Winter makes way for cherry blossom

One might think that it is a bit early to talk about the famous Japanese cherry blossom season but in reality not so much because at the time I write these lines some people in Japan and in all over the world have already had the chance to admire cherry blossom.

Yes, it seems that the earliest cherry blossom festival in Japan is held in Okinawa during middle of January to middle of February so it has already started. To be more specific, the first cherry trees to bloossom are the ones at Yaedake in Motobu Town, located in the Northern region of Okinawa, and their blooming are celebrated at the festival called “Yaedake Sakura Matsuri”. They are called Taiwan cherry because they come from Taiwan and Southern China. You can check the different spots in Okinawa on this page : http://www.okinawastory.jp/en/special/sakura_2012/sakura_index.html

Actually, they are not the only ones to blossom in January, there are several other places  where you can see some in Japan, for example in Kumamoto and Nagasaki in Kyushu. Outside Japan, you can also find some in January in cities such as Paris, New York or Massachusetts etc....

The blooming season does not really depend on the type of cherry (for example the Taiwan cherry which blossom early in Okinawa) but rather on the climate. And the rule seems to be the milder the climate the earlier the blossom will be. That is why Okinawa is the place in where they blossom the earliest and Hokkaido the latest (around May) .

But think about it. Cherry trees in full bloom surrounded by snow is really a beautiful scenery but it is something that must feel really weird because middle of January is a very cold period and it is the period you feel the most that winter is here. Cherry blossom normally represents spring in people’s mind and their blossom in January might be thought as something rare but as I showed it is not so much.

New Year and Christmas just passed some weeks ago, then it started to become really cold and then suddenly, in one day, Tokyo got recovered by snow.  Everything was really quick and seeing those photos of cherry trees blooming in January make you feel that spring is already around the corner.

Have you done all the things you wanted that are only possible in winter ? Because you can already the Spring's footsteps approaching.

Benji

Tweet