Remember when I ordered all those fab Lego village kits? Well, the Buildiverse folks sent me one that I missed (or I would have already bought it instantly): this light-up pinkness of pinknesses! If you can’t be in Japan right now to see the real cherry trees put on their signature splendor, this is totallyContinue reading “What do you need for cherry blossom season? Your own light-up Lego cherry tree!”
Tag Archives: cherry blossom season
The Best Places To See Pink Rivers of Cherry Blossom Petals
The leaves are greening, hangovers cured, blue tarps furled, the madness over. Right? Wrong! Because as soon as the petals begin to fall, it’s hana-ikada season: “rafts of flowers” that float atop cherry tree-lined bodies of water, turning them into pink rivers! It’s a little trickier to catch the magic of the fallen petals thanContinue reading “The Best Places To See Pink Rivers of Cherry Blossom Petals”
The Scourge Of The Orange Jacket
Okay, I know you think I’m a whiner because I went off on this guy wearing an orange jacket, sitting right in the middle of a shot I wanted to take during cherry blossom season at Shinjuku Gyōen. I mean, one guy, minding his own business—so what if his head’s inside his phone instead ofContinue reading “The Scourge Of The Orange Jacket”
Hacking Hanami: How To Get Yourself Invited To A Cherry Blossom Party
Kicking back under clouds of pink blossoms in the warm spring sun, eating a picnic and drinking with friends – it’s something you always dreamed of doing in Japan, isn’t it? And then you get here, and you discover that unless you’re a member of a work group that puts on a hanami party, you’ll beContinue reading “Hacking Hanami: How To Get Yourself Invited To A Cherry Blossom Party”
If I Were A Thousand Years Old, I Would Not Be Putting Out Like This
I mean, look at it. This tree is a THOUSAND years old. It has cranked out cascades of blossoms like this every spring, a thousand times. And if yesterday was any indication, the grand old lady is showing no signs of shirking anytime soon. Just imagine a fast forward of this tree’s life, with generations of cherry blossom viewers ebbing and flowing all around it, asContinue reading “If I Were A Thousand Years Old, I Would Not Be Putting Out Like This”
Pink Food Season Arrives In All Its WTF Splendor
It never fails – every time the big cherry things burst into bloom, I see foods that totally make me want to shout “What the pinkity pink?” I’m not talking about food that should be pink (like sakura ice cream) or is only slightly questionably pink (like strawberry lattes), I’m talking about the HELP EEK WHY IS THAT FOOD PINK specialties that appear everyContinue reading “Pink Food Season Arrives In All Its WTF Splendor”
Cherry Blossom Illuminations
Did you even have to ask? It’s not enough that famous cherry blossom spots are lit up at night, now Tokyo has electric cherry blossom extravaganzas that rival the ever-more-crazy holiday light shows! • TOKYO MIDTOWN in Roppongi Tokyo Midtown’s promenade of cherry trees is not only lit up in pink… …they also dumped a huge cone of dirt on the field where theContinue reading “Cherry Blossom Illuminations”
Where To Take The Best Cherry Blossom Photos In Tokyo
You know those “Top Places To See Cherry Blossoms In Tokyo” websites that always tell you to go to Ueno Park? Well, this is how Ueno Park actually looks during cherry blossom season: Lots of great flowering trees, not such great photos. The places on those lists do deliver the cherry blossoms, but if you want photos thatContinue reading “Where To Take The Best Cherry Blossom Photos In Tokyo”
What’s Blooming In Japan Right Now?
So, around this time of year, I get to thinking about how everybody is about to crowd into Japan to see the fluffy pink things, but that cherry blossom season is far from the only time that this place delivers yowzah-level flower extravaganzas. So I made a thing. Here’s what’s blooming when, and the best places to take photosContinue reading “What’s Blooming In Japan Right Now?”
The Best Cherry Blossom Spots In Tokyo – With Maps!
Whether you’re all about the beer drinking or just want to win a few photo contests, first you gotta find the big pink things. Here’s a list of my all-time favorite hanami party and petal-snapping spots, with maps so you don’t waste time trying to locate the pinkness! • Here’s what the early blooming flowers look like (see them in theContinue reading “The Best Cherry Blossom Spots In Tokyo – With Maps!”
Alt Cherry
So, during cherry blossom season, people naturally flock to places with maximum pink fluffiness. But if you don’t have any real blooming cherry trees of epic proportions, how do you avoid being the location equivalent of Forever Alone? Behold the ingenuity of even the stodgiest of institutions… •
Cherry Blossoms Lit Up At Night: My Favorite Spots!
Oh no, don’t think you can put your feet up and flip some channels after the sun goes down during cherry blossom season – thanks to the current craze for “illuminations,” the ogling opportunities will seriously cut into your TV time. Here are my favorite nighttime viewing spots. Get thee to the nearest grove and give your camera aContinue reading “Cherry Blossoms Lit Up At Night: My Favorite Spots!”
The Secret Garden
Behind the long, boring building mostly known for blocking views of the pagoda at Senso-ji is the secret garden of Denpo-in. Within those walls is a serene retreat used by the priests for meditation, closed to the public except for a few days each year. But if you’re in Tokyo right now, woo hoo, it’sContinue reading “The Secret Garden”
Cherry Blossoms for Geeks
Which one of these traditional Japanese tenugui hand towels is not like the others? Hint: it’s the one with the poem that reads: “One of these is small, but he stubbornly heads toward his goal, The other changes direction according to how the wind is blowing…” •
Only In Japan 