How very, very lucky to have a short trip to Japan just as the first buds of the sakura trees were beginning to open and bloom.

Sakura, or cherry blossoms, are deeply important in Japan for cultural, historical, and symbolic reasons. They represent the beauty and transience of life, as the blossoms are short-lived, lasting only a week or two each spring. This fleeting nature spurs people to get outside and enjoy this very short window of flower viewing, and reflects the Japanese concept of mono no aware, an awareness of the impermanence of things.

Cherry blossoms are also tied to tradition and community. People celebrate hanami, or flower viewing, by gathering with family, friends, and coworkers under the trees to enjoy food, drink, and the scenery. This is the time to bust out the quintessential big blue plastic mat for everyone to sit on. Sometimes there’s even karaoke and copious amounts of alcohol imbibed, or “too much good time”, as my father-in-law always used to say.

Narita is a great location to enjoy Hanami without all the crowds. This is especially true around the Narita “old road” which leads up to Narita-san, the always impressive temple compound that is the icon of the town. The compound has gorgeous gardens with many spots for seeing sakura. And of course the old road itself is full of restaurants and souvenir shops to find yummy things to eat.

But after Narita, it was time to head into the city to visit the family.

One of the new things we did this time was visit the very famous teamLab interactive exhibit in Toyosu. This attraction has become insanely popular and you need to book well in advance for a time-slot. It is however well worth it for the experience. Each corridor leads you to new areas and you never know what you’ll find. One room is full of water up to your knees (don’t wear jeans!) and one has a moving ceiling. It’s all very far out and trippy and visually interesting!