It’s been a cold Spring. At least the flowers aren’t deterred. I’m not either. Many of the flowers in my neighborhood are starting to fall, so in honor of the impermanence of the fragile beauty, I carry my camera everywhere, ready to take a shot of anything that seems even slightly gorgeous… Fortunately for me, I’ve stumbled on to some rather exquisite images… Even in today’s gray dampness, I found the flowers delicious. Literally, I wanted to eat them. Taking photos is the best way I know how to “consume” them. I wish I wasn’t so greedy. But at least I get to share them, even merely vicariously, with you.
the slideshow should begin automatically…give it a few seconds (depending on your internet connection) to load and start. Below are the photos. Some might need to be clicked on and enlarged in order to really capture the details…
Hanami, which is “flower watching” refers to sitting around, all day, drinking and eating under a cherry blossom tree. I can’t think of anything better than this during Spring! And apparently neither can hundreds of thousands of Japanese either. Businesses send their workers out to a park to place a blue tarp on the ground and literally hang out all day (in shifts with other workers) in order to “claim” a good spot under a tree so that everyone can go there after work and hang out for several more hours. In the meantime, everyone brings champagne, wine, beer, and pretty much, anything else …and the drinking starts around 11am…and goes non-stop all day. This Spring it has been unusually cold, rainy and windy, so I haven’t been hanging out with everyone else. I’m fighting off my own cold at the moment, so my views of the Sakura here in Tokyo have been sparse so far. Nonetheless, I’ve gotten some pretty amazing shots already. Please enjoy! It really is overwhelmingly beautiful…
