I think I’ve added another tradition to my Seattle calendar—that of enjoying the cherry blossoms on the campus of the University of Washington every spring. A more delightful sight you will never see. For me it symbolizes beginnings. It’s a time of awakening, of starting anew.
This year the blooms were at their height on March 22nd, so a friend and I packed a picnic lunch and seemed to travel back in time to Hogwarts. The campus is stunning any time of year, and its buildings are truly Harry-Potter-magical. But when you throw cherry blossoms into the mix, it’s beyond compare.
According to this article on the King5 website, “The UW cherry blossom trees, which are over 80 years old, were a gift from then-Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki in 1912 to mark a friendship between the United States and Japan. Thirty-four trees were planted in Seattle’s Washington Park Arboretum; later, 31 of the trees were relocated to the UW and are now planted in the Quad.”
I don’t know if I could have been a student at UW. There’s a posted sign on the Quad that instructs you not to climb these trees, but their amazingly twisted and gnarled trunks just beg for your interaction. I’d probably not make it a week before being tossed out. But fortunately, this is also a great place to visit.
Since I’m told they’re worth a thousand words, what follows are some pictures that I took. (Well, except the aerial one. I wish I could take a picture like that!) You’ll notice it was still a cold, wet day. This is, after all, Seattle. So for our picnic, we huddled in an alcove and tried to avoid the cold wind. But would I do it again? In a heartbeat!
FOR READER’S LENS, ONE TIME USE Photographer’s name: Dale Johnson City and state of residence: Seattle, WA Email address and daytime phone number: drjhnsn@gmail.com 206-225-6764 Date the photo was taken: 1) 18-March 2016 2) 19-March 2016 Where the photo was taken: UW Campus, quad A brief description of your photo: A different perspective of the quad at the U of W. I was trying out my new DJI Phantom 4 quadcopter with a built in camera. I wanted to capture the cherry blossoms in bloom. The first shot is just after sunrise with very few people in the scene. The second shot is Saturday afternoon and full of people enjoying the day.
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