Hanami: Flower viewing

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What's the big deal with flowers blossoming from trees? I always see those in the Philippines. Yes, the caballero's bright orange and yellow flowers are pretty, the kalachuchi is perennially blooming, and there are a lot of flowers wherever I go in Laguna. I surely have taken these flowers for granted until I arrived in Japan...

You see, I arrived as winter closed and as spring began. The skies were eternally gloomy and the weather was biting cold. It wasn't like the sunny winter I had in South Korea at all! The sad atmosphere made me realise that seeing a flower bloom in such conditions is really a happy occasion. No wonder people really take time to eat under the trees, dining under the full glory of cherry and peach blossoms. Ueno Park (Central Tokyo) was jam-packed with people partying under the pink blooms!



Honestly, the nighttime view of Japan's gardens during sakura (cherry blossom) season doesn't give the flowers' beauty justice. I was blown away when I visited Koga Park (in the Ibaraki Prefecture) because the peach (or plum?) were already in full pink bloom!


Photographers were all busy at work, taking photos of the blooms. At this point, I was already missing my DSLR because I only brought my trusty Sony Action Camera and my iPhone with me... Remembering that my bags were risking being overweight as they were, I was happy that I didn't have a DSLR. Otherwise, I would've been lugging about half of the allowable weight for hand-carried bags only because of the DSLR.

And then there's the cherry blossom corridor en route to a temple in the Tochigi Prefecture. Imagine biking through flower-filled trees. It must be beautiful! Fortunately, I didn't need to imagine... I was watching a biker go through the flower corridor.



This trip to Japan has given me a renewed appreciation for all things flowers hanging in trees. I ought to stop and look at the caballeros next time they bloom outside my window back in the Philippines.

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