February 23, 2017, 09:42 AM 
Sometime last week, about a month before sakura season in Japan, the pink flowers started to bloom in a small town about three hours from Tokyo.
Kawazu, located in Izu Peninsula, is home a to unique variety of sakura that blooms in the beginning of February. The cherry blossoms, called Kawazuzakura, last for about a month, compared to the usual sakura that blooms and wilts within one to two weeks.
If you're sick of the daily grind and love to travel to Japan like the maaaany Singaporeans who do, these pictures will hit you with a pang of wanderlust and have you scrambling to go fill out your leave application right now.
Every year, Japan’s cherry blossoms first appear in southern Japan, Okinawa, before moving northwards to Hokkaido by early May.
Really, it's no big secret that Singaporeans love travelling to Japan.
Statistics from Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO) recorded 190,900 travellers from Singapore to Japan between January to August last year. During the December peak period, the number was 75,900, a 13 percent increase from 2015.
Other than the school holidays, another peak period where many Singaporeans escape from the daily monotony of life to Japan is between March and April during spring season, synonymous with the word that makes all our eyes sparkle -- sakura.
So if the pictures of Kawazu has inspired you to go see the cherry blossoms for yourself this spring, we'll be happy to provide you with 2017 cherry blossom forecast.
| Place | Estimated Average First Bloom | Estimated Average Full Bloom |
| Okinawa | Mid January | Second Week of February |
| Kagoshima | Late March
(30-03-2017) |
Mid April
(06 to 14 April) |
| Nagasaki | Late March
(26-03-2017) |
Early April
(02 to 10 April) |
| Fukouka | Late March
(25-03-2017) |
Early April
(02 to 10 April) |
| Matsuyama | Late March
(27-03-2017) |
Early April
(04 to 12 April) |
| Hiroshima | Late March
(28-03-2017) |
Early April
(03 to 11 April) |
| Kyoto | Late March (29-03-2017) | Early April (04 to 12 April) |
| Osaka | Late March
(29-03-2017) |
Early April
(04 to 12 April) |
| Shizuoka | Late March
(29-03-2017) |
Early April
(02 to 10 April) |
| Nagoya | Late March
(26-03-2017) |
Early April
(02 to 10 April) |
| Yokohama | Late March
(26-03-2017) |
Early April
(02 to 10 April) |
| Kanazawa | Early April
(04-04-2017) |
Mid April
(08 to 16 April) |
| Tokyo | Late March
(26-03-2017) |
Early April
(02 to 10 April) |
| Nara | Late March
(29-03-2017) |
Early April
(04 to 12 April) |
| Niigata | Early April
(07-04-2017) |
Mid April
(12 to 18 April) |
| Nagano | Early April
(08-04-2017) |
Mid April
(11 to 20 April) |
| Fukushima | Early April
(08-04-2017) |
Mid April
(10 to 18 April) |
| Sendai | Early April
(08-04-2017) |
Mid April
(14 to 22 April) |
| Aomori | April 22, 2017 | April 26 to May 04, 2017 |
| Akita | Mid April
(18-04-2017) |
April 22 to 26, 2017 |
| Iwate | Mid April
(14-04-2017) |
April 18 to 24, 2017 |
| Matsumae | Late April
(26-04-2017) |
Early May
(01 to 10 May) |
| Hakodate | Late April
(29-04-2017) |
Early May
(02 to 09 May) |
| Sapporo | Early May
(02-05-2017) |
Early May
(04 to 12 May) |
Brb, going to apply for leave NAO.
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Top image by Izu navi via Flickr Creative Commons
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