The ukulele performances start at noon on April 4 at Burrard SkyTrain Station, and 3 p.m. on April 6 and 7 at VanDusen Botanical Garden. Dance performances are planned. The World Umbrella Dance is a group of dancers who are crazy about cherry blossoms and dancing. They will be performing at the Cherry Jam on April 13, at the Vancouver Art Gal- lery Plaza. Performances start at 12:45 p.m. and continue throughout the day. DAPHNE ROUBINI, UKULELE TEACHER also By BRENNA BROOKS ntiques are a way for people to connect with various cultures around the world. Heather Bak- er, an antiques enthusiast, has travelled around the world collecting antique toys and other treasures for over 40 years and will be attending the upcoming Kerrisdale Antiques Fair. The now bi-annual fair will be back for its 12 anniversary on April 13 and 14. The fair is the largest event of its kind held in Vancouver contains over 250 tables and booths, featuring an- tique and vintage collectibles from the 18, 19, and 20 centuries. Heather Baker, owner of Baker’s Dozen Antiques on Main Street, has been participating in the fair since its creation 12 years ago and said that she never goes home without buying two or three things herself, even though she is there to sell. She said that antiques are a great deal because they can last for genera- tions. “T like the quality, the colour and the beautiful way things are made,” said Baker. “They last forever and some of it is quite magical. It’s not stuff you see today.” Heather McPherson, a sales clerk at Baker’s Dozen, said that antiques are a way for people to connect with their heritage. She shared the story of a young Sri Lankan man who recently bought a dagger from the store and said that the dagger would have been something worn by his great great grandfather. McPherson also shared interesting mementos from Victorian times that they have in the store, which were made of human hair. The hair from loved ones, who had died, would be fastened in intricate de- signs and then set in broaches. Antiques are making a big come back; buying online isn’t as easy as it seems. “People realized that it’s very diffi- cult and very disappointing to shop on- line,” said Baker. “Often you get something that you really didn’t pay for.” The fair is a great way for antique dealers and collectors to meet, and for a $7 admission, it’s an inexpensive fam- ily outing. If you are unable to attend the events next weekend, the fair will be back again from Aug. 31 to Sept. 1 at the Ker- risdale Arena. BRENNA BROOKS photo Some of these weird and wonderful items from Baker’s Dozen Antiques can be seen at the Kerrisdale Antiques Fair Saturday, April 13. Curiosities from around the globe shown at antiques fair Shop owner’s collection includes broach made from human hair Antiques near you ME Baker's Dozen Antiques 3520, Main St HE Pierre's Antiques 5685, West Blvd ME Upscale Garage Sale 3432 Dunbar St HM Sugar Barrel Antiques 4609, Main St Thousands expected for Vaisakhi | The annual parade draws huge crowd to Main and Fraser streets every year for birth of Sikh religion By JESSE ADAMSON nceouver’s Sikh community is cel- VYorrins the Vaisakhi Day parade April 13 with food, traditional clothing and dancing in the street. “My favourite part is the colours,” said Jaspreet Khurana, owner of Rokko’s Fabric on Fraser Street and 46th Avenue. “Everybody is dressed quite festively. Also the food is great. Just the whole atmosphere is really fun.” Millions around the world celebrate Vaisakhi Day to mark the Sikh New Year and to commemorate the birth of Sikhism in 1699. With one of the largest Sikh communities outside of India, the Lower Mainland’s Vaisakhi celebra- tions are huge events. The Vancouver parade starts at 11 a.m. at the Ross Street Temple, moving along Southeast Marine Drive, up Main Street and then over to Fraser Street. Khurana and other business owners look forward to the parade and the crowds it brings. “We expect a lot of people to come in and take advantage of some special sales we have,” Khurana said. “People usually come by after the parade when they are still excited and they buy things.” “It’s a social and economic function,” added Kashmir Dhaliwal, a parade or- ganizer from the Khalsa Diwan Society. “People from everywhere come here.” About 20 floats will appear in the pa- rade, and visitors will partake in tradi- tional Bhangra dances, Dhaliwal said. The parade is intended for people of all ages, and is open to all races and re- ligions, he added. Despite the large crowds, south Van- couver restaurants don’t foresee any problems. “Everyone is usually very respect- ful, we don’t usually have any prob- lems,” said Yubraj Bathak, manager of All Indian Sweets Restaurant on Main Street. “A lot of people come in just to use the washroom.” SANDIP RAKHRA photo Tens of thousands turn out for food and dancing on 49th Avenue at the Vaisakhi Day parade, last year.