Robert HardingDuring spring, people gather all over Japan to have picnics and gatherings under the cherry blossom, a custom called Hanami. Symbolising the fleeting nature of life, it is said to date back more than a thousand years, to when aristocrats wrote poems inspired by the flowers.
Cherry blossom and the Matsuyama Castle, Shikoku, Japan (Michael Runkel/Robert Harding)
Ueno Park Hanami cherry blossom viewing parties, Tokyo (eye ubiquitous/Robert Harding)
Group of Japanese students celebrating the Cherry Blossom Festival under a tree on Kamo River, Kyoto (imageBROKER/Robert Harding)
Group of students celebrating the Cherry Blossom Festival by playing party games under a blossoming cherry tree in Maruyama Park, Kyoto (imageBROKER/Robert Harding)
See more photos of cherry blossom here