Sakura - Japan's Beloved Cherry Blossoms

It was late afternoon on May 8th. I glanced at my watch anxiously then scanned the pale grey sky from the train's window. The sun had long passed it's midpoint in the sky and was slowly descending. Time was of the essence--I was adamant on getting to Hirosaki Park before the sun disappeared below the horizon. I reached the station, jumped off the train, and quickly bused to the famous park. As I walked toward to park gate, a gentle breeze caught the pearl-white pedals of sakura and they fluttered like butterfly wings. Even if only for one day, I made it.

Just outside the gate to Hirosaki Park

Sakura (桜), or cherry blossoms, are the beautiful white and pink flowers that burst out from Japanese Cherry trees every Spring. The opening and subsequent mankai (満開), or full bloom, starts as the weather gets warmer. In most of Japan, this is from late March in the South to the middle of May in the north. The exception is Okinawa, where the bloom happens in January! Where I live in Aomori, and specifically in the neighboring town of Hirosaki, the peak of full bloom occurred on May 8th this year--very lucky for me.

On the previous day, I had just returned from my wonderful two-week vacation and I was sure that I had missed the short lifespan of the celebrated flowers while away based on prior sakura forecasts. But there I was, strolling around in Hirosaki Park on one of the best viewing days of the year, an hour before nightfall. It was just enough time to appreciate the light, airy presence of thousands of enchanting cherry trees before the sun retreated for the evening. Yet even at night, viewing cherry blossoms at Hirosaki Park is just as impressive. Against the backdrop of Hirosaki Castle, the radiant-white flowers seem to glow in the darkness.

Great nighttime view in Hirosaki Park

Sakura is unquestionably one of the most significant elements of Japanese culture today. Every year, droves of Japanese families and friends make concerted efforts to enjoy the season by participating in hanami (花見), or cherry-blossom viewing. This traditionally involves picnicking under blooming cherry trees with lunch, sake (お酒, Japanese alcohol), and good company. Others simply walk around, snap photos, and enjoy the scenery. No matter how one decides to view the cherry blossoms, it's an incredibly worthwhile activity.

Visually, the flowers emanating en masse from the humble trees is a stunning sight to behold. Yet in Japanese culture, deeper meaning exists. From sprouting buds to stunning full bloom to inevitable death, cherry blossoms are thought to be a metaphor for the transience of life--which I essentially interpret as the notion that life is short and it will ultimately come to an end. This idea has been associated with the Japanese term, mono no aware (もののあはれ), which literally means, "the pathos of things." It's quite an interesting concept, in which an awareness of the ephemeral nature of all things will lead to a higher appreciation of their beauty. This seems quite simple but I can easily see how powerful such a perspective can be. It makes me wonder though, how well known these perspectives are to the younger generation in Japan. But at the very least, they can see imagery of sakura is everywhere in the country.

Hanami at Hirosaki Park

Whereas the opportunity to partake in cherry-blossom viewing is generally restricted to a mere two weeks every year, images, sounds, and tastes of sakura can be experienced daily in Japan. Cherry blossoms are a common motif found on kimonos (着物), the elegant traditional clothing Japanese people wear for ceremonies and other special affairs. It's very easy to find beautifully illustrated sakura in some of the oldest Japanese art as well as modern era pieces. Flip over any 100-yen coin, and you will see sakura. Go out for a night of karaoke and theres a good chance you'll hear songs about the lovely flower. Even KitKat has made a sakura-flavored version of their popular chocolate treats.

A Golden Getaway: Part 3 (Philippines)

The final destination of my trip was the Philippines, where my experiences were fascinating, relaxing, and often just plain fun. After a short layover in Macau, I proceeded to Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport and arrived by late afternoon on Wednesday, May 1. Originally, I had no strong desire to visit Manila because this last portion of my trip was purely meant for relaxing on the beach. But since limited flights forced me to stay in the city for one night, I booked a hotel room and used the opportunity to explore the area a little.

For that one night, I stayed at a nice hotel that was ironically located in a poor area—a reminder of the stark contrast between rich and poor that’s prevalent in the country. Yet as I exited the hotel and walked down the streets, the atmosphere seemed particularly lively. Kids wearing ragged shorts were happily kicking a soccer ball around. Older women were sitting in ripped-up lawn chairs, chatting away. Others scurried about as if they were preparing for something. As it turned out, I happened to be there during Labor Day (Araw ng mga Manggagawà, in Tagalog), one of the most popular holidays in the Philippines.

