Ueno Park cherry blossoms! I was excited because it was my first time seeing them. That might be hard to believe, as I’ve been in Tokyo for nearly thirty years, but it’s true. Finally, I would photograph them.

As I live in Takaido, Ueno is a little far for me. And the park has a reputation for being crowded during the hanami season. I hate crowds, as I have said many times before. So this place has always been low on my list of cherry blossom spots to visit.

But in the morning, I went to Aoyama Cemetery. That is in the southeast of Tokyo. I wanted to photograph places, including Yanaka, in the city’s north in the afternoon. And as Ueno Park was on the way, I decided to drop in and take some photographs.
The park’s reputation as a crowded place during hanami was well-deserved. There were so many people. Social distancing was impossible. Everyone had a smartphone, many had dogs, and some came in kimonos.

The oldest temple in Tokyo is Kiyomizu-Kannon. It’s in Ueno Park and has a stage like its namesake in Kyoto. There were so many people on it. You had to wait for ages to get a space to take a photo of the scenes below.

The cherry blossoms looked great. No one could have complained about them. The only thing that put a dent in the day was the weather. It was overcast and very gray.

It was my first time to Ueno Park for hanami, so I didn’t know where to go. I meandered around and tried to snap things as they appeared. Next time, I’ll be a little more prepared. Anyway, I’ll put it down as another learning experience. Knowing where to go is an essential part of photography.


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If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below. And have you been to Ueno Park to see the cherry blossoms? Let us know your experiences there.
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