This festival will be on March 1st, from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Children free when accompanied by an adult paying regular admission to the Gardens.
“Tucsonans will be able to share in the traditions of Japan with a celebration of the annual Japanese holiday Hinamatsuri, or Girls Day. Customarily held on March 3rd, this special day heralds the beginning of spring while wishing for the health and future happiness of girls with traditional hina doll displays, special foods, and activities.
The centerpiece of Girls Day is the large, five-tiered display of ornamental hina dolls representing the Emperor, Empress, and their court from the Heian period (9ththrough 12th centuries) when the custom of displaying dolls originated. Believing the dolls had the ability to contain evil spirits, straw hina dolls were set afloat down the river to the sea to carry bad spirits away, a tradition still practiced today.