Welcome to Scary Blossom

 I am a local to the Washington DC area. I spent my formative years within reach of the heart of the city center. I know this city, it’s seasons and it’s moods. 

This past week was the start of our tourist season. Bus loads of sightseers and out of town visitors are swarming the city. Traffic is worse than usual and everyone is driving five miles under the speed limit.

It’s Cherry Blossom time y’all.

Otherwise known as “Scary Blossom”, the DC cherry blossoms at peak bloom are truly beautiful. However, the tourists make navigating the city nearly impossible - even worse than the forth of July and protest season. (Okay the 4th of July might be a bit of an exaggeration because the tourists are also insane, but Cherry Blossom is when the chaos begins).

No more is Washing DC for the locals to the DMV (DC, Maryland, and Virginia tri-state area). Now, we’ll have bus loads of school children visiting our world famous (and mostly free) museums, monuments, and government buildings. Protests will kick up activity in about a month - though they are easier to navigate. No one will know where they’re going (not just the tourists, but the new construction will create new,  longer routes to get to work).

For an event that lasts about a week (depending on weather, wind, and temperature), the Cherry Blossoms are an important part of DC culture. The original Sakura trees were planted along the Tidal Bain in 1912. These trees were a gift of friendship from the People of Japan to the People of the United States because of a correspondence between First Lady Helen “Nellie” Taft and the then Mayor of Tokyo. The original 3,000+ trees are over 110 years old and one of the icons of the city.

We put these flowers on everything DC related - along with the Washington Monument and Capital Building. Coffee mugs, pins, patches, chocolate bars, and more have pink blossoms and white buildings on a blue sky background.

One of my paintings of the event.

And yes, they are beautiful.

Sakura or Cherry Blossoms are incredibly pretty. When their petals fall, it looks like pink snow swirling through the air. They are the unofficial signal spring has begun and that warmer weather is around the corner. 

And they let the residents of the Washington DC area know that tourists are coming.

It is worth it to see the DC Cherry Blossoms once in your life. The Tidal Basin is a lovely area and the trees frame the backdrop of many of the monuments. My favorite area to see them is around the FDR (Franklin Delano Roosevelt) memorial all the way up to Jefferson. I haven’t done that walk in years, but it is beautiful on a clear day.

Another of my paintings of the Cherry Blossoms

However, I can’t stand the traffic and clusters of tourists standing in the middle of roads and pathways while they decide where to go. Parking is a nightmare and the metro is overcrowded at all times, not just peak rush hour.

I love DC. I love the Cherry Blossoms.

I don’t love the tourists.

But that’s part of the life being a resident of Washington DC.

Until next week.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope y’all like hearing from me.

Welcome to Adventure Part 4: You Are The Tourist

The term tourist gets a bit of a bad rap. No one wants to be labeled as a "tourist". They're rude, often confused, jerks who stand in the middle of the road to take that prefect picture of an iconic building. Come summer you can spot a tourist by their khaki shorts and a polo with their phones and/or cameras glued to their hands staring wide eyed and slack jawed at the fantastic sights.

It’s not a flattering picture.

I am totally that tourist who takes picture of their food.

Even I can be heard muttering nasty comments (“[censored] tourists”) under my breath more often than not in my home city of Washington DC. Though, I do seem to be more forgiving of New York tourists (no real reason, just am). My tolerance for the oohs and awes of DC tourists is very low, especially during cherry blossom season. I just want them to stop being a nuisance and let me get to where I'm going.

Which is why my next piece of advice might throw you for a loop: I give you permission to be a tourist. In fact, I encourage it.

But wait, wasn’t I just complaining about tourists and pointing out how annoying they are?

Yes, I was. However, the number of rude, annoying, and straight up inconsiderate tourists is very small in proportion to the ones who are just curious about a new place. They want to experience a new culture, see the beautiful sights, and try new things.

If you prefer that I didn’t use the word “tourist”, you can interchange it with “adventurer”, “explorer”, or whatever term Airbnb is using in their ads now.

I might have been blocking other people to get this shot.

I can dress up the term all I want, when I’m traveling to a new place and it's not for work, I am a tourist. I’m there to experience a new culture, see the historic sights, and try new foods. I might try to blend in a little more so that I’m not marked as am “American Tourist” within the first five minutes of arrival (some places this is easier to do than others), but that doesn't change who I am.

On my recent trip to Japan and Hong Kong, I took well over 500 pictures. That’s something only a tourist or professional photographer does. As I am not a professional photographer (nor would I ever be casually mistaken for one) and was mostly taking pictures on my phone, it was fairly obvious I was a tourist. I might have even stopped in the middle of a pathway (not road - I'm not that stupid) to get a couple of really nice shots.

I’m certain someone was super annoyed that they ran into me, but for the most part people were really nice. They were happy to answer my questions and explain things I didn't understand very well.

It’s okay to be a tourist and make a few tourist mistakes, like eating at that expensive restaurant in the center of town with mediocre food. Just don't be that guy who complains loudly about a local customer and how "different it is than back home."

Personally, I find that the best way to be a tourist - and not get death glares - is to be aware of my surroundings. I watch the people around me and try to follow their example.

For example, next time you travel watch how people behave on public transit. In Japan, people are quiet and don’t make a lot of noise on the trains. They still talk to their companions or scroll through on their phones, but they aren’t very loud. In New York it’s okay to be loud. There are often designated quiet train cars because it’s so noisy.

If you don’t want to label yourself a tourist, that’s fine, but don’t let that stop you for doing touristy things. Sure tourists can be annoying, but most of us are just curious. They want to get to know a new place and culture.

Travel. Be a tourist. Explore. Go on an adventure. Be curious!

But also remember to be kind, understanding, and aware.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope y’all like hearing from me.

Until next week.