hummingwolf: squiggly symbol floating over rippling water (one)
hummingwolf ([personal profile] hummingwolf) wrote2009-04-04 09:05 pm

Happy Saturday

Below is the Picture of the Day (because it is appropriate and because I say so, that's why). As anyone who has ever seen Washington, DC during cherry blossom time will recognize, while 20th-century Japanese landscape artist Kawase Hasui may have had an excellent eye for design, there is an important element missing from this work.

Washington Monument by Kawase Hasui


Looking at this picture after having been downtown on a day like today, one is forced to ask: Where oh WHERE are the RAMPAGING HORDES OF TOURISTS? It is hardly possible to walk near a cherry tree in tourist central without stepping on someone or getting in the way of multiple people trying to take pictures. It's a good thing I actually like happy crowds. Today was a beautiful breezy spring day, excellent for watching petals drifting onto the water and floating away towards the ducks. The squeeze into the Smithsonian Metro station afterward was not terrifically fun, though, which should serve as a reminder to me in the future to (A) go visit the old cherry trees on weekdays when crowds are not so thick and (B) walk the extra distance to Metro Center where the crowd control efforts are a little more likely to take people somewhere they want to go.

I think I had something more to say, but it got lost somewhere along the way and was probably stomped on by rampaging hordes of tourists. Will try to say more tomorrow.

[identity profile] szeretni.livejournal.com 2009-04-05 09:29 am (UTC)(link)
Ohh, so beautiful!! :D
ext_3407: squiggly symbol floating over water (one)

[identity profile] hummingwolf.livejournal.com 2009-04-05 01:56 pm (UTC)(link)
The actual cherry blossoms on the Tidal Basin are more white than pink right now, but yes, they are so beautiful. :-)

[identity profile] daisydumont.livejournal.com 2009-04-05 10:42 am (UTC)(link)
in all these decades (3 of 'em), i've never gone into DC to look at the blossoms. out here we have enough bradford pears and so on to keep me happy. hope today's as pretty as yesterday was.
ext_3407: Dandelion's drawing of a hummingwolf (Hummingwolf by Dandelion)

[identity profile] hummingwolf.livejournal.com 2009-04-05 02:01 pm (UTC)(link)
They are worth seeing if you ever feel up to doing a lot of walking around (and I know that's a pretty big "if"). I would strongly advise against going on a weekend, though, no matter how good you might feel otherwise. Saturday on the Mall in the spring is really only good for people who like to be up close & personal with tourists!