A sumo workshop, traditional Chinese coming of age ceremony, and art exhibitions, are all events still upcoming as part of this year’s explorASIAN festival.

The month-long event is presented by the Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society and promotes various Asian cultural events across the city.

May is Asian Heritage Month in Canada which means this weekend is the festival’s midway mark with more opening and on its way.

The Rumble in the Jungle Exhibition opens Saturday (May 14) at the Chinese Canadian Military Museum (2nd floor, 555 Columbia Street). The exhibition pieces together the story of Force 136, a division of Chinese Canadians that were trained in guerilla warfare and jungle survival tactics at the end of the Second World War, according to the museum website. Men from Force 136 will be at the opening event.

The gallery exhibit and online preview of BLOOM: INK opens Tuesday (May 17) at the Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre (6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby). A group of over 60 contemporary and traditional artists have contributed pieces inspired by Canadian artist Takao Tanabe’s ink works. The collection is part of Nikkei National Museum’s 8th annual BLOOM art auction on May 28.

Elsewhere in the city, a sumo workshop will be held on Sunday (May 15) at the Vancouver Japanese Language School and Japanese Hall (fifth floor, 487 Alexandra Street) while the traditional coming of age ceremony in Chinese Han costumes is also being held on Sunday (May 15) at the Chinese Cultural Centre Museum (555 Columbia Street).

The full program, including film events, book launches, and mini festivals, is available at explorasian.org.