12th Annual Lotus and Bamboo Festival
"A Glimpse of Southeast Asia in Southeast Texas"
Saturday & Sunday
June 5th and 6th, 2010
9:30 AM till 5:00 PM
Buu Mon Buddhist Temple, Port Arthur, Texas
Port Arthur’s Buu Mon Buddhist Temple invites you to the 12th Annual Lotus and Bamboo Festival Saturday and Sunday the 5th and 6th of June 2010 from 9:30 am until 5:00 pm. The festival will be held at 2701 Procter St., Port Arthur, TX.
Buu Mon Buddhist Temple is looking forward to another fun filled weekend in the gardens. We are once again pleased to have the Texas Bamboo Society participating and sharing their knowledge of bamboo and the bamboo culture. We are looking forward to vendors from the Texas Bamboo Society selling bamboo plants and crafts as they have at past Lotus and Bamboo Festivals. We look forward to the participation at this year’s event of our horticulture and aquatic gardening friends, such as Mr. Mark Hines, the Garden Supervisor for Shangri La Botanical Gardens. Mark is also Superintendent of General Grounds and Maintenance Services for Stark Foundation. Mark, the Texas Bamboo Society and others will be available to assist the visitors with questions they may have about our gardens.
Saturday and Sunday there will be walking tours of the gardens and the temple. It is an opportunity to learn the history of the gardens and Buu Mon Buddhist Temple as well as Buddhism in general. The gardens as well as the temple have undergone major remodeling and landscaping in the past year.
The gardens have been especially hit hard by this past winter’s freezes so we have taken the opportunity to initiate a landscaping project we had planned to address at a later date. The gardens are airier and allow for a more contemplative experience. We have all the confidence you will enjoy the gardens and their new look. This year’s visitors will be the first to see and experience this new environment.
Bhante Kassapa, the Assistant Abbot, will be discussing tea and its preparation. The Buu Mon Meditation Group will sponsor a food booth, as well as, an arts and crafts booth. Visitors will be able to enjoy traditional Vietnamese cuisine prepared by the temple’s parishioners and purchase a variety of items such as t-shirts, jewelry, and refreshments from the Buu Mon Youth Group, Lotus Dance Troupe and the Lion and Dragon Dance Troupe.
One of the highlights of this year’s festival is a performance by the Lotus Dance Troupe and the Lion and Dragon Dance Troupe. The dance groups will close the weekend festivities with performances starting at 4:00 PM Sunday, June 6th.
There will be a variety of vendors both days of the festival with an assortment of arts and crafts to purchase. Regional artist will have booths set up selling their artistic endeavors. In addition various non-profit organizations will be on hand sharing information concerning their organizations and the services they provide the community.
There are four gardens surrounding the temple which is home to a large variety of lotus and hardy and tropical water lilies, as well as, various types of bamboo. Some of the bamboo is able to reach heights of up to 80 feet. In addition to the lotus, water lilies, and bamboo, the gardens include a variety of tropical fruit trees and various types of plants. Again this year Bhante Kassapa will have on display his bonsai trees for visitors to enjoy.
We invite you, your families, loved ones and friends to come and visit the gardens; marvel at the beauty of the blooming lotus and lily flowers. Enjoy the many varieties of bamboo and obtain advice and tips for your aquatic garden. There will be ample opportunity to purchase bamboo. The public is invited to attend.
For more information, please call Bhante Kassapa at (409) 960-8369 or the temple office at (409) 982-9319. You can email us at . Please visit our web site at http://www.buumon.org.
We look forward to seeing you at this year’s festival!
vendor info: http://www.bamboocentral.net/lotusfestvendorform.html
Lotus and Bamboo Festival June 5-6, 2010 -Port Arthur, Texas
Moderator: needmore