Cherry Blossom Report: Kyoto
| Schauwecker's Japan Travel Blog by Stefan Schauwecker, webmaster of japan-guide.com |  |
This blog is intended to record some of my travel activities in Japan.
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2010/03/23 - Cherry Blossom Report: Kyoto
Cherry blossoms in Kyoto were reported to have opened on March 19 this year, twelve days ahead of their average schedule. Today I made a first report trip to the old capital to check on the blossoms' progress in three of Kyoto's most popular hanami spots: Arashiyama, the Philosopher's Path and Maruyama Park.
Arashiyama
March 23, 2010 - just opened (0-10%)
Most cherry trees in Arashiyama, a popular district on the outskirts of northwestern Kyoto, have only just started to open their blossoms and are still below the ten percent mark. The trees in the Nakanoshima Park along the river are particularly little advanced, probably due to the fact that there is no shelter that protects them from the forces of the weather.
Only a small number of trees, that are of different varieties than the dominant somei yoshino, have progressed further, including a few weeping cherry trees (shidarezakura). In general, the blossoms are unlikely to progress considerably over the coming two days due to cool and rainy weather, and the weekend will still be too early for full bloom.
Next I made a brief visit to Ryoanji Temple, which had been undergoing renovation works in recent months. The roof renovation at Ryoanji, which forced the temple to entirely close for more than a month earlier this year, is finally completed and the temple is back to normal with completely unobstructed views onto the famous Zen garden. However, Ryoanji is not particularly known as a cherry blossom spot.
Philosopher's Path
March 23, 2010 - just opened (0-10%)
Cherry trees along the Philosopher's Path have only just started to open, and the cold and rainy weather of today and the coming few days provides no reason for them to open up quickly. It is unlikely that the trees along the two kilometer long walking path will reach full bloom before later next week.
While in the area, I checked out Ginkakuji, another of Kyoto's temples that have been undergoing renovation works in recent years. The renovation works on the roof and the earthquake resistance of the Silver Pavilion were scheduled to end this March, and I am glad to report that the works have now indeed been completed.
Unlike the nearby Philosopher's Path, Ginkakuji is not a cherry blossom spot and I planned to keep my visit short. But then I noticed that special tours are currently offered of three of Ginkakuji's temple building that are not usually open to the public (35 minutes, guided in Japanese, 1000 yen).
The tour did not include entry into the Silver Pavilion itself (which never seems to be opened to the public), but it included entry into the celebrated Togudo Hall, which contains the oldest Shoin style room in existence. The room is the prototype of the tea ceremony room and what would become the standard traditional Japanese style room today.
Maruyama Park
March 23, 2010 - just opened (0-10%)
Like the blossoms at the other spots visited today, cherry blossoms in Maruyama Park, one of Kyoto's most popular hanami spots, have only just started to open and will probably take another week to reach full bloom. Even the large weeping cherry tree in the center of the park, which follows a slightly earlier schedule than the more numerous somei yoshino trees, has not reached the 50 percent mark yet, and appears weaker and weaker with every year.
The bad weather did not attract a lot of cherry blossom viewers today, and it seemed that tourists were outnumbered by workers who started to prepare the park for the upcoming cherry blossom festivities and cleaned up lights and installations from the Hanatoro event, which had ended yesterday.
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