As I continued down the roads, I spotted some sort of large complex called Ocean Park. I walked over and made a brief stop at a small hamburger stand where I bought two cheeseburgers for the equivalent of $0.50 USD each. The neighboring stand sold fantastic fresh mango smoothies so I was sure to grab one of those too. I could hear a music concert underway within the walls of Ocean Park, but it didn’t sound like anything special so I decided to keep walking. What I didn't know at the time is that it’s a world-class marine theme park; so unfortunately I missed out on it. However, I did randomly stumble upon a spectacular water, light, and music show at a massive nearby public park. 

Awesome light, water, music show at a local park in Manila

Cute little girl at the park

I starting snapping photos and sat down on a ledge for a rest when a half-dozen young children came running over to me. They had gleeful smiles on their faces and began asking me questions in their native language, Tagalog. I couldn’t understand what they were saying, but it was clear that they were excited. A young teenage girl then walked over and started talking to me in English. Seeing the way the kids reacted to her, I curiously asked if she was the mother of these kids as she chuckled and said, “No, of course not.” But just as I began to feel reassured she turned her head towards one of the children and in a straight face said, “but he’s mine!” The young girl was 14 years old; the boy was 4 years old.

Group of kids at the park

Over the course of the next hour, two-dozen kids had gravitated to me and it was fun but becoming a little overwhelming. A young woman also approached me and asked if I was looking for some fun. No thanks. I decided to call it a night and I headed back to the hotel. A couple blocks away from the hotel I started to see bright lights and loud sounds. It was a outdoor movie! The locals whom I had seen earlier had set up a fairly impressive movie night in a tiny park there. I thought it was really cool; it looked like the local community had just set this us for the night and all of the people I saw earlier were crammed in this little area, whether it was on benches, standing, sitting atop cars, whatever, they were there watching “Battleship” together.

Local neighborhood outdoor movie night near my hotel

The next morning I took a taxi to the airport, where I’d fly to Caticlan Airport on my way to Boracay. Traffic was horrendous but I left early so I figured it would be fine. I simply told the driver I needed to go to the domestic terminal. Once there, I went through security and looked for the check-in counter for my flight on Air Philippines. But I didn’t see it. It wasn’t there. Confused, I asked at the information desk about where I needed to check in. I was absolutely caught off guard to hear that the only flights from that terminal are on ‘Philippine Airlines’, not ‘Air Philippines’. My flight would be departing from the other domestic terminal, a totally separate building located 20 minutes away by taxi. I’m not sure how I could have known this earlier, as nothing about it was printed on my tickets or booking information. Thankfully, I still managed to catch my flight, albeit just barely.

From Manila to Boracay - by plane, motor tricycle, and boat

From Caticlan Aiport, I took a couple motor tricycles (trikes) and a ferry to get to the small, beautiful island of Boracay. I checked into my budget hotel, changed my clothes, and went directly to the beach. I stayed at a place on White Beach, which is considered to be the prime area on the island, where everything is located on a long beautiful stretch of white sand. After a quick swim in the crystal clear water, I watched a breath-taking sunset and then headed down the beach to where more of the action was taking place.

Incredible sunset in Boracay

I stopped at a great Mexican restaurant on the beach and sat down to eat some crunchy tacos. I met a cool couple from Australia who were also there and we shared some fun stories about our travels over a couple of cheap beers. A quick stroll from there, I checked out an outdoor dance club, also right on the beach. While walking to this area earlier, I had been swarmed by solicitors trying to sell island tours and water sports packages. So when a young Filipino man came up to me and asked where I was from, I skeptically asked what he was trying to sell. Although he wasn’t actually selling anything, I still thought he was a little strange so I was a bit unfriendly towards him. As he followed me and as we continued chatting, I just kept thinking that he had some agenda. Even when he later asked if he could take a picture with me, I declined. Later I did warm up to him a little, and we went to a few different bars and clubs. But looking back at that night, I realize that he truly just wanted to be my friend. Frankly, I feel a little badly about the way I treated him because it's unlike me to be so cynical (another lesson learned). Nonetheless, I enjoyed my first night and the next few days were only going to get better.

My vision of vacation in the Philippines consistently made me think of relaxing on the beach during the day and enjoying some nightlife in the evening. And I’m happy to say, that’s exactly what I did. Every morning I woke up whenever I felt like it, ate breakfast, then went for a swim in the ocean. I took photos, explored the island a little, drank delicious fruit smoothies, ate lunch, took a nap on the beach, went swimming again, and watched the sunset. Afterwards, I’d stop at the hotel for a nice shower then head out for the nightlife. I did the same thing in various combinations through my days here, and I loved it. If I was traveling with friends I would have liked to do island hopping or more water sports, but I was content with taking it easy as I was there solo.

Enjoying the beach!

