From late March every year, for little more than two weeks, the Japanese cherry trees blossom in seas of whites and pinks across Japan. Visiting Tokyo briefly for work, I managed to squeeze in a quick walk down the alleyways of Tokyo’s Yanaka Cemetery towards the end of the short blossom season – the path and ground littered with the elegant pink flowers.
Celebrated as the arrival of spring, the Japanese adore this time of year as families populate parks and shrines full of these spectacular trees for picnics, quiet strolls and family gatherings. Similar to the kaleidoscopic fall colours so popular in North America, the local inhabitants have favourite vantage points to celebrate hirami and sight the magnificent oceans of colour.
In parks, boats can be hired to row gently along the streams to enjoy the tree-lines banks, the blossom-laden branches leaning towards the water weighed down by their rampant blooms.
Other Asian Posts
Symphony of Lights (Hong Kong)
Happy Birthday, Peak Train (Hong Kong)
It’s All in the Stars (Jaipur, India)
A Royal Facade (Jaipur, India)
A Monument to Love (Taj Mahal, India)
From Dead Duck to Bird Heaven (Bharatpur, India)
Notes
Source: Boat Photo
Sakura! Sakura! Great that you shared your experience with the pinky scene in Japan. I’ve been dreaming lately to witness the blossom of oriental cherry in Japan! I heard they even rented out tiny picnic spaces for tourists for thousands of dollars!
Cheers!
Cecil
An afternoon spent rowing about in one of those boats amongst cherry blossoms sounds pretty wonderful.
Spring in Japan must be a bit mroe advanced than the UK. My Cherry tree is only just starting to bud up nad it will be another month before it blooms. But they sure are spectacular en-masse.
@cecil: I’d love to see it for more than a few fleeting moments between visiting customers.
@footsteps: The boat thing sounds wonderful.
@fh4u: Maybe its a bit warmer in Japan than the UK?