What a difference a few days makes. The two pictures above were taken six days apart, one before the blossoms had bloomed, and one after. (Actually, I have another picture taken just two days after the first which shows equally barren branches, but it's not as perfect a match location-wise.)
Here are a few more comparison shots: one, two, three.

There was some sun in a few of my cherry-blossom pictures, but for the most part there was very little sun this cherry-blossom season, and I was sick for most of it. I finally uploaded my most recent shots, and there are a few [...]
View full post »

Truly, the cherry blossoms are quite pretty around where I live (map), thankfully neglected by the majority of both tourists and locals alike. While sitting with Anthony under some blossoms yesterday, I thought about how many have tried to put the feeling into words, and how they certainly must have failed. Not being one to pass up a chance to fail miserably, I've given it a go myself:
            Oh humble Cherry Tree             Passing the year in quiet slumber             Alive after the long winter             Heavily laden with Spring's finest glory             Beauty beyond the grasp of words             Not retarded crap like poetry
the [...]
View full post »

Despite the cold I'm coming down with, I was able to get out for some pictures, and some of the cherry-blossom shots came out okay. I really wish I could place pictures inline in this blog -- the lack of this ability may be the one straw that breaks the Yahoo back, and forces me to move my blog elsewhere.
Some of today's pictures have made their way into my relatively new pretty picture gallery. A full-screen view of this pic or this pic is nice.
For an interesting comparison, look at this picture, along with the one linked from its caption, taken a week prior. Also, [...]
View full post »

Cherry-blossom viewing can be wonderful, but only if you can find a quiet, relatively alone place in which to enjoy it. Otherwise, it's just an ugly spectacle. A few minutes' walk from where I live is Kyoto's “Maruyama Park”, famous for its 600 cherry trees, which are appropriately beautiful now that spring has sprung. I went there today, not to see the trees, but rather to see how bad the people were.
They were plentiful. People milling about everywhere, with festival venders hawking octopus balls and squid, people sitting in loud smelly groups on blue vinyl sheets drinking beer and smoking, among tour guides explaining to [...]
View full post »

During a short drive this morning, it was readily apparent that the cherry blossoms had hit full bloom overnight, as the area offered a dramatically different view than yesterday. I didn't have much time, but did stop to snap the pic above (which certainly does nothing to lend justice to the actual beauty of the scene). It was quite overcast, which mutes the pictures much more than the actual scene.
Unfortunately, I'm coming down with a cold, so slept most of the day. I have to go out in the late afternoon, so will bring my camera along to see if I can get any [...]
View full post »

Season changes in Japan tend to arrive like clockwork, and few changes are as well predicted (and highly anticipated) as the blooming of the cherry blossoms (“sakura”) . A cherry-blossom tree in full bloom is truly more than the sum of its parts, presenting an almost unearthly, indescribable beauty that no photograph can capture (although that doesn't stop hordes of both amateur and professional photographers from trying, myself included.)
Thus, it was with doubtless disappointment that the throngs of tourists that descend upon Kyoto this past weekend (many, certainly, from all over Japan, with tours scheduled long in advance) were treated to chilly fall-like brisk winds and [...]
View full post »