It’s Monday, April 2nd and April Fool’s Day is over. So no fooling around when I say the cherry blossoms are beginning to bloom.

Yesterday, April 1st, was a rather warm day in the afternoon. Tonight will be cool and tomorrow even warmer than today. So sakura, cherry blossoms, should begin to open a bit faster from tomorrow.

Look to see cherry blossoms at about 40 to 50% opened by this weekend in the Kyoto area of Japan.

For diehard hanami participants, the rain is actually a blessing. Wet grass and dirt deter many from leaving their homes, which means those who do venture out will not have to beat the crowds to popular cherry blossom places.

So if you are thinking that the rain tonight is going to spoil your cherry blossom viewing tomorrow, you might want to stick to your plan because the sun will come out tomorrow and you can bet your bottom dollar that it will be beautiful anywhere cherry blossoms are blooming.

Tomorrow blossoms will be mankai (fully bloomed) in most places around the Kansai region. Just don’t forget to take a sheet or chair to sit on if you plan to sit and admire the blossoms, or else you may need a change of clothes!

The cherry blossoms right now are at about 20 to 30% bloomed. Mountain and hillsides are turning a light shade of pink.

If you wish to see a mix of cherry blossoms and cherry blossom buds, now’s a good time to go. If you wish to see them in full-bloom, mankai, this weekend would be the best time to go.

Locations - Nakanoshima, Kita-ku, Osaka

In front of Osaka City Hall, Miotsukushi Promenade road and surrounding area, Osaka Central Public Hall to Nakanoshima Park(Rose garden, Kensaki Park) and the north public square of Osaka Science Museum.

Osaka Hikari Renaissance

Dates – Saturday December 11 to Christmas Day, Saturday December 25, 2010

Hours – 17:00 – 22:00

Expect trees in the Kyoto area to be bright and colorful around the last week of November, a little earlier than the official momiji report predicted a few weeks ago.

The photos below are from Fushimi Inari Shrine.

200 kids will go trick-or-treating in their Halloween costumes this weekend in downtown Suita. Shops in the area have prepared for the event and will hand out candy and treats to the 200 participants.

Because a typhoon will be passing by the Kansai region Saturday, the event has been postponed to Sunday.

The sakura cherry blossoms were only at about 20% open on Monday. But it was still a beautiful day to be out doing hanami even with the crazy weather.

The sky was bright blue. The clouds were mostly white with patches of gray and dark gray-blue. The contrast between the clouds and the sky made for some good photography.

By Thursday, the sakura blossoms should be around 50% opened. But the weatherman said it might rain that day. If so, take an umbrella or rain jacket and brave the elements. If you take lots of battery power, you’ll have a good opportunity for some wonderful shots of sakura using your camera flash.

At Akamanma in Arashiyama, a cafe gallery along the Nagatsuji Dori, sakura are in bloom! Kyoka Okumura is showing her fine sakura art and sakura goods on the 2nd floor of Akamanma.

Sakura Kyoka art and goods will be on display and for sale at Akamanma in Arashiyama until March 18th. The cafe restaurant gallery is open from 10am to 10pm, but the gallery will only be open until 6pm.

For more information on Sakura Kyoka, visit her website: SakuraKyoka.com or stop by the gallery!

Sakura Tapestry

Akamanma Cafe Restaurant Arashiyama

The hall will be available February 2, March 2, July 6 and August 3.

Anyone wishing to use the hall can obtain an application form from the website Phoenix Hall. Thr deadline to apply is January 29.

For more information call (06) 6363-0211.