Cherry Blossoms - Sakura

Happy Monday! Welcome to the first day of spring! Maybe it doesn't look like it just yet, but there is hope! Around this time, however, in Japan people are starting to celebrate hanami (cherry blossom flower watching parties) Every year people put down their tarps in parks to have flower viewing parties with their friend or co-workers. There is tones of good food, beer and fun! There is something freeing in having drinking parties outdoors. Something we can't have in Canada because it is simply illegal. Somehow the government doesn't trust us, the grown ups, to use our judgements when we drink! In Japan, you can walk around with a drink in your hand at any time, festivals, parties, picnics and enjoy the freedom. No one ever gets hurt, rarely there are any fights. On the contrary, people are relaxed and friendly.

Cherry blossom is like life of a samurai, they say in Japan. It is short but intense! It is true. When they just start booming they add so much colour to the black bark of cherry trees. When they are in full bloom they take your breath away with the intensity of colour and magnitude of flowers. But when they die there is something out of this world. The wind blows and the flakes look like snow in spring. You have to see it for yourself. No word can express the real beauty of Sakura! No wonder every year Japanese people celebrate its beauty by having mass tours to see it and to take pictures. And even though they have it every year it never gets boring. Every year they go out to view flowers as if for the first time. I couldn't resist and  tried to capture its beauty. This is what we saw from the car March/April, when we drove shopping from Chichibu to Yorii.

This is a famous sight in Chichibu. Temple Number 28 by Urayama Dam. This old tree offers a spectacular view with its hanging Sakura. Not far from it there was an onsen owned by the sweetest lady I know! She was so good to us. We would come to her ryokan to enjoy  hot water baths in a nice rocky setting. She would close up one of the bath just for us. There are separate baths for women and men because you go there naked as the Japanese tradition dictates. But she would make it possible for our family to go in together! One awesome lady! After the baths she would treat us to some hot tea in winter and she would always have some candy or toys for my son. As an additional attraction she had a lot of cats that would sit around the lobby and the parking lot of her ryokan. My son loved to play with them.

Urayama is a small village that merged with Chichibu a few years back. Although it is well hidden in the mountains it offers a great fun and an interesting trip. There is Urayama Dam where we would drive in the summers to escape the heat of the city  and to see Japanese macaque monkeys in the wild. There is a community centre right by the dam with a little display of art and history of Urayama and the region of Arakawa River. If you drive a bit further on the third Sunday of October you can witness an ancient Shishimai Dance. It is mesmerising and intriguing! What is it? Check it out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSTO8oGyk8w