Day 31 Cycling in Sakura Petals

May 11 • Blog, Kyushu • 921 Views • 4 Comments

“Sakura, Sakura…”
There is an old song called, Sakura, in Japan. Sakura, cherry blossoms, is a national flower of Japan, along with chrysanthemum. The hype around the blooming sakura in the spring is shared by everyone in the country, and it is one of the best things to see if you visit Japan in early April.

We have “sakura forecast” during this season along with the regular weather forecast on the news. Approximately one week long full bloom sakura blossoms is what everyone is waiting for after the cold winter. Because it is so short and extravagant, it is a national outdoor party time called “Ohanami”, as I did in Kagoshima.

In a shop between Akune and Yatsushiro, I found a sakura dessert with the blossom and a cherry inside. It’s so pretty I wouldn’t want to eat it!

A team of high school baseball players were also surrounded by full bloom sakura blossoms. Even a hard practice is nicer with all these pretty flowers around?

Even a small sake bottle had sakura inside. The bottle was made to sway like the sakura branches. What a nice touch. Again, if someone gave this to me as a gift, I wouldn’t be able to drink it as it’s so pretty.

So many rivers in Japan have sakura trees alongside. You can see how much we love this flower here.

Everyone was enjoying activities around the sakura trees. Me cycling, these guys, playing ground golf.

My bike’s name is Sakura, too, if you didn’t know.

A nice lady gave me an orange when I stopped to rest. Another person talked to me and told me he drove passed me earlier on a hill. I wonder if he caught me singing as I was cycling along the sakura trees.

Around the same time, you start seeing these swallows flying around and making nests. This is also another sign of spring you can catch in Japan. They fly so fast and zoom really close by you.

Fried cutlass fish was my lunch that day in Yatsushiro City, Kumamoto Prefecture. It’s a long, flat, silvery fish called, Tachiuo, in Japanese. The sweet and savory sauce was really yuummy!

Being surrounded by sakura all day made me like cycling even more. I wish more people would cycle to feel this beautiful scenery and the amazing smell of spring.

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