The cherry blossom trees around D.C. were given by the city of Tokyo in 1912. Over 3,000 trees. They’re all in full bloom right now and today was the kick off of the National Cherry Blossom Festival.
The Kite Festival was part of the day’s events and we headed there first. Why we didn’t think to bring a kite is beyond me. Something learned for next year. It was neat to see all the kites flying around the mall area, although you won’t be able to tell from any pictures I took. For some reason I didn’t get a picture with a bunch of kites in it.
I did get a picture of Du and Reagan and Ed doing cartwheels among the kite flyers (this was later in the day).
A friend from high school emailed me this morning letting me know she and her family would be out there. I’m sick that we didn’t get any pictures together, but Lauren, we enjoyed meeting you and your family there and walking around, even for the short time that it was. We did take pictures of each other’s families.
We then met up with some other friends and spent the rest of the day with them. We headed to the National Building Museum where the opening ceremonies of the Festival were being held. Had we known we would have gotten there sooner because they had a lot of kids crafts to do. We got there right as the craft tables were closing up though.
National Building Museum
Japanese ballerina
After the opening ceremony we decided to head into Chinatown for dinner. There is no Japanesetown or I guess we would have gone there to stick with the whole Cherry Blossom theme…
New Big Wong. Hmm.
My fortune in the cookie:
“Life is a tragedy for those who feel and a comedy for those who think.” I like that.
Not So SAHM 
I’ve always wanted to see the cherry blossoms in D.C. live. Your blog photos are almost as good!
I miss being there for the cherry blossoms! They are so beautiful!
I can wait to go back! This week I’m going to do light work with Reagan during school so we can experience the Cherry Blossoms to their fullest!
looks beautiful! I am glad ya’ll had such a nice day! 🙂
It was so beautiful and we didn’t even make it down to the Tidal Basin where many of the trees are. I’m going to take the girls back this week, once the weather’s warmer, to get some good pics of that area.
Great pictures! So wish we could have gone to the Kite Festival, but K has a stomach bug. There’s always next year, I guess!
I’m torn about what to do next year. I think what we’ll do is go to the National Building Museum for the kids’ crafts to begin with and then head over to the kite festival to watch the kite battle (which we missed this year). I’m so happy to be here for the spring season and the cherry blossoms though!
It was nice to walk around and enjoy the fellowship with friends and family. We also strolled through the Sculpture Garden which is always neat.
Really beautiful. Looks like it was a special day.
Oh, I wish I lived there so I could participate. Cherry blossoms and kites are two of my favorite things. (Along with all those lovely monuments and national treasures.) What a great experience for your family!