By Ruth SOWBY

For two days in July the Lotus Festival brings together communities to honor the diversity and contributions of the Asian Pacific Islander communities of Southern California. This year, the weekend of July 12 and 13 marked the 44^th year of celebration timed with the blooming of the lotus flowers of Echo Park Lake, located just outside of downtown LA. This lotus bed is the largest in the nation and has been visited by over 125,000 people since the Festival’s beginnings.  

 This year’s festival featured dragon boat races, live music, dance performances and cultural exhibitions.  

The Festival started in 1972 as a one-day event called “ay of the Lotus. It was organized by the City of Los Angeles Dept. of Recreation and Parks and the Oriental Organizations (COO).  

The “coolest” activity on the hot afternoon was taking a swan boat ride on the lake. For the bravest among the crowd was a ride on the Dragon Train. Watching a dance performance under a tent in the heat was also popular. Members of LAPD guided pedestrians across the street from Festival to sidewalk.      

The lotus flower symbolizes rebirth, purity and life. Some theories suggest they were planted in 1923-24, possibly by missionaries from the nearby Angels Temple, using lotus seeds from China.