Chasing the cherry blossoms in Kansai
he forecast said optimum viewing was up to the 1 th of pril. Originally scheduled to fly to Osaka on the 20th, we rebooked our flight for the 17th to make it to Mt. Yoshino. he fabled mountain was probably the last stronghold of anami (cherry blossom viewing) in the Kansai area for the season. Yoshinoyama to the Japanese, it was the star in Kurosawa’s film, reams, resplendent with rows upon rows of cherry trees filling the landscape with undulating waves of blossoms in varying shades of pink, from a delicate blush to a light amaranth. es t is
dream can finally be ours to live, we fantasi ed as our plane landed in Kansai irport late at night. he overnight stay in Kyoto seemed too long a wait for that much-awaited trip to our mountain destination. So what, you may ask, is the big deal about
anami ell, it’s been around for centuries with its beginnings during the ara period (710-7 ) when the blossom of the moment was ume (plum). y the eian period (7 - 11 ) sakura (cherry) became the flower du jour, with Emperor Saga throwing sakedriven, flower-viewing feasts underneath the blossoming sakura trees at Kyoto’s mperial ourt. Sakura was also used to announce the rice-planting season and divine the year’s harvest. n the Shinto tradition, offerings were
made to the a trees, which contained the revered spirits.
The tradition continues to this day when people hold parties in parks all over -apan to welcome pring with the blooming of these most beloved flowers. The blooms are followed closely — from the first bud to the final petal falling from the tree in differ ent areas monitored by the -apan eather ssociation as well as private agencies, websites and blogs. The flowers reach their peak about a week after the first bud opens and last only a week after that so timing is crucial for viewing trips.
e ourselves followed the blogs reli giously and to our dismay found that the
of 0t. oshino had opened a few days earlier than e pected making our scheduled trip a few days too late. e still hoped for the best, though, as we set out on an early morning train trip from .yoto tation. The weather was not cooperating, however, as rains were forecast for the day.
s we approached oshino, verdant mountains started to dominate the land scape. The first trees were apparently planted more than , years ago with the cherry trees of different varieties now numbering around , . ince we were
As we went higher up the mountain, it became greener and flOwERING BusHEs stARtED tO DOt tHE tRAIL. It ALsO BEGAN tO RAIN,
But OH-sO-LIGHtLy, Just ENOuGH tO CREAtE A MIst tHAt GAvE tHE suRROuNDING wOODs A FAIRy-tALE QuALIty tHAt wAs QuItE MAGICAL.
on the last leg of the season, our best bet was to head for the middle 1aka enbon and top part ku enbon of the mountain since the at the lower part himo enbon had mostly fallen to the ground already. uckily, when we got off the train, there was a shuttle bus waiting for 1aka enbon which we were able to board immediately.
eaching 1aka enbon, we Mumped off the bus and followed the trail to a viewpoint, which was a steep hike that seemed even more laborious with the drop in temperature and the threat of rain from the ominous clouds above. s we went higher up the mountain, however, it became greener and flowering bushes started to dot the trail. ,t also began to rain, but oh so lightly, Must enough to create a mist that gave the surrounding woods a fairy tale Tuality that was Tuite magical. e were half e pecting to see elves and nymphs or maybe those hobiMin twin fairies of fame singing the 0osura 1o ta prayer 0otha raaa yaaa, 0otha raaa yaaa The thought must have worked because lo and behold, we saw the first tree, glorious with its pink blossoms, a calming presence in the cold of the forest. ,t almost did not belong there but its radiance was enough to make the whole trip worthwhile. Through the fog we saw a couple more cherry trees and finally reached the view point which turned out to be anticlimactic and disappointing. las, most of the cherry trees in the mountain slopes had turned dark brown with the pink petals already on the ground.
e decided to take the shuttle to the highest point of ku enbon where the trees bloom the latest but when we got there the rains became stronger and the fog thicker. ith almost ero visibility, it was more prudent to head down before conditions got worse. t himo enbon, we encountered a most charming town with shrines and temples, the most delicious chestnuts, and as a reward for all that climbing — shopping There were many arts and crafts shops that filled our bags and ended our oshino adventure on a very happy note.