My second night in Boracay was on Friday. I ate a big, fat, juicy burger then went to a club in station 1. There, I met a group of super nice, mid-20’s Filipinos with whom I hung out with for most of the night and had a super fun time. As the club heated up--literally and figuratively, the dj pulled out a hose and sprayed everyone in the crowd as everyone shouted and jumped up and down with the beats. Needless to say, it was a really fun atmosphere. As the night progressed we also went to a couple more clubs. By the end of the night we ended up at Epic, one of the most popular clubs on White Beach. At some point in the night, I felt like taking a nap on the beach. I woke up a few hours later, lying in the sand as the sun was rising and the waves were gently hitting the shore. I know it sounds pretty funny, but it was in fact a stunningly peaceful way to start the day.

Saturday night was probably my best night in Boracay as I got to see both Zedd at Club Paraw and Swanky Tunes at Epic, dj live. Club Paraw built a large custom addition to their existing club for the exclusive event. Tickets were extremely limited and I didn’t have any. But I was fortunate to met a young man and his friends right before the show who let me go with them since they had an extra ticket. Just standing in the line to get in was absolutely crazy. Once we finally got in, we danced our way to the stage, right in front of the DJ. The music was pounding, the lights were blazing, the crowd was electric, singing and dancing to every song. It was an amazing experience for me. Zedd finished his set around 2:30 A.M., and then we walked over to Epic where we got to see Swanky Tunes dj until sunrise.

Zedd live at Club Paraw, Boracay (screen capture from video)

For my fourth and final night in Boracay, I took it easy and didn’t drink or party. Instead, I found a quiet section of the beach and watched the stars for several hours. Stargazing there was spectacular since it’s so dark over the ocean and there are no major cities nearby. I really enjoyed this, and even managed to see a few stunning shooting stars. Later I took a stroll and met a group of nice Taiwanese students while ordering a mango smoothie. I also made my way over to some fire performers and watched that for a while, as well as to take a couple photos with them. 

Fire poi performers

Lastly, I loved the tacos so much from my first night that I had to get them again before returning to the hotel for a good night of sleep. Ironically, I had a terrible nightmare that I was in a deadly plane crash so I can't say it was all that good of sleep.

Indeed, the next day I had to take four separate flights to get back home in Aomori. Two of those flights, happened to have bad turbulence. But alas, I made it back safely. I'll admit, there were a few unpleasant aspects to Boracay; I grew so exhausted of the hundreds of solicitors calling to me, "hey, my friend.... jet skiing, parasailing, boat tours... I'll give you good price!". Dude--I'm not your friend, stop calling me that. And nightly I was was randomly approached by... various individuals who, "just want to have fun". But my experience there was so amazing that it's really easy to look past these negatives. Ultimately I absolutely loved my trip of my tropical excursion in the Philippines immensely and I really hope I can make it back there soon!

A Golden Getaway: Part 2 (Taiwan)

After an excellent time in Seoul, I traveled to Taiwan. I flew into Taipei Taoyuan International Airport in the early evening of Friday, April 26 and then caught a bus to the main train station. From there I received wrong directions from a local but eventually found my way to the hostel. It was located in a unique area packed with language cram schools. Despite the unwelcoming entrance tucked away in a dark alley with no signage, it was a nice, clean, and comfortable place.

My planned destination for the night was the Xinyi District, where Taipei 101 is located. I wanted to see the massive skyscraper at night and then check out a famous club nearby. The glowing lights of Taipei 101 shining through a heavy rain that evening seemed to add to the presence of the utterly impressive structure. Seriously, wow. Next, I walked over to Club Myst, considered to be one of Taipei’s premier dance clubs. It consisted of a large central dance floor where electro house music was played, a smaller side room for hip hop, and an outdoor lounge-deck with fantastic views of Taipei 101. I had a few drinks, met some new people, enjoyed the music, and had a great night before returning to the hostel.

Club Myst and view of Taipei 101 from the lounge deck

The next morning I met up with two of my friends from college, a nice Taiwanese couple who are now married. They took me to eat a folksy breakfast of flakey, fried pastries. I especially loved the fresh soymilk, surprising since I usually hate the stuff. Next, we passed through a park where we spotted a middle-aged, deep-voiced man singing opera while doing what appeared to be tai chi. When he saw me walk toward him for a photo, he made a great big smile and posed for me while still singing. He didn’t miss a beat. I clearly remember thinking, “What an awesome guy, he really knows how to love life!” His simple gesture became one of my favorite moments of my trip.

Gentleman singing opera in the park

We continued to a few interesting sightseeing areas, including the Taipei Presidential Office Building and Liberty Square, both in the Zhongzheng District. Although the president doesn’t actually live at the Presidential Office Building, he does work there during the day. So I was surprised by the seemingly minimal security of a few armed guards and barricades present. Next we walked over to Liberty Square. 

