Hanami in Pictures

Well, it's that time of year again.

HANAMI!!!

Hanami literally means "flowers look". It's a type of party that happens here in the spring during cherry blossom season.

Two years in a row, I went up to Hirosaki Castle Park to have a hanami with friends. Hirosaki Castle Park is one of the 3 most famous places in Japan for Hanami. It's about 2 hours North of where I live.

This is the actual castle. I've never been inside...



...because of this line.


Lots of people dress to impress for hanami in the big parks.


An important part of hanami is the liquor. (Yes, they've got a plastic bag tied around dude's neck. lol)


Getting drunk is sport of Olympic proportions in this country. And there isn't really a stigma attached :)


And then of course there's the food- one of the biggest reasons I love festivals in Japan. These are called dango- they're made from rice. (99.9% of Japanese food is made from rice, soy or fish.)


Of course, the best part is the cherry blossoms themselves.


Aren't they gorgeous?


Especially next to the water.


And their sheer numbers are mind-boggling.


I'm not that much for nature, but I can't help but smile when the trees match my sweater.


My neighbours and I are hosting a hanami tomorrow. Thanks to the two cold snaps recently, the cherry blossoms are 2 weeks overdue, and there is only when blooming tree in town. Oh well, thought that counts, right? lol

Also it's Golden Week. Today (Fri) is a holiday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are holidays. They owed me a comp for working last Sunday, so I took Monday off, and I took a vacation day next Friday. My next day of work is Monday, May 9th. And that, my friends, is why Japan is hawt!!!