The ne t day we set out for rashiyama on the
western outskirts of .yoto. ur friend, chef Bambi Sy Gobio of estaurante Pia y amaso had Must arrived from 0anila and was able to Moin us for the trip. We started with the Tenryu Mi Temple, a World eritage Site built in by the ruling shogun Ashikaga TakauMi. The temple has a beautiful landscape garden designed by 0uso Soseki, featuring a central pond surrounded by rocks, pine trees and flowering plants. The forested Arashiyama mountains in the background act as borrowed scenery, completing the garden design’s composition.
(xiting the temple’s gardens, we encountered what is probably the area’s piece de resistance The Bamboo Grove Forest. The walk through the forest of towering bamboo trees that sway gently with the wind is truly magnificent. It’s a stroll you wouldn’t want to end because of the grandeur of it all. There was a shrine along the way but we decided to skip it because we were more intrigued by the former villa of the silent screen actor kochi enMiro. nlike some of those tacky ollywood stars, this -apanese celebrity used his wealth to create an elegant villa and gardens with a commanding view of the Arashiyama mountains, which we contemplated over a cup of F green tea and rice cakes offered by the 9illa’s staff.
n the way home, we saw a sign to the 0onkey 0ountain, which we could not resist as animal lovers but felt a bit guilty about as we do with most oos as they keep animals in cages. This one, however, was the reverse the macaques are roaming free in the mountains while tourists are the ones contained in the cage! It was a holding room, actually, with refreshments and souvenirs, but still a constricting cage from which you can feed them.
ay , we reserved for some thing we always wanted to see but never had enough time for during our past trips to .yoto The Fushimi Inari Taisha, a Shinto shrine in the south known for its vermillion R gates that number in the thousands. It is dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice. (ven if we had seen many pho tos of this shrine before, we were still not prepared for the breadth and scale of those kilometric
R quite spectacular as they snaked all around the mountains. Although the climb can be steep at certain points, there are refresh ment stops as respite and some interesting shrines and altars to admire with the ubiquitous fox statues carved in stone as guardians. The foxes, considered the messengers of Inari, are mysterious creatures that can supposedly possess humans by entering through their fingernails. The very thought made the whole atmosphere quite eerie indeed especially when visited close to sunset.
Gion is always a must stop for us in .yoto par ticularly at dusk when the place comes alive with the geishas and maikos shuttling to their appointments. At anami koMi street we spotted a gaggle of tourists who must have been tipped that there was a big chance of spotting a geisha coming out from a F and true enough one appeared and despite pleadings from the .yoto Tourist Association not to disturb them as they are professionals who have work to do, the tourists, us included, snapped away. Actually, our photos were not that sharp because their presence is quite disarm ing so impeccably dressed, coiffed and made up. They seem to come from another world and one is Must awestruck looking at them. Photographing them seems almost sacrilegious.
etermined to see more of them and in more gracious circumstances, we booked a ticket for the 0iyako dori show, a once a year event held in the spring, which has RV the term they prefer, meaning arts child as opposed to geisha or arts person’ and RV apprentices performing their famous cherry blossom dances with traditional instruments as accompaniment. It was a most un forgettable show with of them wearing the most exquisite kimonos made specially for the event, moving gracefully across a stage with lavish sets.
n our last day, we decided to take it easy and visit the gardens of the Imperial Palace. Walking along the walls of the Palace, as we approached one of the gates, we espied a flash of pink – could it be what we thought it was Bambi screamed in glee es, it was a grove of cherry trees in full bloom! ow lucky we were to catch V right in the city where most of the flowers had already wilted the week before and Must when we had abandoned all hopes of seeing them. There are many varieties of V after all over a hundred in fact with varying times of flowering and in some areas like Sapporo in northern -apan, they bloom as late as early 0ay. After taking the requisite IG and FB photos, we did as the natives did and sat under the trees the best way to enMoy It’s really quite an experience looking up and having all these cherry blossoms enveloping you in a warm pink embrace. It captures everything that -apan is all about subtle beauty, delicacy, tradition and a harmony with nature that brings absolute peace and serenity. After this, you definitely will never ever question what the big deal over cherry blossom viewing is all about.