People enjoy the cherry blossom season in a park in Guangdong Province. Reddish flowerings in particular are popular in China.
GUANGZHOU, China -- Local governments and industry advocates in China are promoting the planting of cherry trees in hopes to one day make their blossom-filled parks the most attractive in the world.
Cherry blossom viewing, known as hanami in Japanese, is a popular spring tradition in Japan. The word hana means flowers in general, but hanami refers to the appreciation of cherry blossoms, or sakura, specifically.
Largely attributed to the growing number of Chinese travelers to Japan who have experienced this spring ritual, enjoying cherry blossoms has now become popular in China as well.
CYTS Tours Guangdong Railway, a local travel agency in the city of Guangzhou, began offering cherry blossom-viewing tours to Japan four years ago. "The boom suddenly broke out," said Yang Haibo, the company's sales representative. "Major travel agencies in China offer many similar tours to Japan."
The popularity has even encouraged Chinese people to begin growing cherry trees in their own country. In Guangzhou, in Guangdong Province, there are cherry tree-lined streets in a business district with high-rise office buildings.
"Cherry blossom viewing will soon become a popular spring event widely across China," said He Zongru from Trend See Group, a tree-planting business.
He first saw Japanese cherry blossoms when he visited Tokyo 18 years ago on a business trip. He was fascinated by the pale pink blossoms in full bloom that filled Ueno Park, a renowned location in Tokyo for viewing cherry trees. Since then, he has spent his time and money promoting the planting of cherry trees in China.
Local interest
These days, he frequently receives a similar request from municipal governments across the country. "We want to plant tens of thousands of cherry trees in a park as soon as possible," they tell He.
Struggling to find ways to revitalize communities amid the country's slowing economy, some local governments are turning to cherry trees with hopes of making cherry blossom festivals a key springtime attraction in their cities.
No comments:
Post a Comment