每年春天，成百上千万日本人到公园欣赏樱花短暂而壮丽的盛放。他们前来参加名为“花见”（意为“观赏樱花”）的聚会，摆出精致的便当和米酒。（华盛顿的樱花盛开时也举办了小规模的庆祝。这些樱花是1912年东京市长赠给华盛顿的。）有的地方聚集着喧闹的20多岁的年轻人；有的地方则是一家人在被纸灯笼照亮的樱花树下安静地漫步。
本月，摄影师马修·皮尔斯伯里(Matthew Pillsbury)在日本的几个地方捕捉到了正在盛花期的樱花。“这里的人群跟我以前见过的都不一样，”他说，“你看到成群的老年人旁边坐着成群的青少年。樱花纷纷飘落时，他们都开始鼓掌。可以说他们在举办同一个聚会。”Julie Bosman
日本樱花树的种类：300多种
最常见的樱花树：染井吉野樱
樱花观赏仪式首次出现于：8世纪
东京市长赠给华盛顿的3000棵樱花树存活下来的有：大约100棵
Every spring millions of Japanese visit parks to take in the brief but magnificent bloom of their country’s cherry trees. They gather for so-called hanami parties, setting out elaborate meals of bento boxes with sake. (A smaller celebration in Washington marks the flowering of trees given to the city by the Tokyo mayor in 1912.) In some places, the scene is rowdy with people in their 20s; in others, families wander quietly among trees illuminated by paper lanterns. The photographer Matthew Pillsbury captured the cherry blossoms at their peak in several places in Japan this month. “The crowds are unlike anything I’ve ever seen,” he says. “You see groups of elderly people sitting next to groups of teenagers. They all clap when the blooms start falling off the tree. They’re basically having the very same party.” Julie Bosman
Varieties of cherry tree in Japan: More than 300
Most common cherry tree: Somei-Yoshino
First ritual cherry-blossom viewings: Eighth century
Number of original 3,000 trees given by the Tokyo mayor to Washington that survive: About 100