The cherry blossom season in Japan is one of the most popular and iconic times of the year to visit this spectacular country, and for good reason. But there are also many benefits to travelling outside of this period, from the changing leaves in autumn to the snow festivals in winter.
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Hanami picnic, Japan.
The cherry blossom season is a national institution and has played a role in Japanese society for thousands of years.
The practice of hanami (hana meaning flower and mi meaning to see or view) was first instigated in the Heian period which stretched from 794 until 1191. This was Japan’s great court era, when the emperor lived in palatial grandeur with hundreds of concubines, when haiku poetry was at it most elegant and when one of Japan’s great literary classics, The Tale of the Genji, was penned.
The poets, artists, courtesans and nobility of Kyoto would gather under the blossoming trees to celebrate the coming of spring and the beauty of the delicate pink and white petals as they fell gently to the earth.
Today hanami are more raucous affairs, with plenty of sake, beer and picnic food to keep spirits suitably high. Families, friends, work colleagues and sporting teams gather to sit on blue tarpaulin on avenues lined with cherry blossom trees and sing, chat and generally make merry until darkness falls.
Many places even have “lightups” of the cherry blossom parks so that the revelry can continue late into the night.