Northwest-facing view of Liberty Square

This is an expansive public plaza that consists of several magnificently large structures. It’s my understanding that the area was initially called Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Square but was renamed to celebrate Taiwan’s modern democratic values. 

However, Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, a building with a seated statue of the former president inside, still remains as such today despite a supposed past history of cultural suppression by the leader. Lastly, my friends took me to the sky deck of Taipei 101, where I got to see the vast city from above. But time was running out quickly and I had to get back to the train station to catch a specific train. We rushed to the train station, I said farewell to my friends, and I just barely made the train to Taichung, my next stop in Taiwan.

Arriving on Saturday afternoon and leaving Sunday evening, my time in Taichung was completely packed with fun activities. It may have been busy but it was definitely awesome and gave me the chance to see most of my Taiwanese friends. Years ago, I was lucky to meet them when I was attending Southern Illinois University. Back then, I was a graduate assistant studying for my Master’s Degree, teaching regular classes, and working with short-term international groups of students. My job with the groups was basically to take care of them and make sure they had a great time while at the university, thus I spent a lot of time hanging out with them and taking them places. So after several years, I was really happy to see them again.

As soon as I arrived at the train station, one of my friends greeted me warmly. Next I hopped on the back of another friend’s scooter and we zipped through the city to meet a group at the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts. As I gripped the back seat handle, my friend weaved in and out of traffic, slithering around stopped cars, sometimes slamming on the brakes then accelerating rapidly to catch the light before it turned red. There are scooters everywhere in Taiwan, and while my friend admitted it’s not the safest driving style, he explained that this is just how people drive there. Some time later and still alive, we arrived at the museum where we met up with a bigger group of friends. After catching up with them, we strolled over to a really cool street called Wuquan West 4th, filled with lots of unique restaurants and shops. We stopped to eat at an Italian restaurant called, ‘Le Jardin de Giverny’. There, more friends joined us until we had a nice group of about 15 friends. Tasty good, cold drinks, great company--what more could you ask for? 

Eating dinner at Le Jardin de Giverny, in Taichung

Dancing! As dinner wrapped up and I said farewell to this group, I met with yet another friend who couldn’t make it to the dinner. She and I love dancing, so we headed to a bar for salsa dancing, and then later to a popular dance club called 18TC. We stayed late into the morning and had a super fun time.

Salsa dancing in Taichung, Taiwan

Eating stinky tofu

A few hours of sleep after clubbing, I woke up early because I would meet yet another group of friends and head to the lovely Sun Moon Lake. Once there, we took a short boat ride to a small island where we tried various foods, including ‘stinky tofu’. To put it kindly, I think the stuff is quite unappealing, but Taiwanese people sure do love it. On the contrary, one of my favorite foods there was a deliciously flavorful garlicky sausage. Of course besides eating, we also did a little hiking and took a lot of photos together. By mid-afternoon we completed our adventure and we returned to the city. Timed perfectly, we got back just as I planned to meet one last group of friends in Taichung before I would depart for Hualien in the east of the country. We had a nice casual dinner together and got to chat for a while, then I said goodbye and left for my next destination.

At Sun Moon Lake, Yuchi, Nantou, Taiwan

I reached Hualien at midnight and went straight to the hostel for a desperately needed goodnight’s sleep. It was now the morning of Monday, April 29. I showered and prepared for a day of hiking at Taroko Gorge, a stunningly beautiful and geologically impressive National Park in Taiwan. There are several options for getting around the place but I chose to use the shuttle bus available. On the bus ride I met two other solo travelers and we decided to hike together for the day. There are various trails open to the public, as well as some that are more restricted. The area is an amazing showcase of nature. It consists of rivers that have carved through the rock forming massive walls of marble and other stone with plenty of green throughout. I think one can only understand that scale if seeing it in person, but pictures can provide some idea of the spectacular place.

At Taroko Gorge, Hualien County, Taiwan

I stayed in Hualien for two days. The second day I ventured out on my own and explored a few areas I didn't have time for on the previous day. However, by early afternoon Tuesday, I had to leave for Taipei because I was flying to the Philippines on the following day. Nonetheless, I still had plans for the evening in Taipei. I met up with one more friend whom couldn’t meet in Taichung a few days earlier. We went to a night market where I tried lots of new foods, as well as a small temple decorated for a special holiday. By late evening I had returned to my hostel, did laundry, packed my bags, brushed my teeth, made my final hotel reservations for the Philippines, and went to bed. During my 6 days in Taiwan, I managed to see more than 25 friends as well as make new ones, go salsa dancing, go clubbing twice, go hiking three different times, go to a night market, and more. But I anticipated that, which is why I choose the Philippines for the final part of my trip--to relax. The last morning in Taiwan, I took a bus to the airport and boarded a flight to Manila.