In 1912, the country of Japan gave the United States a gift of 3,020 Cherry Trees. The Cherry Blossom is believed to be a symbol equated with "the evanescence of human life and epitomizes the transformation of Japanese culture throughout the ages." (source:
https://www.nps.gov/subjects/cherryblossom/history-of-the-cherry-trees.htm, accessed 3/30/2016)
These trees were planted along the Tidal Basin of the Potomac River, and extend from the Lincoln Memorial, down to the Jefferson Memorial and around Haines Point.
Ever since my family moved to the greater DC Metro area in 1979, we have made a point of going into see the Cherry Blossoms every few years. We've taken picnic dinners and eaten under the trees in the moonlight, we've taken our young children who were bouncing with energy and enthusiasm and ran from tree to tree to tree, and we've taken out of town friends and family down there, some of whom were astounded by the beauty, and some of whom were just bored out of their minds at the thought of spending a day walking around trees, only to be awed by the sheer enormity of the blooms once they got down there.
This year, we hit Peak Bloom on Friday. The trees were delightful, but the mall was packed! We saw a couple getting married under the trees, and we saw people of all ages and nationalities, stopped under the trees and staring at the overhead canopy of trees in absolute awe. The joy of spring, and the peacefulness of the trees - in the middle of all the insanity that is Washington DC was something to behold. We walked over 8 miles Friday afternoon and evening. We parked in a lot in Virginia, and walked across one of the bridges into DC and visited the monuments along the mall before finishing our tour of the cherry blossoms.
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| The view from the reflecting pool up to the Lincoln Memorial. Funny story here - there's a line of people on the top step, all turned around and taking pictures. We took daughter up to the top - she's never been inside - and we almost couldn't get through the crush of people. NOBODY was actually inside, looking around. |
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| The view down the mall. You see the reflecting pool straight ahead, the Washington Monument, and the Capital Building in the distance. If you've never been to the Mall before, the Smithsonian Museums are between the Washington Monument and the Capital building. From where I'm standing, the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial and the Nurses' Memorial are off to my left. The Martin Luther King Memorial is to my right. Just barely ahead at the end of the sidewalk, you can see the columns for the WW 2 Memorial. It was a gorgeous day - one of the couples we saw getting married was at the bottom of the reflecting pool - just off to the right, out of the frame of this picture. |
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| The WW 2 Memorial. Words can't quite describe this. The names of people from every state who died in the Pacific Theater are on the left, and the Atlantic on the right. The relief sculpture along the wall as you enter the area depict the lives of the Greatest Generation as they were called to service and left their homes. |
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| Cherry Blossoms! |
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| And still more blossoms! Down along the Tidal Basin. Do you see the cherry trees on the other side of the basin? They're those fluffy puffballs... absolutely gorgeous, and they smelled heavenly! |
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| A look down the hill at the blossoms and the people. |
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| Under the canopy! I wish I had brought a picnic dinner! This would have been a great place to just sit, eat, and people watch! |
