Nine years ago I was in Tokyo at the peak of the cherry blossom bloom. See: Cherry Blossoms in Tokyo

Today at work I was talking to a friend and she said that her sister was in Japan to see the cherry blossoms so I am thinking about them tonight. I have been to Japan a few times during during the cherry blossom season and have seen them in different stages of bloom.

I took the picture above on the way to my hotel from the Limousine Bus stop. You can see one of the many Tokyo canals in the background of this picture.

The next day a former colleague who had retired met me and we went to see the new stadium that was being built for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. I really liked this view of a cherry tree with pink blossoms.

Capturing the young girl riding the bicycle in front of the tree was entirely by accident. However, it is a really cool picture. The pink of the coat and the purple shoes match well with the color of the blossoms on the tree.

Here are some trees at Shinjuku-gyoen. See: Recovery Day in Tokyo

The trees in the foreground are just beginning to bloom and the ones in the background are a little further along.

There are many different varieties of cherry trees in the large garden area, and some bloom a bit earlier than others.

You can see here that many people are taking pictures of the cherry blossoms. People were using a wide range of devices from cell phones to professional grade cameras. A few people had up to five cameras they were taking pictures with. I took some with both my camera and my cell phone.

I really like this picture. Can you see the reflection of the cherry blossoms in the pond? The Shinjuku-gyoen is a very pretty park and has many wonderful viewpoints. I also like this picture as you can see the modern buildings of the Shinjuku district in the background.

The park is now on my list of places I want to go back to. I would like to see the park during different seasons, especially a bit later in the year for roses and in the autumn as the trees change color.

I have also been seeing pictures of the cherry blossoms in Washington D.C. during the nightly news. Did you know that the cherry trees in Washington D.C. were a gift from Japan?

Steven