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Cherry Jam Merchandise Photos Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival

Cherry Jam concert at Burrard skytrain

The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival kicked off today with the Cherry Jam, a free concert held at the Burrard skytrain station in downtown Vancouver.

This year, several artists teamed up to offer a multidisciplinary experience: The Vancouver Metropolitan Orchestra performed first, then stayed on stage to accompany two dancers and a Japanese singer.

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Chinese musician Ji Rong Huang played the er-hu while Dayna Szyndrowski performed tap dancing. I was blown away that someone had thought of mixing these two different art forms together. And they worked perfectly!

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Japanese artist Yayoi Hirano from Yayoi Theatre Movement performed haiku in mime while accompanied by the flute music of Holly Burke. (No pictures, but I took a video.)

Vancouver Okinawa Taiko group closed the show with powerful drumming and dancing.

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All performances were wonderful and memorable!

Festival volunteers at the VCBF table were handing out the 2016 Cherry Blossom guide which you can also find in this week’s The Vancouver Courier Newspaper and WE | The Westender.

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Spring came early, so all cherry blossom were gone at the Burrard skytrain station, but there was a birthday blossom tree at one of the kiosks, so I was able to take pictures of the blossoms.

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Akebono cherry trees are losing their petals, but there are plenty of cherry blossoms elsewhere in the city: Shirotae, beni-shidare, and soon Kanzan will bloom.  Are you ready to celebrate spring?

Don’t go cherry blossom viewing without these essential items: the VCBF guide, a cherry petal mat and a guide to Ornamental Cherries in Vancouver.

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Happy Cherry Blossom Viewing!

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Photos

Umineko cherry trees at Queen Elizabeth Park

Umineko cherry trees are starting to bloom at Queen Elizabeth Park’s duck pond. These magnificent trees are characterized by big white flowers with round petals. This is  a great location for a picnic.

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Use the VCBF neighbourhood map to find Umineko in your area.

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Photos

Akebono peak at Manitoba street (between 39th and 43rd Av.)

After my visit to Queen Elizabeth Park, I headed for Manitoba street (corner of 39th) to see two rows of Akebono cherry trees that extend up to 43rd street.

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The trees are small, but if you get the right angle, you can still get good photos.

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Since the trees are small, you can get really good close-ups:

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When I reached 41st Ave., I turned to face north and was thrilled to see the peak of the North Shore Mountains at the end of the street between rows of cherry blossoms. (There are electric wires in the way, but it’s still a nice photo op).

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Use the VCBF neighbourhood map to find this location and other Akebono cherry trees in your area.

Photos: Jessica Tremblay

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Photos

Queen Elizabeth Park Akebono cherry trees in bloom

Right after work, I went to Queen Elizabeth Park to see the Akebono cherry trees. It was around 5pm. There was about 25 people taking photographs.

The trees near the parking lot look amazing.

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The branches are full of blossoms.

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There’s a park bench so you can sit and have your picture taken next to the the huge trees.

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Queen Elizabeth Park is a wonderful location for a picnic. There’s also a lot of photographers (wedding, fashion) and videographers (someone was filming a tai-chi video when I was there), so be prepared to share the space with a crowd.

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Past the Akebono, you’ll also find a beautiful Somei-yoshino cherry tree:

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This location is definitely worth a visit. If you walk towards the restaurant, on top of the small quarry, you can take an amazing photo of the Vancouver downown skyline.

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Visit Queen Elizabeth Park within the next 7-10 days. For a guided tour, attend our Queen E Tree Talk and Walk on April 3 (date subject to change, so please visit our website for updates).

 

Photos: Jessica Tremblay

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Photos

Spectacular rows of Akebono on Graveley street

On a sunny Thursday morning, around 11 a.m., I reached Graveley street (corner of Lillooet) to view cherry blossoms.  The location is spectacular with two rows of old Akebono cherry trees forming an arch over the street.

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The area was bustling with activities: there were about 50 people taking pictures. And more cars kept arriving.

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The view from the bottom of the street is also very nice.

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From the sidewalk,  you can snap photos of the Burnaby skyline and SFU hill.

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The street is spectacular and immediately became one of my favorite locations. The blossoms were in full bloom when I visited. This location will be wonderful when petals start to fall in a couple of days.

