Being in Japan the first two weeks of April means one thing: Sakura Season! Sometimes, you can try your best to work with Mother Nature but she tends to have her own schedule, regardless of your calculated predictions. This year, she must have been feeling extra warm because Sakura (Japanese for cherry blossom) season started extra early. By the last week of March, when the blossoms are usually just starting to show, Tokyo’s cherry trees were already at full bloom, meaning over 70% of their trees had bloomed!! We, on the other hand, were still State-side and had just a few more days before our flights departed for Tokyo. Knowing we’d have to hunt for the remaining blossoms, we had to reconfigure our itinerary to allow for more flexibility so we could see as many as possible. First Stop: Nakameguro Canal But not without coffee! We had to make a quick pitstop, just a few blocks away from both the metro stop and the canal, to get a cup of joe from Onibus Coffee. Ok, back to it! On our first full morning, we headed directly south from where we were staying to see Nakameguro Canal. This is one of the most famous viewing areas during Sakura season. If you look at the pictures below, you can see the pink and white lanterns. These were strung along the canal specifically for Sakura festivities! The canal boasts the most famous cherry blossom tree, somei yoshino. This is the one you think of when you imagine cherry blossoms (check out the cover photo for an example). But because the blossom season started so early, the late blooming trees had already started popping so we got to see a ton of varieties! A couple hours in, we decided to get a few snacks at the vendors spread out around the canal. Another cup of coffee, because jet lag and some dango which we were all so excited to try! We had wonderful weather and we felt like we made it to the canal just in time to see the last remaining cherry blossoms in that area. Second Stop: Ueno Park On the morning of our third day in Tokyo, we woke up early for a metro ride all the way to the opposite side of town to check out Ueno Park. As soon as we walked through the gates, we noticed so many different types of cherry blossom trees. The first one being a weeping cherry tree (shidarezakura). It was so vibrant again the blue sky. We walked through the promenade and found this huge tree (it's Japanese name is Shogetsu) next to a whale statue. It was filled with white blooms in large clusters all over the branches. It was just so beautiful. Apparently this cherry tree usually doesn’t start to bloom until the end of April... it was April 3rd when we saw it! If Ueno gets recognized for anything, it’s the pond. During Sakura season, most people will rent boats and try to get as close as possible to the trees for some ‘gram shots! The picture above shows what was left around the pond by the time we arrived. Third Stop: Hamarikyu Gardens After we finished lunch at the fish market, we walked just a few blocks over to Hamarikyu Gardens. We were mainly visiting to grab some matcha tea at the tea house but majority of the Sakura trees were in full bloom so we decided to walk around the entire place and check them out. We found a small path that looped up to the top of a lookout. The view of the old edo style garden mixed with the concrete jungle behind it was quite a sight. My favorite sakura tree of all of them! This pale pink color felt like the national color of Japan! Every time I see it, I go back to this picture and this tree. Continuing on, the gardens kept winding around the pond. I think we saw every variety of cherry tree, that was currently blooming, in Hamarikyu. One of the most interesting cherry trees we found was this green one! I know, the picture doesn’t do it justice because if you let yourself, you can imagine that it’s white with weird lighting but no, it really is green. Its traditional name is Gyoikou zakura and it was so cool. We all just stood there for a few minutes looking at it. Surprise Spotting: Tokyo Imperial Palace On that same day, we took the metro from the Gardens over to the Imperial Palace to check out the Emperor’s castle. As we walked through the main thoroughfare, we saw a ton of people taking pictures so we turned to our right and bam, a dozen or so Sakura trees, all fully bloomed and quite possibly stealing the royal family’s thunder. It was the moment we had been longing for but after arriving, thought we wouldn’t get to experience. Luckily for us, we found a few late bloomers that were willing to wait until the first week of April to show off!! Can you spot the tired tourist! I came, I saw, I conquered... I was low on sugar and jet lagged, what do you want from me?!
With the exception of a few more cherry trees we saw around Kyoto, this was it for Sakura season! We felt really fortunate that we got to Tokyo when we did. Almost every local we talked to was bamboozled by the blooms happening so early. Even so, we found so many beautiful trees in bloom and had fantastic weather to see them all! Until Next Time, C + D
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