Cherry Blossoms! Hanami!

Of course this is a post that I have to write about whilst living in Japan. This is the largest event and I would say the jolliest season in Japan. The Cherry Blossom season only lasts about two weeks depending on the weather. The hotter it is the shorter it becomes and you can ask any Japanese person what their favourite location is to view them.

Included in this season is the ability to drink outside and eat lots of food in the parks during the day with whoever will keep you company. I went to the following places!

• Ueno Park
• Shinjuku Park  
• Meguro River
• Inokashira Park

I drank, ate and ran around with friends and by myself enjoying the immense amounts of cherry blossoms. The blossoms themselves are amazingly beautiful and on top off all of that there are many different types. With a bit of research you can see a variety of them ex. Ume (plum) blossoms flower about two weeks before the  traditional white sakura.

Be warned that there are many Japanese people that lay tarps down and reserve these spots, don’t worry though you can still find places to sit even if you don’t go early. Just know that you won’t be sitting down under the most biggest and most beautiful trees. It really doesn’t matter since you are surrounded by them regardless. If you don’t have time to make it to a park you can still enjoy them on the riversides, near train stations and at temples all around the city.

I have also heard of people traveling throughout Japan to follow the blossoming of the sakura from south to north making it more than a month of viewing. When the season ends the leaves starts to grow and the petals rain down littering the streets and parks with lots of white petals.

This is a real sight to see, if you ever make it to Japan come at the end of March beginning of April.