Cherry Blossom Festival at Yasaka Shrine
Perhaps one of the best times to be in Japan is spring; right around the time the new school semester started, we were able to see the cherry blossoms begin to bloom around Kyoto. Though I was sad to have to start school again after getting to spend so much time under the kotatsu and traveling, getting to see all the flowers on campus bloom at once was very fun. It made everything super pink for about two weeks!
Even near the dorm we had a few trees, so wherever you went, you’d find cherry blossoms! It made it easy to understand how, like the autumn foliage, it was a popular attraction for tourists. Unfortunately, that meant that the buses were often crowded and late on the way to school… But it was worth it to be able to enjoy the change of the seasons here!
On top of that, my friends and I were all able to attend a cherry blossom viewing festival at Yasaka shrine here in Kyoto. There were tons of food stalls and games set up, and it was absolutely amazing to sit there at night with everyone and talk beneath the trees. The moon happened to be very beautiful that evening as well.
Fish!
I think one of my favorite things that I was able to eat there was definitely the fish!
The last of the flowers.
Unfortunately, cherry blossoms are notoriously quick for falling away rather quickly after they bloom. And because of the rain, they fell even faster this year. It was really sad to see them go, but at least the streets stayed pink a while longer from all the petals on the ground! Not to mention everything else was just beginning to come into bloom!