The thing about living in another country for a finite amount of time is the knowledge that you have to make the most of every opportunity. So we decided to get up super early to beat traffic, drive through the rain, search for parking, buy an umbrella from a convenience story (after which, of course, it stopped raining), and push our way through lines of people to take a million photos of cherry blossoms.
I'm glad we went.
We started at what we thought was the end of Yeojwacheon Stream and made our way to what we thought was the other 'end,' but really there seemed to be no beginning or end, just a line of arching pink as far as the eye could see. Honestly I wouldn't be surprised if Jinhae had more cherry blossoms than people -- they were everywhere! After we walked along the boardwalk, stopping at every single bridge to take photos, we decided to stroll along the vendor-lined streets looking for a bite -- or five -- to eat. I wasn't expecting there to be so much food to try or such a lively festival atmosphere, but even in the somewhat dreary weather everyone was laughing and having a good time. It was infectious and we had a lot of fun.
After snacking our way along the stream we found some steps that led down to the water and proceeded to explore the more natural part of the path. It was kind of surreal walking along the stream with Sly, under a canopy of cherry trees while pink petals rained down on our heads.
Year after year, no matter how many times I see the cherry blossoms, or for that matter, no matter where I see them, for some reason it always feels new and exciting and filled with wonder and awe. It never seems to get old. And I hope it never does.
More blossom outings: 2013 pt.1 / 2013 pt. 2 / 2012