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Cherry Blossom Viewing in Japan

Tuesday, April 7th, 2009

When the Cherry Blossoms bloom in Japan it’s traditional to go to the park to view the blossoms and have a picnic. Cherry Blossom viewing is called called Hanami. Ayako Egawa generously shared her photos of this years cherry blossom viewing.

Ayako wrote, "We walked under the flow of cherry blossoms in the park. It was beautiful!"

Close up of the cherry blossoms.

Ayako continued, "Lots of people enjoy sitting and eating ‘bento’ (their lunch)."

Ayako wrote, "We hiked along the road hearing the twitter of Japanese Bush Warbler.
I like the feel of spring!"

I asked Ayako what the Japanese Bush Warbler sounds like and she wrote, "Hearing the twitter of the Japanese Bush Warbler is a sign of Spring in Japan. They sing like ‘Whoo Who ket kyo’! It’s a unique twitter." Later Ayako sent me this YouTube video below she found to hear the bird’s tweet.

Ayako wrote, "Small purple flowers in the park. They are pretty."

Ayako wrote, "Cherry blossoms in this school playground are really beautiful! It’s common that there are lots of cherry blossoms in school playgrounds in Japan."

Thanks so much for sharing these great photos with us Ayako!

Check out these posts for more about Cherry Blossom Viewing and Festivals.

•Cherry Blossom Parties in Japan and a Japanese Folk Song called "Hana" ("Sakura")

•"Sakura, Sakura" another Japanese Cherry Blossom Song

•Cherry Blossom Festivals Around the World

•Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival

•Cherry Blossom Viewing in Japan

You can also hear 2 well known Cherry Blossom Songs on Mama Lisa’s World:

Sakura – Cherry Blossoms

Sakura Sakura – Cherry Blossoms (Song #2)

Enjoy the season and try to see Cherry Blossoms blooming near you if possible. It’s worth the effort.

Mama Lisa

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, Folk Songs, Hanami - Cherry Blossom Viewing, Hanami - Cherry Blossom or Sakura Songs, Holiday Songs, Holidays Around the World, Japan, Japan, Japanese, Japanese Folk Songs, Japanese Kids Songs, Languages, Photos, Photos, Photos of People, Photos of Places, Sakura, Sakura - Cherry Blossoms, Seasonal, Spring, Traveling, YouTube | 1 Comment »

Photos from Kamakura, Japan

Monday, March 2nd, 2009

Kamakura is 50 kilometers (31 miles) southwest of Tokyo. Ayako Egawa wrote to me from Japan about her trip there, “I went to Kamakura where there are many famous historic Japanese sites. This is “Daibutsu” which means Great Buddha. It was cast in 1252 and its height is approximately 13.4 meters (44 feet). ‘The figure sits in dignified repose with a most placid expression of countenance.’ That’s a quote about it from Dr. C. Dresser’s Japan – Its Architecture.

It was fine day. Daibutsu made a beautiful contrast with the blue sky.”

This is the Hasedera Temple that houses a statue of Kannon the goddess of mercy.

Below is the Japanese garden at Hasedera Temple. Ayako wrote, “This is a typical Japanese garden. Typical Japanese gardens have a pond with a small bridge, a garden lantern, garden stones and old trees that show the four seasons.”

Ayako wrote, “Garden lanterns are stone lanterns for decoration in the Japanese garden, not real lanterns for practical purposes. Here’s a photo showing some Japanese stone lanterns…”

“This is ’smile Jizo’. Jizo is a stone statue of Buddha. The height is about the same as kids.”

Here’s the gate of Hasedera Temple with an old pine tree.

Ayako wrote, “This is "Kintsuba" which is a Japanese sweet I bought at Kamakura.
It is made by simmering pumpkin and sugar with small beans. The beans are Azuki, a small red bean. It is used as sweets like “Kintsuba”.”

Thanks so much for sharing your photos with us Ayako and for telling us about them! It’s all really neat to see and learn about.

-Mama Lisa

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Posted in Countries & Cultures, Japan, Japan, Photos, Photos, Traveling | 1 Comment »

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Cherry Blossom Viewing in Japan

Photos from Kamakura, Japan