Hanami

Sakura, or cherry blossoms were in full bloom recently, and since this might be my last chance to see them here in Japan, I decided this year I was absolutely going to do hanami, or cherry blossom viewing. 

I’d meant to do this last year, but I got the timing a little bit off, and by the time I had gone somewhere with the express intention of looking at the cherry blossoms, many of them had already fallen, and the branches were a dark red or even green. Cherry blossoms are only really at full bloom for about a week or 10 days, giving you a fairly narrow window. 

Now, a traditional hanami is a bit like a picnic. You gather some friends, bring a tarp or blanket, beverages, some food, and set up in a park under a cherry blossom tree. I don’t have a big friend group, nor am I that organized, so my version of hanami was most likely going to be taking a stroll in a park. 

I’d planned to go to Tokyo to meet a friend, and I had hoped that I’d be able to get some hanami done while I was there. We decided to meet in Nakano, which I’d never actually been to before. I’d definitely heard the name, but didn’t really know what was in the area. I had some time to kill while I waited for my friend, so I took the chance to explore Nakano Broadway, a mall right by the train station. 

Unlike somewhere like Sunshine City, this was a much smaller mall, only about three floors, and with much lower ceilings. I was mostly just scoping it out while waiting, and a lot of the stores weren’t open yet. Though enough stores caught my eye that I would like to come back here sometime. 

Once I met my friend, they wanted to stop at a nearby bakery before grabbing some lunch. As we walked to the bakery, to my delight, there were rows of beautiful cherry blossoms in full bloom. I tried to revel in the sights while shooting the breeze with my friend as we walked. 

While the bakery was out of the brownies my friend was craving, they still loaded up on other tasty-sounding baked goods. I restrained myself from grabbing some, mostly since I didn’t want to be stuck carrying them during my long trek home. As we walked to the bakery we had passed by a Thai food place, and decided that would be our lunch destination. 

While my experience with Thai food has mostly been limited to pad thai, I tried something new and had some soft shell crab curry and Thai tea. Both were new to me, but quite good. Despite the name, I was still surprised when my friend told me I could eat the crab claws in my curry. We talked about nothing as we ate, and it felt like just what I needed. 

After we finished, my friend was ready to head back to the station, but I insisted on a slight detour to a nearby park. I may have consulted ChatGPT for some nearby hanami spots, and this park was one that came up. It was only 5 minutes or so out of the way, so it was an easy sell to my friend. 

Luckily, it ended up being worth our while! There were some kids playing, and at first I thought it might be more of a playground than anything, but then we found some lovely cherry trees. There were other people milling around and taking pictures of the trees, so I felt pretty validated by my choice. 

We snapped pictures of the trees, some quick selfies, and took a few pictures together. I tried not to think about it too much, but my friend is going to be heading home soon, and this might be one of our last chances to get photos together. I’m sure I’ll get sappy about it in a future post, but I am going to miss them, even if I’ll be leaving in just a few months myself. 

As we strolled back to the station, I snapped a few more pics of the trees on the way back. People travel to Japan during this season just to see the cherry blossoms, so in a way I almost felt like it was an obligation I had to fulfill since I live here. Though, in all honesty since we have cherry blossoms in Vancouver, they didn’t feel entirely special. 

Now, we certainly don’t have the same scale of cherry blossoms in Vancouver, but there are some quite beautiful spots around the city. Maybe that’s why last year I never got motivated enough to make time or plans to meaningfully see them. Though since this was my last year living here, I’m glad I found time to appreciate them, and it was made even better by having a friend with me. 

Sakura are the national flower here in Japan, being featured prominently in both culture and in iconography, like the 100 yen coin. They carry a lot of meaning here, reflecting the impermanence and beauty of life. The flowers bloom brilliantly, representing new beginnings and life, but last only a short period of time, showing the transient nature of life. 

Then, before you know it, they begin to fall, bringing a gentle sadness. Nothing is permanent, no matter how beautiful, and all things must end and change. In a way, it’s fitting for this next phase of my life. My time here in Japan, no matter how brilliant, and how difficult, is reaching its end. But with that end, will come a new beginning.