Cherry Blossom Fever

April is the month of Cherry Blossom fever in Washington DC.. and I'm not mad about it!

So here is the story according to Wikipedia:

Japan gave 3,020 cherry blossom trees as a gift to the United States in 1912 to celebrate the nations' then-growing friendship, replacing an earlier gift of 2000 trees which had to be destroyed due to disease in 1910. These trees were planted in Sakura Park in Manhattan and famously line the shore of the Tidal Basin in Washington DC. The gift was renewed with another 3,800 trees in 1965. The cherry blossom trees continue to be a popular tourist attraction (and the subject of the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival) when they reach full bloom in early spring.

If the National Cherry Blossom Festival isn't enough to get you excited, you can experience cherry blossom treats like cherry cupcakes, cherry flavored brandy, cherry upside down cake... you name it, and as long as it doesn't remind me of cherry flavored cough medicine.. I want it!


I first fell in love with cherry blossoms when I went to China last summer. There are subtle hints of cherry blossoms in  everything from pottery, to paintings to garments... when my trip came to a close, I became obsessed with doodling cherry blossoms all over my notebooks in class. So obsessed that I got one of my cherry blossom drawings tattooed on my body. 

My tattoo

The cherry blossom has different meanings in Chinese and Japanese culture. In China, the cherry blossom stands for women's dominance and beauty as well as feminine sexuality. In Japan it symbolizes the transient nature of life, as the cherry blossom blooming season is so short.






So now that I have bored you with my interest in the cherry blossom, take a look at some beautiful pictures my friends and I took along the Tidal Basin when the trees were in full bloom