Cherry Blossom Report: Sendai
by Sean, staff writer of japan-guide.com
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2012/04/25 - Cherry Blossom Report: Sendai
Sendai is a city close to my heart because it was one of the first places that I had visited during my first trip to Japan to watch the World Cup ten years ago. Today we visit its cherry blossom spots. The city's cherry blossoms officially started opening on April 18 this year, and should be at their peak around this time.
Tsutsujigaoka Park
April 25, 2012 - Full bloom
We arrived at Tsutsujigaoka Park at seven in the morning and there were already many picnic mats laid out under the trees, in preparation of the hanami (cherry blossom viewing) sessions later in the day. In fact, we noticed some tents and other people sleeping with blankets on the sheets, which suggest that they might have camped overnight to reserve their spots.
Tsutsujigaoka Park has a good mix of Somei Yoshino, Shidare, and Yaebeni Shidare cherry trees (more information about cherry blossom varieties). The Somei Yoshino and the Shidare were at full bloom, while the Yaebeni Shidare were approaching full bloom as well.
Mikamine Park
April 25, 2012 - Full bloom
Mikamine Park is an excellent place for hanami as it has lots of open space surrounded by cherry trees. While there were not many visitors at the park when we visited early at eight, it would most likely get more crowded in the afternoon and especially so over the coming weekend.
The cherry blossoms were at full bloom and the huge lawn at the park provided for a thoroughly enjoyable morning walk for us and other early birds.
Nishi Park
April 25, 2012 - Full bloom
While Nishi Park does not have quite as many cherry trees as the previous two locations, there is a hanami festival going on here until the end of the month, which means delicious festival food available at the numerous temporary food stalls. The festival is from about ten in the morning to about ten at night.
The state of the cherry blossoms was similar to that of the previous two locations. Hopefully, the rain which is forecasted to fall tomorrow and the next day would not be too heavy, in which case cherry blossom viewing would still remain very pleasant for this weekend's hanami goers to the different spots in Sendai.
Aoba Castle
April 25, 2012 - Full bloom
The Aoba area was unfortunately badly damaged during the earthquake last year. While not particularly a great location for seeing cherry blossoms, Aoba Castle offer good panoramic views of Sendai city. Construction work is however still undergoing at some parts of the observation platform, and is scheduled to be completed by May this year.
The few cherry trees at the castle grounds were nevertheless still quite pretty with their blossoms fully opened. One terrific picture would be that of the statue of Date Masamune (feudal lord of Sendai in the past) and the cherry tree by its side.
As we walked around, we could still see traces of the damage caused by last year's disaster, but conditions have visibly improved. Last year we reported about one of the stone lanterns which toppled over; that has been replaced with a new one. The main road leading to the location of the castle's former main keep, although still not open to motorists, is now open to pedestrians.
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