🌸 Rikugien Garden: A Fairytale Sakura Experience Straight From Edo Period 🌸

#cherryblossom25 Stepping into Rikugien during sakura season feels like entering a living watercolor painting—one where cherry blossoms drip over lantern-lit ponds and every turn reveals another Instagram-worthy moment. This 300-year-old garden is Tokyo’s best-kept hanami secret! First Impressions: Sight: A weeping cherry so massive it looks like a pink waterfall frozen in time 🌊🌸 Smell: Earthy green tea notes from the garden’s tea house mixed with sweet sakura Sound: The soft crunch of gravel underfoot and gasps from visitors rounding the bend Secret Spot: The Togetsukyo Bridge at golden hour—when the weeping cherry’s reflection doubles the pink magic. (Pro tip: Get there 30 mins before sunset!) Only-in-Japan Moment: A group of salarymen in full suits having a hanami picnic with sake served in traditional masu boxes—they insisted I join for a toast! 🥂 Must-Try Treat: The garden’s sakura-yu (cherry blossom tea)—served with a salt-preserved flower that blooms in your cup! ⏰ Perfect Sakura Itinerary 3:00 PM - Arrive via Komagome Station (avoid weekend crowds!) 3:30 PM - Stroll the winding paths to discover mini "scenes" from old poems 5:00 PM - Matcha break at tea house 6:00 PM - Witness the illuminated weeping cherry (March nights only!) Why It’s Special: ✓ Home to Tokyo’s most famous weeping cherry tree ✓ Designed to represent 88 scenes from classic poetry ✓ Night illuminations transform it into a fantasy world Pro Tip: Bring a handkerchief—you might tear up when you see the 15-meter-tall shidare-zakura at golden hour. We won’t judge. Would you brave the sake-sharing salarymen for this view? Drop your best hanami story below! 👇