First Hanami in Japan! -Bhutanese Family-

I went to Hanami with Mr. Ugyen Dorji and his family. Hanami is a Japanese flower viewing tradition. In Japan, during the cherry blossom season, we enjoy and appreciating the blooming of cherry blossoms. We celebrate it by having picnic parties under the cherry blossom trees.

Mr. Ugyen Dorji is from Bhutan and he’s studying as a teacher trainee at University of Fukui since around October of 2017.

His family arrived in Japan at the end of March. It had been 6 months since the last time they saw each other. They seemed very happy to see each other. He said that he was worried that his son would not remember him at all. But his son smiled at Mr. Ugyen Dorji as soon as his son saw him. Mr. Ugyen Dorji was very happy about it.

It was interesting for them to see the moving dinosaurs in front of Fukui Station.

They said that it was their first time seeing cherry blossoms in real life and they were amazed by them. It was such a beautiful day so we all felt nice walking under the cherry blossoms.

It was also their first time to have Hanami (a Japanese flower viewing tradition), they seemed to enjoy it. They brought some homemade Bhutanese food. I tried it and it was spicy and I liked it very much. It was such a great and interesting experience for me to have Hanami eating Bhutanese food, hearing Dzongkha (Bhutanese) and communicating people from outside of Japan.


T.F