Osaka: Petals Starting To Fall

Following on from yesterday's report from Kyoto where the cherry blossom season was drawing to a close (albeit with chances still remaining to catch some later-blooming varieties at a few key spots around the city), I spent a last day in the Kansai Region, this time checking in on two spots in Osaka.

Here, the period of best viewing is right on the cusp of ending, but there are certainly still some beautiful scenes to be found mixed in here and there.

My first stop was at Osaka Castle - a large and attractive space in the middle of the city complete with original defensive walls, a reconstructed main tower at its center and around 3,000 cherry blossom trees. The grounds feature quite a few different viewing spots, and despite a bit of variation my overall sense was of blossoms just beginning to noticeably thin out.

I also made a stop at Expo '70 Commemorative Park, another large public park located about 30 minutes by subway and monorail from the city center. Here the blossoms were a bit more obviously past their best, and a carpet of petals had already formed in the main picnic areas.

For any visitors still planning a visit in the very near future, I would suggest skipping the main avenues and grassy spaces to the entrance in favor of the "Cherry Tree Stream" area towards the northwest, where some later-blooming types can be found along a little waterway.