On Friday, county board chairman Chris Zimmerman will be joined by Viktor Anushkevychus, mayor of the city of Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine, at a signing ceremony in Crystal City to make the familial relationship official. The signing will be part of the 55th annual Sister Cities International Conference, which Arlington is hosting this weekend.
Ivano-Frankivsk will become Arlington’s fifth sister city, joining Aachen, Germany; Coyoacán, Mexico; Reims, France, and San Miguel, El Salvador.
When it comes to sister cities, Arlington is part of a big family. Arlington County has familial relations with Aachen, Germany; Coyoacan, Mexico; Reims, France; and San Miguel, El Salvador. A relationship with Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine is also in the works.
So when the whole extended family comes to town, Arlington’s sister city organization wants to make sure we cross the T’s and dot the I’s.
The American Booksellers Associations, which represents independent booksellers, held a four-day convention in Crystal City last week to network and discuss business strategies.
Among the activities was a field trip to Arlington’s Revolution Cycles.
The convention, which ends on Sunday, features bands, workshops, celebrity meet and greets, concerts, a Japanese marketplace and more. Between 3,000 and 4,000 people, mostly younger, are expected to attend.
Samantha Burke, who along with four family members traveled here from North Carolina in a decorated white van, said Anime USA is a “celebration of Japanese culture.”
