Open Thread: Cherry Blossoms

Hosted by Sakura Trees, by Petr Kratochvil

                               Sakura, Sakura

sakura sakura noyama mo sato mo mi-watasu kagiri kasumi ka kumo ka asahi ni niou sakura sakura hana zakari sakura sakura yayoi no sora wa mi-watasu kagiri kasumi ka kumo ka nioi zo izuru izaya izaya mini yukan

Cherry blossoms, cherry blossoms, In fields and villages As far as you can see. Is it a mist, or clouds? Fragrant in the morning sun. Cherry blossoms, cherry blossoms, Flowers in full bloom. Cherry blossoms, cherry blossoms, Across the spring sky, As far as you can see. Is it a mist, or clouds? Fragrant in the air. Come now, come now, Let's look, at last! -Japanese folk song

My mother used to sing this song to me; she learned it on the Navy base in Okinawa when she was a little girl.  I never saw cherry trees until I went away to college, and then they were all over the quad at my school.  Every spring they'd bloom, and every spring I'd walk through them, grinning and singing words I didn't understand in a language I didn't speak.

Open thread!  Are there cherry trees where you live, and do you watch the petals fall?  Have you heard this song before?  If there are no cherry trees near you (or if there are, and you just don't like cherry trees), what do you think are the prettiest trees?

Also, it is FRIDAY OPEN THREAD, which means recommendations - self-promote or point us towards something cool!

~ Kristycat