Hanami: The Only Time of the Year When It's Okay to Spend the Whole Day Drinking

Every year, for just 2-3 weeks, or even shorter, the pinkish white cherry blossoms bloom, signaling the start of Spring and along with the blooming flowers, the people, their mats, and their beer come out as well. At every park, you'll see people everywhere sitting on their mats drinking together, as well as tents set up for selling food, drinks, and toys.


Japanese people say that the harsher and colder the winter, the more beautiful the flowers will be. I remember hearing something like that before so I looked it up and found it:

The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all.
- Fa Zhou (Mulan's dad)

Anyways, with the weather finally coming around, we decided to head out to the park and "do hanami." Armed with our beers, a lot of snacks, our mats, and Taboo (the word game), we ended up spending about 6 hours at the park just chilling, drinking, and enjoying each others' company under the cover of the beautiful trees!

the petals were falling like snow

I can't help but admire the Japan's appreciation for the simple pleasures in life such as this. And fine, I'm sure there's other days that the Japanese devote to drinking all day like this, too.

after kicking the tree, he said, "Japan is K1!"

everyone loves hanami

Until next time!