Fujimoto Michio, founder of Shanghai’s Jiading Wisteria Park

Since then, Fujimoto has led a group from Wake that travels to Jiading every year, composed of people from the senate, officials, people of agriculture, medicine, education and other fields. Jiading also send groups to Wake for communication at a frequent rate. With the continuing exchanges, the two places officially signed an agreement to establish friendship on October 15, 1992.

To celebrate the fifth anniversary of this friendship, Fujimoto planted over 120 wisterias on the riverbank of Jiading’s city moat on March 19, 1997. The park, which spans 10,000 square kilometers, was also constructed. Now it has become a tourist attraction that draws thousands of visitors a day. This was not expected by Fujimoto.