People in Japan await bloom of sakura cherry blossoms

The firm released its forecasts for the flowering of the most popular variety Somei-yoshino cherry trees on Monday.

It says people in the cities of Yokohama and Kumagaya around the capital can also expect the trees to bloom on Wednesday.

North of Tokyo in Mito, Utsunomiya and Maebashi cities, they're forecast to bloom on Thursday, and in Kofu on Friday.

Forecasters say lower temperatures continued in the region this week, leading buds to grow slowly.

Somei-yoshino are now expected to be in full bloom on April 5 in central Tokyo.

No blossoms, no problem: Festivals go ahead

The best time to enjoy cherry blossoms is right around the corner in most regions across Japan. But many places are already holding events for sakura blossoms.

A Tokyo park put on a sakura festival on Sunday where visitors could check out more than 1,000 cherry trees, though most have yet to bloom.

Festival organizers say they bumped up the event by two weeks because cherry trees have been blooming early in recent years.

"It was against our expectations. It's impossible to tell how cherry blossoms feel," said an official of a local tourism organization.

At this time of year, some train lines offer special rides. Tobu Railway's "Sakura Train" runs between Asakusa and Tokyo Sky Tree Station. The line passes by many areas with cherry trees, so the trains travel slower than usual to give passengers extra time to enjoy the view.

But cherry trees are still in the bud phase along Tokyo's Sumida River. A Tobu Railway official says he really wishes there were at least a few blossoms.

"The Sakura Train will be in service until the end of March. I hope cherry blossoms will at least half open so people can enjoy them," the official said.

Trees in full bloom in the US

But over in the US capital cherry blossoms are at their peak. The opening ceremony of the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival was held Saturday in Washington DC, with the trees in full bloom.

Crowds are flocking to view the cherry trees donated by Japan more than 100 years ago. In 1912, Tokyo's mayor gave about 3,800 of them to Washington.

The flowers there reached their peak more than a week earlier than usual. Many visitors were seen taking photos and having picnics under the blossoms.

Earliest bloom confirmed in Kochi City

In Japan, the earliest blooms were officially confirmed in Kochi City in the western part of the country on Saturday.

Officials at the Kochi Local Meteorological Observatory said they found five opened buds on a Somei-yoshino tree.