Cherry blossom's
Two weekends ago, we had been to the Cherry blossom festival in Washington D.C with a bunch of friends. As always, people thronged to see the festival. Some of them were residents but most others were tourists. The blooming of the cherry trees around the Tidal basin has come to symbolize the arrival of spring.
In 1912, these trees were presented as a gift from Japan to the US, as a token of friendship. These pretty blooms embellish the tidal basin in a sea of pink and white. Based on the weather forecast, and close inspection to determine the stage of bud development, the National Park Service announces the peak bloom period which lasts for a fairly short period of time. A day prior to this, Smithsonian museum holds a kite festival which is more of a contest and prizes are given under various categories.
On the opening day of the festival, there is a parade and couple of performances, which we sadly miss out on - more so due to the lack of finding a parking space in the already crowded district with tones of one-ways. The day we chose to visit was one of the peak bloom days. Let alone finding a parking spot, we were happy to get the car moving. We took just one car since Elsa was with us. The rest of the group came by the local metro which was a wise thing to do. Fed up of the traffic jam, we got off and co-ordinated to meet with the rest of the group by a café near the boating area of the tidal basin.
While waiting to be joined by the rest of the group, we took shelter from the blazing sun under the shade of the flowers. The weather had been unpredictable during that time and pretty soon it got windy and cloudy. This wasn’t so good for the blooms as the petals started falling. It was like they were welcoming the tourists with their petals.
In my opinion, the blooms enhance the look of the Washington monument and the Jefferson memorial. Several of my friends disagree with me, but then i am entitled to an opinion. What do you think?
We walked around almost more than half of the periphere of the tidal basin enjoying the beautiful shades of white and pink blooms. Some of the places where these trees were planted in a bigger area rather than in just a row, looked like a canopy of white and pink delights. Elsa on the other hand made a lot of doggie friends and also was photographed several times. Heh!
This one was also along the tidal basin but a little bit secluded from the line of trees. So i am not too sure if this is a Cherry blossom or a Crab apple blosoom. It looks very pretty though.
