by Steven Knipp

Every year in spring, thousands of people celebrate cherry blossom season in Japan with picnics held under blooming pink canopies to honour the short-lived flowers and welcome the new season.

Japan has more festivals than any other nation in the world, and the most loved among them is the annual Sakura celebration, better known as hanami (flower viewing) or the Cherry Blossom Festival. Once a year people of all ages take part in the annual gatherings that are held in more than a thousand locations across the country.

The fun begins in early April when Japan’s Meteorological Agency leads the evening news broadcasts with reports of the approaching “Sakura Line”. As the spring weather moves up the 2,400km length of Japan, from Okinawa in the sub-tropical south to Hokkaido in the north, everybody watches the trees in their local area to spot the first flowers.

The Japanese are renowned for their work ethic and for working extremely long hours, but the entire country takes the opportunity to unwind and relax when the cherry trees are in full bloom.

The Sakura festival marks a time of renewal. Winter is over, the sun feels warmer with each passing week and every park in every city is packed with people—some dressed in traditional kimonos—picnicking and partying beneath billions of pink and white flowers. They sing, they dance, they drink sake, beer, or sweet Japanese plum wine, and it isn’t long before you see faces as pink as new blossoms.

The dining, drinking, laughing and singing (and flirting) begin by lunchtime. Everyone brings snacks and seasonal treats to the gala picnic, from popular sushi rolls and bento box lunches to spicy fried chicken nuggets. For dessert, there are sweet glutinous rice cakes filled with red bean paste, cherry-flavoured cookies with cherry blossom milk pudding, and mochi—with a generous ice cream centre hidden inside a soft, chewy rice dough.

The party continues into the evening, when the light of the moon lends an other-worldly quality to the festivities, and the paper lanterns that children hang on the tree branches add to the dream-like atmosphere of the hanami. And when the night air gets cool, there are flasks filled with hot miso soup to warm everyone up.

Aside from drinking, eating, dancing and laughing, there’s also lots of music and singing. And, not too surprisingly, songs that tug at the heartstrings, with emotion-laden lyrics and melodies, are often the most popular.

In Japan, the cherry blossom is more than the national flower. The tree itself stands for love: love of family and friends, love for the life we are so privileged to have and for the fragile beauty of the natural world.

It can also be an emotionally charged time for young people in Japan as it coincides with all school and college graduations, as well as most school entrance ceremonies. This means lifestyle changes, with plenty of emotional farewells and many sad goodbyes.

Though the Sakura season is easily Japan’s most joyful time of the year, there is also a bittersweet side to the social occasion. The sakura blossoms last two weeks at most, yet, as in life, nothing is guaranteed. A cool spring shower or a rise in temperature can put a premature end to the two-week window.

When the wind blows, the ensuing cherry blossom snow storm, or sakura fubuki, marks the end of the hanami. The Japanese understand nature’s cycle of life—so people tell each other to seize the day, go outside... and celebrate.