2018.25.3 Attendance at the 2018 Minato City World Carnival.

Attendance at the 2018 Minato City World Carnival.

March 25, 2018: His Excellency Ambassador Dr. Bashir Mohabbat had the pleasure of attending this year’s Annual Minato City World Carnival held at the base of one of Tokyo’s prominent landmarks, Tokyo Tower.

H.E. Ambassador Dr. Mohabbat participated in the official Opening Ceremony along with the Minato City Deputy Mayor, Mr. Akira Oyaizu, and other dignitaries of the Minato City area.

This grand international event, which draws thousands of guests each year, is the culmination of the efforts of the Minato Ward World Festival at the end of the Minato City Stamp Rally. It was hosted by Minato City Hall, Japan Travel Bureau (JTB), Minato International Association, Minato Travel & Tourism Association, Tokyo Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Minato Chapter), and Junior Chamber International Tokyo Minato Area. It is one of the largest events hosted annually by Minato City and has participants from dozens of other embassies and international organizations who introduce the charm of each of their respective countries to the many visitors by highlighting the music, art, ethnic costumes, and cuisine of each country.

The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in Japan's Public Relations Office had the pleasure of hosting two separate booths: one booth for displaying cultural items, costumes, crafts, and goods – such as lapis lazuli jewelry, henna tattoos, gand-e afghani & chapan, and award winning Afghan saffron; and one booth for preparing and serving freshly made bolani-e gandana (leek/chive) & bolani-e kachalu (spiced potato) with chatney and also sweet sheer chai. The booths were staffed by the embassy's local staff and interns from its Internship Program. Both booths together welcomed a total of over 1000 visitors who stopped by to learn more about Afghanistan.

Additionally, it was a pleasure of the embassy to communicate and further strengthen the friendly inter-embassy relationship with other embassies, as well as local residents and businesses through this event. The Embassy of Afghanistan in Japan through its Public Relations Office expresses its deep appreciation to organizers for the coordination and cooperation which allowed us to participate in the 2018 Minato City World Festival, the Minato City Stamp Rally, and the Minato City World Carnival, thus successfully teaching approximately 2000 visitors this year about Afghanistan and her beautiful culture.

Original page

2017.20.03 Receiving Guests Participating in the Minato-ku World Carnival Stamp Rally

Receiving Guests Participating in the Minato-ku World Carnival Stamp Rally

January 13 - March 20, 2017: The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in Tokyo received about 1000 guests for the Minato-ku World Carnival Stamp Rally. The Stamp Rally was covered by the NHK, TV Asahi and Yomiuri Shimbun.

This year's run differed from previous years as Ms. Allyson Diaz, Public Relations Officer for the Embassy of Afghanistan in Japan, sought the chance to reach out to the community and have them learn more about Afghanistan on their visit. On Mondays and Wednesdays the visitors were given guided tours of the Embassy while on Fridays, the visitors were given an informative and entertaining presentation about Afghanistan and a guided tour of the embassy by Mr. Ashraf Baburi, Administrative & Accounting Affairs Officer for the Embassy. During the presentation, the guests were also provided with refreshments from Afghanistan giving them a taste of Afghanistan’s food culture. Succeeding the presentation, there was a short question and answer section where all the visitors’ questions regarding Afghanistan, the history of the country, relations between Japan and Afghanistan as well as the differences and similarities between the two cultures were answered.

The purpose of the guided tours and presentations was to allow the visitors to learn more about Afghanistan and be familiarized with the country since travelling remain currently difficult. The Public Relations & Cultural Affairs Office hoped that by coming to the Embassy and receiving the hospitality, the visitors would feel like they have been to Afghanistan. Guests enjoyed learning about Afghanistan and Afghan-Japan relations while touring the Embassy and viewing places such as the Rumi Balkhi reception hall as well as the Embassy rooftop.

Look At the Photos From the Stamp Rally Here

Original Page