2009 will be a busy year for the Portland-Sapporo Sister City Association. It is our 50th anniversary and we have a lot of fun activities planned throughout the year. We hope that all our members and many Portland area citizens join us in celebrating this unique and long-lasting relationship.

Activities for March: For the 40th year, we have a group of 4 Oratorical Contest winners from Sapporo coming to Portland. The winners were picked from hundreds of school and college students. They will give their speeches in English at Portland City Hall. 2pm on March 31, 2009. This event is open to the public. One of the winners is the 3rd member of her family to win the speech contest. This promises to be a enjoyable event.

The anniversary celebration kicks into high gear with the arrival of the official delegation from Sapporo on June 5, 2009. We expect a large group of dignitaries from the City of Sapporo, including the current mayor Mr. Fumio Udea and members of Sapporo City Assembly. The delegation is also expected to contain a large number of citizens from Sapporo and surrounding areas of Hokkaido. There are many events planned, including:

• A re-signing of the Sister City declaration,
• Youth Art Exhibit
• Mayor Udea and IYE Reunion Marchers in the Rose Parade
• Ainu-Native American exhibition, Parallel Worlds at the Portland Japanese Garden
• Performance by the Hokkaido Broadcasting Company (HBC) Junior Orchestra
• Sayonara Party for Members and Guests

See our Event Schedule page for more information.

We are expecting upwards of 200 visitors from Sapporo. A delegation this size will afford many opportunities for our citizens to participate in some way, be it as a spectator, volunteer, or host family. Please check out our Home Visit and Volunteer pages for more information. The schedule of the delegation can be found here.

In November 2009, PSSCA will lead a delegation from Portland to Sapporo for the Japan side of the celebration. We will be joined in Sapporo by a group of Royal Rosarians, Portland's official city ambassadors. While in Sapporo, we will participate in many events, including a formal renewal of our Sister City relationship on 03 November (Culture Day in Japan) and a rose planting by the Rosarians.

Activities for visitors will include city tours, celebrations with city officials and citizens, available side trips visits to the city's tourist attractions like Hitsujigaoka Observation Hill, the former Hokkaido Government Building, and the picturesque nearby town of Otaru. There will be lots to do and see for all age groups.

Sapporo is a warm and welcoming city, beautiful at any time and especially so during the late Fall. We hope that many from Portland and our surrounding areas will join us in traveling to Sapporo for this unique series of events.

PSSCA has chosen Dai-Ichi International Travel as our agent for Portland's citizen delegation. The preliminary schedule for the trip can be found here. More information about PSSCAs activities is available here. Please contact Dai-Ichi directly for more information on travel or PSSCA for events in Sapporo.

We hope many Portland citizens will join Mayor Adams and us on this memorable adventure.

Please look around our site while you are here. If you have questions or comments, please use the email form in the Contact Us area.