Sakura Trivia / Geraldine Limpo

by Geraldine Limpo

As temperatures rise across the Japan archipelago, cherry trees start to blossom beginning with those in Okinawa. Friends and families will soon gather under these trees, o-bento and o-sake (and in some occasions, karaoke system) in hand for ohanami. Here is some fun trivia regarding this much-beloved ower season:

Do you know that:

The first o-hanami celebrated the blossoms of the prunus which is the first flowering plant to blossom after the winter? In Chinese tradition, the prunus represents the virtue of resilience (that is to say, the blossom persists through the wintry cold). It was rightfully called ume-mi (literally translated: “prunus ower-watching).

Watching the spring cherry tree we fondly call sakura was made fashionable between the 8-11th century by the epic Genji no Monogatari (The Tale of Genji) which is believed to be written by a courtly woman.

Photo by Dennis Sun

Sakura blossoms live between seven and ten days only. This short life represents for many Buddhists the transience of life (and beauty and youth). Thus, many meditate on life’s impermanence during ohanami. Consult the Japan Metereological Society for the sakura forecast (https://www.jma.go.jp/jma/en/News/sakura3.html)

Shinto, Japan’s indigenous tradition, recognized spirits in living beings including natural elements such as trees. Imperial families of old Japan drank osake during ohanami, toasting to the spirits of trees. There isn’t just one species of the sakura; there are more than twenty!

O-hanami during the evening is another special way of viewing the sakura blossoms. Light-ups in many venues across Japan including Ueno Park and Gion/Pontocho make for perfect dates! Here is one informative blog that enumerates some of the best venues for yozakura: https://jw-webmagazine.com/top-5-spots-for-cherryblossom-night-viewing-c5c509a2a26f/

Here’s an easy (but tasty) recipe for obento during ohanami:

BAKED SUSHI

250g snow crab surimi

250g Norwegian salmon filet

About 1/2 cup Japanese mayo, or just enough to bind the surimi and aked salmon

About 2 cups sushi rice cooked

2 tbsps furikake (and 2 tbsps seasoned seaweed flakes)

Tobiko Fried onions

Green onions

Roasted Seaweed (nori)

1. Bake salmon at 210C for 10 mins. Shred. Let cool. 2. Shred surimi. Add cooled shredded salmon. Add Japanese mayo. Salt and pepper, to taste, if preferred. Mix together. 3. Spread cooked rice on a 9x13 inch pan. Add furikake. Add crab salmon mix. Add seasoned seaweed akes. 4. Sprinkle tobiko on top. 5. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 180C for 25 mins. 6. Garnish with fried onions and green onions. 7. Place a teaspoonful of the baked dish on rectangular pieces of nori and eat like a temaki.

Geraldine Limpo

Jeepney Press