Winona, Minnesota, and Misato, Japan, have been “sister cities” since 1997, fostering a cultural exchange and international relationship between the two towns. Because of this, Winona was one of only 36 cities in the U.S. to receive cherry blossom trees from Japan for the 100^th anniversary of the first gift by the Japanese of trees to Washington, DC, in 1912. Since 2012, the trees – also called Sakura – have been blossoming every spring on the shores of Lake Winona.

I, as an ardent lover of all things pink and pretty, learned about the existence of these trees in Winona last year and have been anxiously awaiting for their petals to pop. The window on cherry tree blossoms is VERY short – often only a week long – so I was very mindful of timing and the weather. This week turned out to be THE week for the Winona blossoms, so I drove 50 minutes down the Great River Road to scout them out. Driving around Lake Winona, it’s impossible to miss the bright pink trees clustered together in a small park. From across the highway, Sugar Loaf and the other bluffs make an extra beautiful backdrop to the pretty Sakura scene. Southeastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin have been having some stormy weather lately, and I was lucky that only a couple of the trees had already dropped their blossoms. It was a bit breezy while I was there, and petals were still softly falling to the ground like pink snowflakes. Though they only last for a short while, the ephemeral nature of cherry tree blossoms is part of their appeal – a blink-or-you’ll-miss-it yearly event that you have to be lucky (or planful) enough to catch! In fact, the Japanese have a word for the tradition of enjoying the transient beauty of flowers: “Hanami.”

Where else besides Japan or Washington DC are there Sakura trees?

Another city in Minnesota – its capital St. Paul – also received Sakura trees from Japan in 2012. These are planted in Como Park and line the Mannheimer Memorial. The annual celebration of the cherry trees takes place this year on May 4, commemorating St. Paul’s sister city relationship with Nagasaki, Japan.

My favorite (and only other) place that I’ve seen Sakura trees is in Stockholm, Sweden. Gifted to King Carl XVI Gustaf from Japan in 1918, the körsbärsträd bloom every April in Kungsträdgården, Stockholm’s central city park. They line the sidewalks on both sides of a shallow water/fountain basin and create a beautiful pink canopy. Walking underneath, you feel like you’re in a fairy tale. Stockholmers flock there on their fika breaks to enjoy a coffee or an ice cream while enjoying the spring weather and the view.