posted on April 19, 2022

  It’s getting warmer day by day and the cherry blossom front is heading north across the Japanese archipelago, currently making the Tohoku region bathed in pale pink of Somei-Yoshino cherry tree, the most common type in Japan. Among many cherry blossom spots, Fukushima has two particularly famous Sakura viewing sites. One of them is Tsuruga Castle in Aizu-Wakamatsu city, known as the “land of the last samurai”. The restored castle is surrounded by nearly 1,000 Sakura in full bloom. The other site is in Kitakata city, just next to Aizu-Wakamatsu. 1,000 Weeping cherry trees or Shidarezakura planted along the former Nitchu rail line offer a splendid view of pink flower petals cascading down over a walking path stretching 3km in total. An amazing contrast of a steam locomotive and beautiful cherry blossoms is also a must-see! After a nice stroll, enjoy Kitakata ramen, one of Japan’s top 3 ramen dishes, along with Sapporo and Hakata ramen. To get to this region, take the Tohoku Shinkansen from Tokyo to Koriyama and transfer to the JR local line. The trip takes about 3 hours. (The pictures below taken on the weekend of April 16-17.)