This weekend we went to the Akron Sakura Festival. This was the first time we had heard of the downtown festival, and when we heard the cherry trees were in bloom we decided we had to check it out.

It was great that the festival was held right along the Towpath in downtown Akron so you could walk from one section to the other very easily. We started near the southern side of the festival where they had drummers, a bonsai display, vendors, and lots of food trucks. The sun had come out from the clouds a little earlier than expected, so it was in the mid 50s which was some welcome warmth.

We walked towards the towpath where we could see some of the cherry trees. With the sun out, the trees lit up with all the blooms backlit by the sun. It is believed that the blooming cherry tree can be a sign of good luck with them blooming at the beginning pf Spring signifying growth and renewal. Tradition says that making wishes in front of the tree can help make them come true. Many festival-goers were writing their wishes on ribbons and tying them to the trees.

A little further north near Canal Park were even more vendors, entertainment, and food trucks. We didn’t stay for it, but there was a Rubber Ducks game scheduled for the evening. The festival was well attended – not sure if it was because there are people in from out of town for the eclipse, or if everyone was finally excited to get outside.

There is a Japanese word, Hanami, which is the practice of having feasts or festivals under blooming sakura. We were happy to be a part of this one, and hope this continues to be a tradition in Akron.

Nikon Z6ii, f6.3, 1/400sec, ISO100