Honolulu Festival
events set

The 11th annual Honolulu Festival -- a weekend of events that includes a parade and a crafts fair -- will feature more than 5,000 artists, musicians and dancers from across Asia and the Pacific.

The theme of this year's event, which will be held next weekend, is "A Journey Across the Pacific."

The festival includes free entertainment and demonstrations, which will be held at the Hawai'i Convention Center, Ala Moana Center and Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center.

Highlights of the festival include:

» A parade down Kalakaua Avenue from 4:30 to 8 p.m. Sunday. The parade will feature dance performances and colorful floats.

» Various music and dance performances, scheduled for 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Hawai'i Convention Center, Ala Moana Center and Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center. Performances will be held at the three venues from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday.

» World premiere of "The Castaway," a documentary about John Manjiro, the first Japanese to set foot on American soil.

The 45-minute film will be shown at 10 a.m. Saturday in Room 310 at the Hawai'i Convention Center. Following the movie, there will be a seminar on Manjiro.

» A craft fair featuring more than 100 booths of Japanese and Hawaii artisans. The fair will be held at the convention center both Saturday and Sunday.

The Honolulu Festival was first held in 1995, and organizers aim to promote cultural understanding and harmony between the people of Hawaii and the Asia-Pacific region.

For more information, go the festival's Web site at www.honolulufestival.com.