お花見 Hanami

The nice thing about studying abroad for an entire year is being able to experience every season in a foreign country. This is especially exciting in a country like Japan where the four different seasons are all very distinct and nature is absolutely loved. For example, in summer, everyone gets excited about the warm weather, fireworks, and festivals. In autumn, if you ask any Japanese person they will tell you that the changing of the leaves is one of the most beautiful things. In winter it's usually excitement over eating 'nabe' (a stew like dish) or going to the onsens (hot springs). Spring is お花見(hanami).

I had heard of cherry blossoms, but since I had never really experienced it, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. Plus, the weather this winter was unusually cold so the news forecasts were constantly saying that the sakura would blossom later than average this spring. By the time the end of March rolled around, I'll admit I wasn't particularly impressed. But once everything started blossoming, I realized why the Japanese get so excited for sakura and hanami. I also realized that there is a sakura tree on just about every corner in Tokyo.

This is a sakura tree on Meiji Gakuin University's campus. 

Here's a sakura tree down the road from my dorm.

This row of sakura trees are on a quiet street on the way to Jiyugaoka.

Sakura have a short blossoming time (depending on the weather- usually 1 or 2 weeks). 

Sakura trees lining the Meguro River. Certain places lit up the sakura for night viewing purposes. It sounds crazy, but you really can't get enough sakura viewing. There are so many places around Tokyo that are considered the "best" spots that you have to go see for yourself! Overcrowded areas can be difficult though, so I think my favorite spots were the ones that were accidental discoveries - like seeing rows and rows of Sakura while riding on the train.

Tokyo Institute of Technology has its campus in Oookayama, which is about a 10 minute walk from my dorm. They have a beautiful campus to begin with, but they also have a little arbor area with massive Sakura trees that you often see people sitting under. This arbor is a nice area in winter so you can imagine how beautiful it became in spring!

Everyone comes out of hibernation to picnic under the Sakura blossoms. This is Tokyo Tech's campus; they were having a festival, so there was a live band playing some entertainment.

As you can see from the pictures, the beauty of spring in Japan is not only about the cherry blossoms, but also the shared happiness that comes from spending time with family and friends underneath the mesmerizing blossoms.