Phenomenal Sakura

The Most hilarious time in Kyoto

Spring in the Old Capital of Kyoto is one of the most beautiful

seasons of the year.

For

 the Japanese people, the height of spring

will always mean

the blooming of cherry

blossoms

or sakura.

Nothing could be more poignant to the Japanese heart.

The blooming period of sakura is often a lot shorter than one would

like it to be,

especially

when the weather is warm and sunny.

The Japanese are said to love this season more

than any other,

and in Kyoto there are so many ways, in so many places,

to celebrate

this supreme symbol of spring.

Enjoy Hanami! – Cherry Blossom Viewing Parties

Hanami, literally “flower-viewing”, is one of the most popular events of spring in Japan. The practice of hanami is ancient. The custom is said to have started during the Nara Period (710-784) when the high culture of the Chinese Tang Dynasty influenced Japan in so many ways. It was the imported ume plum blossoms that people admired in the beginning, but by the Heian period (794-1185) sakura began to attract more attention,

possibly because it was native to Japan.

From this time, the written word for “flower” in poems and other high forms of writing, generally referred to cherry blossoms. Emperor Saga (8th-9th century) is widely viewed as the first important patron of cherry blossom viewing celebrations. He held lavish flower viewing parties with sake and food underneath the blossoming boughs of sakura trees in the Imperial Palace.

During these parties, poems were written praising the delicate flowers, which were seen as a metaphor for life itself, luminous and beautiful yet fleeting and ephemeral. This is said to be the origin of hanami in Japan. Based on the philosophy of “mono no aware,” appreciating the beauty of ephemeral things, hanami is an activity that encourages introspection. Hanamireminds us that life is short and that we must make the most of it. The season of cherry blossoms also marks the end of one fiscal year and the beginning of the next and invites each of us to take the time to think about our aspirations and future plans.

Hanami and cherry blossom festivals are held all over Japan in April. At hanami parties, people have fun; drinking, eating, and singing during the day and at night. There are many well-known hanami spots all over Kyoto. Cherry blossom flowering dates vary every year, as such it’s difficult to predict the accurate dates in advance. They begin blooming in January in Okinawa, and they are at their peak in late March to April on Honshu (Japan’s main island), including Kyoto. In Hokkaido, cherry blossoms usually reach their peak in May.

Japanese Cherry Tree Varieties

There are about 200 cherry tree varieties in Japan. A few of them are wild varieties native to Japan’s forests, such as the Yama Sakura, but the large majority of them have been cultivated by humans over the centuries for decorative use in gardens and parks. By far the most popular cherry tree variety today is the particularly pretty, cultivated Somei Yoshino.

There are several characteristics differentiating the many cherry tree varieties. Most wild trees, but also a lot of cultivated tree varieties, have blossoms with five petals. However, some species have blossoms which consist of ten, twenty or more petals. Trees with blossoms of more than five petals are called Yae Sakura. Most varieties produce light pink to white blossoms, but there are also cherry trees with dark pink, yellow or green blossoms. The color of some varieties of cherry blossoms change while they are in bloom. For example, a blossom may open as a white flower and change to pink over the course of a few days. Weeping cherry trees, or Shidare Sakura, have drooping branches and bloom later than other varieties. Their blossoms usually have five petals but some have more.

Omuro Sakura at Omuro Ninna-ji Temple