Hanami - Cherry Blossom Outdoor Party

Sakura or the cherry blossom is the national flower of Japan and is considered by most Japanese their favorite flowers.   Spring is the time for Hanami where Japanese gather and held parties in the open air under the cherry blossoms.   It is more like having picnic out in the park, except that during cherry blossoms season, most parks are filled with people doing various activities other than just having picnics.

A recent TV program showed that activities held during hanami have changed over the decades. Prior to 1970s Japanese people enjoyed outdoor dancing and singing at hanami parties.  In the 1970s singing like in karaoke replaced dancing.  In 1980s playing famous animation characters is the common show during hanami.  In the 1990s people started to commercialize such a show, so you can find individual stands where they perform for public, whereas in the past you would see such performances done by a member in the group during the party itself.   In recent years most people enjoy a more simple hanami by having outdoor picnics, drinking and talking.   There are fewer performances outdoor.   

In the past many hanami parties were held among workers in the company, whereas nowadays they are more held among closed friends.   The custom of going to the park to reserve the best location for hanami parties was common in the past, which was in most cases done by the newly graduate workers.

In Tokyo area Yoyogi Park, Shinjuku Gyoen and Ueno Park have the best collection of cherry blossoms.   Some people, like me, enjoy hanami at a nearby park just a few minutes walk from home.   After all the key to a wonderful hanami is "the food"-> a delicious bento (lunch box),  a warm sake for appetizer and sakura mochi for dessert.   For recipes of bento (left) check out http://cook4health.blogspot.com/

Get a better feeling about hanami in Japan:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPZ4W5BpzLs

Spring Comes With Beautiful Sweets

Japanese celebrates the coming of spring with beautiful sweets called mochi (rice cakes).   Mochi is literally pounded glutinous rice.    Traditionally at the end of the year glutinous rice is pounded for the special rice cakes known as mochi.   The pounding of rice has also become a festival itself called mochitsuki.    Mochi is widely used not only in New Years celebration but also in the beginning of a new season.

In spring time we have special traditions to eat sakura mochi, uguisu mochi and yomogi mochi. These mochi are usually hand made with sweet red beans or white beans fillings inside.  

Sakura mochi is usually pink decorated with salted/pickled sakura blossom and wrapped in edible pickled sakura leaves.   Uguisu mochi is green to portray "uguisu" (a Japanese warbler), here well known as a light green color wild bird of spring.  It can sing beautifully and its appearance is closely associated with the plum blossom ("ume ni uguisu").   Yomogi is herbal leaves derived from plants which is similar to Chrysanthemum.  Yomogi is widely used in Japan to produce natural "green" coloring for mochi and other traditional sweets.

My favorite Spring time activities is to walk in the park and have a little picnic, drinking hot tea and eating sakura mochi.    Major parks in Tokyo provides facilities for visitors to enjoy Japanese green tea with traditional Japanese sweets while watching plum blossoms in the early spring and sakura blossom in mid spring.