I went to the 2025 Summer Bon Odori Buddhist Festival here. I have not danced here in several years…read moreor before Cvid. I moved to S. Seattle area, so it's closer to drive out now. They use the same dances and music as the Seattle Bon Odori at the Betsuin Buddhist Church. A volunteer let me change into my kimono in the No Access Area where the restrooms by the Hodo alter area was. It's a large handicap restroom that I used before. So it was helpful. At the Seattle Buddhist Church there was no public restrooms to change. They close them up and have sanicans ionly. I changed at a hotel after I went to a fest. At Seattle Center before going to Seattle's Obon. I bought and found some Kimono underwear gear that I could not find in Little Tokyo in LA. I also found small tabis that fot me at size 4.5. So that was only $3 each and found two luckily. I thought I needed more larger size Tabi. Today my left foot was swollen with a sprained ankle. So some of my other tabis did not fit. I wore a brace and only dance "Tanko Bushi," the Coal Miner's Dance. They do this standard dance all over other Obons all over the US and in Tokyo. I was lucky they had left over Teriyaki Chicken bowl and Tsukemono half price. Retail for chicken was $12 , Unagi was $15. It was not as cheap when they sold them 10 yrs ago. Somen was $4. They did not have regular soda. Just flavored water and water. There was a Beer Garden too but no entertainment there since it off to the side of the church and not in a quieter area. There were a few African Amer. In the audience and other non Japanese Nikkei there too. They drew people from other parts of Tacoma, And other areas besides from the Seattle Obon. After 8pm they had a short Obon Memorial Service for deceased members and for anyone who bought a candle for $10. There were floating lanterns and other nice paper lanterns in their small Jp Gardens. Even in Idaho, there is a Bon Odori, Chicago, LA, SF, Sacramento, Vegas, Vancouver BC,. Hilo, Honolulu, Portland, OR. You can probably find where ever there is a Japanese Community like in Brasil and Peru. The Bon Odorii in the Phillippines is more of a stage show sponsored by Jp Corp. , Jp Gov. and they get many locals selling food. I saw it on You Tube.

Came here a few times for Japanese related events such as the Bon Odori and the latest being the…read moreBazaar and craft festival. Each time we are here we are delighted by the helpful staff and the range of both handmade and well curated goodies. If you also are a fan of Japanese sweets, during these events they offer treats like daifuku and manju that is so fresh and chewy! A lot of street parking in the area but be weary, a lot of them are on hilly areas by the UW Tacoma campus! Also, if you can bring cash - some of the items sold at these events are cash only!

The SGI is an amazing Buddhist organization, focused on making positive change. Nam Myoho Renge Kyo…read moreis the main part of the practice. The members are so friendly and encouraging and very supportive. I highly recommend it! www.sgi-usa.org

This was my first time visiting Chùa Phước Huệ . When I…read moredrove up to this Temple I was greeted by rows of flowering cherry trees. They will bloom in Early March up to Early April this is the best time to come visit if you want to see them in bloom. This reminds me of iconic UW cherry blossoms! Parking was plenty. As my kids and I tour this Temple we felt very relax and my kids even found a kids playground! I think this Temple is very kid friendly even the monks here are kid and family friendly. The pathways bring me to beautiful statues and inspiring poems , which helps me have some positive thoughts about this life, slow down for a moment and search inside myself...i think every visitors will find something meaningful here to bring home for their love ones and themselves . Don't forget to greet and meet the nice monks here to have a positive conversation. The main hall I see a beautiful giant Buddha statue with wooden background. They also have a Vietnamese weekend class for kids .I had the chance to eat their vegetarian Bún bò Huế and Banh Bao, both tasted excellent! I highly recommend this Temple for any one in Tacoma area.

Very nice temple. Welcoming to all. Good place to go for Thai,Laos and Cambodia NY. Lots of foods…read moreaways after monks eat.

I moved here from Oregon, looking for thai temple, looked the reviews and decided to check it out…read more It is nice and welcoming. They do ask to wear mask inside sala (building). It even has a play area for kids and a big pond in the back. It was peaceful.

I became a member of the Temple a few years back & left three years later. To be clear, there are a…read morefew Temple members who were warm, sincere & always very welcoming. I had a few negative experiences at the Temple that ultimately made me leave the Temple. The Temple is mainly comprised of older members & generations of families have attended the Temple. That's not a bad thing per se, but issue the members are very old school & stuck in their ways. The committee members did not seem receptive to any type of feedback. I will say Sensei Ogui & his wife Miyumi were absolutely wonderful. They moved back to Japan a few years ago. I even went back & visited the Temple and was basically asked why was I there. My hope is the Temple will stay alive and younger, more forward thinking members will keep the Temple moving in a new, positive direction.

Nice atmosphere and friendly people. Great learning experience. Pinnacle of Japanese-American…read morecommunity for generations.