Our side trip found us at Cherry Hills RV Park just outside of DC where we were educated on which bus and Metro would get us into the city on the following day. And oh what a day it was! We exited the Metro at L’Enfant Plaza and walked about ½ mile to the Tidal Basin where we discovered a vibrant blue sky, bright sunshine, 70 degree temps and a crowd of more than 500,000 people all wanting to get the best angle or the best view on their cameras, cell phones and tablets. There was even a couple of people from MacGilvery Films with an Imax camera on this huge tripod. Every step I took around the Tidal Basin involved waiting for a chance to take a photo, watching out for people who were taking a photo or making sure we weren’t walking into someone’s shot.
However difficult our 3 mile meander was, the brilliance and multitude of those blossoms more than made up for it. The original cherry trees were a gift from Tokyo City in 1912. Over the years, mature trees have provided additional root stock and now April is the place to be for all things cherry in the nation’s capitol.
It’s of interest to mention a few years back Tokyo cherry trees experienced some kind of blight and began to die off. In the spirit of keeping the original strain alive and international cooperation, Washington sent a number of cuttings back to the country of their birth. It’s also interesting to note how pale these blossoms are when compared to other varieties of cherry trees. So when you look at a post card or someone else’s photos, remember my photo above and how someone “pushed” the colors in Photo Shop.
I just realized the Bucket List is longer now than it was one year ago.
Note to Self: April in VA is still too early for the kinds of outside places we might enjoy.
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