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Visit this location within 7 days. Prepare to share the space with many photographers. When you’re there, remember the neighbours:

1) do not climb the trees
2) do not break the branches
3) be respectful of the residents who live on the street
4) do not stop in the middle of the street
5) keep your visit to a max of 15mins (cause really, how long does it take to snap a few photos?)
6) stay on city property, do not go on private property
7) try to stay off the grass, especially if you are wearing heels.
Mostly – be respectful to the environment and the residents. Remember that it is the residents who are responsible for caring for those trees.

To find out more about this location and where you can find Akebono cherry trees, see the VCBF neighbourhood map.

 

 

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Photos

Akebono cherry trees outside Mink Chocolates cafe

This plaza located at the end of Hornby street (between Hastings and Cordova) is on my favorite locations to view Akebono cherry trees Downtown.

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If you didn’t bring your picnic, you can stop at Mink Chocolates Cafe (or one of the other eateries) to have tea or coffee while you look at the flowers outside.

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It’s close to the waterfront, so you can take pictures of the blossoms with some historic Downtown buildings.

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The Akebono cherry trees are in full bloom downtown and in the West-End. Join our Cherry Tree Talk and Walk  this Saturday March 12 2016  1.30-3.30pm with Wendy Culter.

Photos: Jessica Tremblay

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Photos Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival

Burrard skytrain station

It was cloudy when I visited the akebono cherry trees at Burrard skytrain station, but at least it wasn’t raining.

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I was surprised to find the future location of our Cherry Jam (March 24) in full bloom!

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The branches are full of blossoms.

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It was fun to take pictures of the blossoms against the surrounding downtown buildings.

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Cherry blossoms are already falling, so hurry up to visit that location.

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If you’d like a guided tour of the Downtown/West-End cherry trees, join our Cherry Talk and Walk this Saturday March 12 2016 1.30-3.30 with Wendy Cutler. Meet at Burrard skytrain station.

Photos: Jessica Tremblay

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Cherry Scouts Photos

Pandora cherry trees blooming behind Brentwood mall

I went to take a look at the beautiful Pandora cherry trees behind Brentwood Mall (at Fairlawn and Brentlawn) in Burnaby.  They looked spectacular!

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The flowers are almost fully open.

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You can identify Pandora cherry blossoms by the darker shade of pink at the tip of the petals.

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Also, the flowers of the Pandora cherry trees fall WHOLE on the ground.

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Make sure to visit Pandora cherry trees within the next week. Check our VCBF neighborhood map to locate Pandora cultivars.

Photos: Jessica Tremblay

 

 

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Cherry Scouts Photos

Whitcomb Cherry Petals are falling at Tea Swamp Park (Sofia/15th ave.)

I visited Tea Swamp Park (Sofia/15th ave.) to see the shower of petals coming from the Whitcomb cherry trees.

Whitcombs cherry trees are the first cherry trees to bloom in Vancouver, so they’re the first cherry trees to lose their petals.

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Although you expect it, it’s always kind of sad to see the petals falling.

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Hurry up and visit within the next 2-3 days. Whitcomb petals are falling quickly! Find a location near you using the VCBF Neighborhood map.

 

Photos: Jessica Tremblay

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Cherry Scouts Photos Uncategorized

Pandora Cherry Blossoms at Mount Pleasant Park

What a gorgeous Saturday afternoon! The sun came up just as I reached Mount Pleasant Park.  I love this location: there are three Pandora  cherry trees you can photograph with the North Shore mountains in the background.

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You can identify Pandora cherry blossoms by the hint of dark pink at the tip of their petals. This dark pink is visible when the flowers just opened up — later on, the flowers will get whiter — so come see them early!

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Another feature of the Pandora cherry tree is that the flowers fall WHOLE.  If you look under a tree and you see only FALLEN FLOWERS (no petals!), it’s likely that the cherry tree is a Pandora cultivar.

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There are plenty of fresh buds on the trees, which means it will be blooming for a while, but don’t wait too late: visit this location within the next week and make sure to bring your picnic. There are lot of picnic tables in the park and the views of the North Shore mountains are amazing!

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Photos: Jessica Tremblay