Cherry Blossoms

The spring weather has finally hit (yay!), which means that all the early blooming flowers such as the cherry blossoms (aka 벚꽃 ) all seem to have sprung out of nowhere. They're so gorgeous! Made even more so by the fact that they last such a short time - they only appeared last week and already a number of the trees are almost bare. I now understand why these trees are so prized in Asia. I seem to have spent this weekend in a mad scramble to spend as much time around them as I can.

All accross the country cities are hosting cherry blossom festivals - perhaps none more famous than the one in Jinhae where over 2 million tourists arrive each year to check out the approximately 340,000 cherry blossom trees in that port city (particularly along one 4km stretch of road). Unwilling to brave the 3 hour bus journey, the huge crowds and the pain of parting with more money. I decided instead to remain in Gwangju and check out some of the cherry blossoms flowering around my area. Here are some of my favourite pics.

The Flowers of Gwangju's Spring Festival (held, of all places, at the municipal government's pension offices).

The lovely flowers around the city's artistic hub - Biennial Park. For some reason, the scent of the cherry blossoms here was particularly strong. I should also add that it was wonderful, light but absolutely refreshing. I wish there was some way to transfer smells through the internet!

This last picture is of the Chosun University Photography Club who were also out enjoying the blossoms :)

And, finally, my personal favourite place for cherry blossoms in Gwangju, Uncheon Reservoir. I wish I'd had an entire day to spend here! Water, boardwalks, man-made islands, people smiling everywhere, gorgeous sunlight and a light breeze that had petals swirling around you as they fell - what more could anyone ask for in their flower gazing experiences?