Spring is here, and that means something special to the Japanese: sakura, the cherry blossoms that make the country blaze with beauty for a week or so, then blow away in the wind til next year. Although the first blossoms are still a few weeks away, Japan is starting to buzz about the coming Season of the Sakura (no, not that one), which can be enjoyed in practically every park, temple and shrine when the time is right, so common are cherry trees here. For the next few weeks, we’ll all be tormented by TV commercials beckoning us to Japan’s beautiful city of Kyoto, showing the most breathtaking scenes of cherry blossoms you can imagine followed by the city’s official slogan So da! Kyoto e iko! (“Hey, let’s go to Kyoto!”). You can tell how passionate Japan is about its cherry blossom culture by studying the many related words they use, like kaika (“first opening of the flowers”), zenkai (“fully opened” i.e. full bloom), sakura zensen (the “cherry blossom front” that moves up the country), and so on. I’m certainly ready for some flower viewing with friends and family!
The cherry blossoms in Kyoto are as beautiful as the city’s marketing machine is brilliant.
