Hanami

Cherry trees are a big part of Japanese culture and if you've never seen them they are quite a site to behold.

But not for long.  Depending on where you live in Japan (and of course elsewhere in the world) they can bloom anywhere from January until May, but it only takes about 1 week for the trees to come full bloom (満開【まんかい】) and about a week after that for the petals to start falling.

It is customary to take walks and have picnics in areas with the trees.  This is a path near my home and most of the time the trees are bare and you can see an old granny walking along the path for exercise once in a while, but once the petals are in full bloom there are people walking along the paths and I saw a few people having picnics with their families.  So nice...

The only thing that sucks about this whole ordeal is that it's all over in the span of around 2 weeks.  Not all the trees bloom at once so when they do, you might only have a few days to appreciate the entire beauty of it all, provided there's no rain, then the pedals start falling and then you're done.  It's just my opinion, but I think Japanese are really taken with transient things, which is why they love cherry blossoms so much.  It's only for a short time, but for that short time you get this awe inspiring beauty that can even give ugly people with bad personalities a shot at a date (if you can get your potential significant other to the tree sites).  Also, April is the month where business start their new years and when the new school year starts, so it's also looked at as the beginning (or transitioning into) of a new year.  If this isn't on your to-do list to do with a loved one before you die, it should be!

花見【はなみ】 (hanami) (n,vs) cherry blossom viewing