Sakura!

Sakura (cherry blossom) season is a well choreographed moment of mass hysteria in Japan. Every spring, teams of meterologists predict when the trees will bloom in various regions throughout the country so that people can plan their spring vacations accordingly. Huge groups of people assemble themselves under the trees to eat, drink and gaze at the sakura in the tradition of hanami (which roughly translates to a 'flower viewing party'). Practically everything you see has a sakura theme -- even KitKat releases a sakura 'flavored' candy each spring.

The sakura last for little more than a week, then fall in a beautiful "blizzard" of petals. Their blooming period is seen as a metaphor for the ephemeral nature of life and has been celebrated everywhere from kimono and tea cups to the sides of kamikaze airplanes.

Here are some more pictures from my first sakura season in Japan...

we went by the Arc Hills development in Roppongi/Asakasa on April 1st to eat delicious crepes at the local sakura festival and look at the trees that line the streets

when I came back to Kiryu, the trees next to City Hall were almost in full bloom... the sky was perfectly blue, so I joined a dozen other people to wander around and take pictures