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Enjoying the Cherry Blossoms

© Eugenia E. Gratto

My father says that once you've seen the cherry blossoms, you've seen them. So when my parents came down from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to see the cherry blossoms on a recent Sunday afternoon, they just drove along the George Washington Parkway on the Virginia side of the Potomac.

I understand my father's point. Every year, thousands of tourists get in their cars and drive around the Tidal Basin to see the nationally famous flowers, or walk along the paths at the edge of the water. Unless you can visit the blossoms at an off-peak viewing time, it's not a peaceful experience to see them that way.

But from a vantage point across the river, where the crowds are fewer, the blossoms beckon dramatically. The short trees appear adorned with snow, and they stretch for miles, or so it seems. They line the Potomac and the Tidal Basin, and they compete with the Jefferson Memorial to see who can be the roundest, the most brilliantly white.

I think the cherry blossoms are the most beautiful up close. The Ritz Carlton at Pentagon City, which is just across the bridge from the Tidal Basin, incorporates sprays of the branches into its flower arrangements at this time of year. Although the flowers can be lost among the giant hotel arrangements, if you get close enough, you can smell the delicate scent and see the strong, tender beauty that attracts so many people to see the blossoms. You might only need to see them once, but you will never forget them.

The blossoms are the focus of The National Cherry Blossom Festival, which takes place each year. The festival, which kicked off on March 25 and runs for two weeks, honors Japanese culture and society. One of the culminating highlights of the festival program is the National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade, which organizers say is the largest annual spectator event in Washington D.C. This year's parade will take place on Saturday, April 8, 2000, and it is produced by the Washington D.C. Downtown Jaycees.

This year, however, the cherry blossoms will be long past their peak by the time the first float rolls down Constitution Avenue. It seems that no matter when the festival is scheduled for, Washington's erratic spring weather either brings the blossoms out way to soon or just a little too late. The blossoms hit their peak on March 25, pairing the first day of the festival with the last day the blooms were at their most marvelous.