Welcome back everyone!  This week Picture of the Week leaves behind the Middle East in favor of Japan – right at cherry blossom season!  Holly and I had the chance to visit back at the end of March / beginning of April, and our trip could not have been better timed.  When we arrived, the cherry blossoms were just starting to open, and as we were leaving, the were starting to fall from the trees.  This was my second time getting to experience the cherry blossoms there, and it was just as magical as the first.  I was actually so inspired this time around that I planted a number of cherry trees (and other ornamental flowering trees) around the property when we got back!

Having spent another two weeks there in Japan, I have a number of images I wanted to share, so I have broken this all up into a three week series.  This week’s Picture of the Week will focus on the cherry blossoms.

Starting with the picture above, this particular scene I found while wondering around the Tsubosaka-Dera Temple, which is famous for this particular Buddha statue that is surrounded by cherry trees.  I personally liked how the blossoms frame the bottom of the image, while the last light of the setting sun is illuminating part of the mountainside behind the statue.  If you scroll down in the Alternative Perspectives section, you’ll see another composition with this same statue.  Continuing on you’ll see a collection of images that I took around the country, which I hope highlights just how many cherry trees can be found in the big cities, and out in the countryside.  It truly is an amazing thing to see in person.

More next week!

–Dan Thompson