The Cherry Blossoms

The other week, I braved the crowds and headed down to the monuments in DC to see the annual Japanese Cherry Blossoms during the peak blossom period.  In actuality, there are many places all over DC where you can see these beautiful blossoms and trees in abundance, but something about seeing them amidst all the people (and memorials) makes it that much more special.  Unfortunately, the weather was not the best, windy and very cold (although, in hindsight, compared to yesterday’s near heat wave, I’m not so sure anymore about that sentiment).

In order to avoid more crowds, Connor and I went on a weekday (during an unusual day off from the bakery).  We made it there to discover that you can’t beat the crowds no matter what.  So much for our “brilliant” plan!  We ended up finding a parking lot at the furthest possible spot and having to walk a few miles before we reached the center of the action.  I took that opportunity to take lots of photos!  In all honesty, the thought of beautiful blossom photos was really the only thing keeping me going on the walk over there as my hands froze to death.  I also haven’t (unfortunately) used in my camera in a while, besides my trip to NYC, where was hidden away mostly due to torrential downpours.

Luckily we were there right when the blossoms were at their best.  There were tons of photographers out and about with their tripods, as well as a few news reporters.  I joined in with the rest of ‘em, of course.
I decided to bring my tripod out for the first time as well (luckily it’s very light and came with a portable bag), but I didn’t end up using it.  Something about having to break it out and set it up didn’t seem appealing in the end.  It didn’t end up being a problem at all!

Since no spring breaks coincided with the Cherry Blossom festival during the duration of my time at Colgate, I haven’t had an opportunity to visit them in more than four years.  For some reason, I remember them being a lot more pink!  (My camera and) I sought after the one tree covered in light pink blossoms.    What can I say, I’m partial towards pink blossoms.

I spy the Washington Monument!

Cherry Blossoms weren’t the only trees vying for attention.  There were beautiful magnolias (correct me if I’m wrong!) in bloom, as well.  

In fact, I think I spent more time staring at this tree near the parking lot than all the other cherries combined…They were a little chilly that day too. 

After the long walk back to the car, Connor and I decided that lunch was in order.  The day ended with delicious fish tacos at Wild Tomato, a new casual bistro in Cabin John, Maryland.  Doesn’t get much better than that!