The beginning of spring is marked by the blooming of cherry blossoms – sakura – in Japan. Generally at this time, it may be slightly past the peak, but would still be considered a reasonable time to see the sakura. This year is a little different. 2021 marks the earliest peak bloom of sakura in Japan in over 1200 years. Going off of the timing last year (mistake), and my lack of news reading recently to help keep my sanity, I missed the memo. The viewing window I set for myself ending up being a little late. That’s not to say I completely missed it, but I missed the best of it. All the pictures in the post are pictures from the little bit of sakura that I did see this year.
2021 vs Previous Years
Despite having only lived in Japan for a little over a year, this is the third year in a row that I’ve been in the country during cherry blossom season. Beyond the statistics of the timing of the bloom peak over the last 1200+ years, my own personal experience also shows the bloom later this year that the previous years. This year, partly due to covid and partly due to bad weather ruining the early-ish dates that I had set the view the sakura, I didn’t get to picnic under the sakura this year. Beyond the earliness, due to the current state of the world, there were much less posts about the cherry blossoms on social media and fewer events hosted under them. I didn’t get to go to a ‘hanami’ this year, but I did have a different great experience with the sakura this year. The unexpected is what you should expect!
Hanami and Illuminations
Hanami, in Japanese “花見”, is the act of appreciating the beauty of the flowers, flower viewing. In the modern age, this is generally done with a significant other or a group of friends in the form of a picnic. Alcohol is optional, but a frequent additive to a successful hanami. This year I had a bit of an early hanami with only a single tree in the park bloomed to picnic under. This was a third of the way into March, so it was especially early.
Illuminations, as they are called in Japan is basically a light-up event – think Christmas lights on steroids. The closest I can think of in the US is my home town of Denver’s Zoo Lights. They generally happen around the holidays in Japan, big cities like Tokyo or Shizuoka set them up downtown. There are also places that do year-round illuminations that you can go to any night of the year. Perfect of those who hate the cold of winter in Japan. Cherry blossom season is another time besides the holidays that illuminations are put on. Why sit under the cherry blossoms in the day when you can see them lit up in different colors and no one can tell how red your face is from the alcohol?
What are your experiences with sakura? Whether in Japan or Washington, let us know!
