About sixty years ago, the school bells in Japan sounded too much like an air-raid siren, so some undocumented mechanic established the Westminster Quarters melody as the norm. It chimes at 12pm and 5pm, and it is massively used in all sorts of media representing Japan overseas, to the point that many forgot about the English churches and, instead, associate it with the eventful and adventurous Japanese high school life.
My home is surrounded by two elementary schools, three high schools and one unidentified school (but definitely a school). While it is common to spot groups of students riding their bicycles home, I have yet to witness spectacular world-class level sports matches and supernatural powers unleash around the campuses.
The school (and the fiscal) year in Japan starts in April, and that coincides with the blossoming of the sakura trees. Most schools have some sakura trees around the main entrance, so the trees there are in full bloom during the week the students return to school; so I guess that helps building a great mood to get things started. The practice of viewing the sakura, or hanami (花見), is centuries-old. During these days at the end of March and beginning of April, hordes of people take over every park in Tokyo, and it all becomes a colorful festival with all sorts of picnic food, drinks, music, shows, pets, Frisbee throwing, outdoor beer pong, passed out foreigners, passed out locals, bizarre outfits, weird families, normal families and disloyal wives. This time of the year, in a park like Yoyogi, which is located next to the busy and crowded Harajuku ward, one can practically experience the whole human spectrum that inhabits Tokyo.
This also marks the beginning of the season, so there are many spring kick-off parties and company lunches whose organizers show up really early to get a good spot in the park. Yoyogi Park is a bit more than half a square kilometer, so lots of people can fit inside. The following pictures were taken right before the true hanami; the trees will get way more beautiful by the end of this week. I will hopefully visit another park by the end of next week to take some more stunning pictures. Pictures of the completely naked white-painted face gang have been omitted out of #respect!
A short walk from Yoyogi Park takes you to Takeshita Street, one of the busiest shopping streets of Harajuku, and a flagship of the whole Japanese pop culture, including, of course, cosplay.
