This week is the main week of the National Cherry Blossom Festival held every year here in DC. It celebrates the gift of 3,000 cherry trees from the mayor of Tokyo, Japan to the city of Washington in 1912 to signify friendship and good will between the United States and Japan. The festival started in 1935 and has been held yearly ever since--it's a major tourist attraction as people come from all over to see the blooms and take in the concerts, parade and various activities.
3,800 more trees were given in 1965, so there are a lot of cherry blossoms. The trees are planted throughout the memorials, mainly around the Tidal Basin (a big "lake" in DC near all the monuments) and the Jefferson memorial. When they are at the peak of their bloom, it's a beautiful sight to see.
I decided to talk a walk around the Tidal Basin and snap some pictures.
A canopy of blossoms...
I veered off the tidal basin walk to see one of my favorite memorials in DC--the Washington DC World War Monument.
It's like the forgotten monument of DC--it's hidden away between the trees off the path to the Reflecting Pool, so not many people notice it. It's just an old columned rotunda and it's not that big, but I like it because it's got this old charm and character to it and you usually have it all to yourself. It commemorates the men and women of DC who died in World War I.
It's like a hidden treasure of DC.I kept walking around the Tidal Basin and passed a picturesque trail covered in fallen cherry blossoms...it looked like snow.
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