Join the party

In the park near my apartment building some people have already spread out tarps, lined them off and one person even wrote a 'No entry' sign. I don't understand how they can do this in a PUBLIC park, where kids should be playing and what not. Enjoy the cherry blossoms, peeps, but be reasonable.

Not to be picky, but a mask generall covers the face. This is more of "beer mug headgear". Anyway, looks like he is getting set for the standard hanami routine of drink and eat too much and then fall over. I love it!

Ewan - And tell him to bring some beer!

beer mask? i can still see his face, anyway i first thought of gopher from the muppet show

Smith, I would head down to the park late at night, neatly pack their tarps and leave a sign saying "No reservations at a public park".

Great! I Hope the weather will hold till this weekend!

It's raining and it's cold!!...Tokyo is winter weather today!

@smith

I'd suggest that the date is to inform others that they're welcome to use the Tanakas' tarp before Sunday. That's how I've always taken it, and never had reason to believe otherwise.

Days before is a little too much i think, and you are right, it is a nuisance to others, and an eyesore

I reserve a spot each year, but i do it the night before, after others have finished their celebrations. I do it for Hanami, and also at Hanabi events.

And i would see no problems putting my tarp over someone elses if they had a date put up more than one day in advance (not like they would be needing it before then anyway). Then i could be thankful for them to have fenced off a nice spot for me.

beer mug mask? Temp in Ueno Park must be higher than rest of Japan which is under cold wave !

This guy is going to enjoy his cherry blossom viewing party.

An awesome beer mug mask!

Smith, I would head down to the park late at night, neatly pack their tarps and leave a sign saying "No reservations at a public park".

You advise kicking off WWIII? You have NO idea how seriously people take their reserved spots.

I like it!

You have the full year to enjoy the entire park, yet complain about one or 2 weekends where adults want to celebrate hanami with their friends/coworkers (and not spend it cramped and huddled because there is no room to sit)?

Ueno koen is notoriously crowded and full of drunks during hanami (perfectly legal mind you), so i would argue that you shouldnt be bringing your kids there during this time anyway. Take them to a more kid-friendly hanami viewing area, and let the adults enjoy Ueno park

afanofjapan: "You have the full year to enjoy the entire park, yet complain about one or 2 weekends where adults want to celebrate hanami with their friends/coworkers (and not spend it cramped and huddled because there is no room to sit)?"

That's the thing -- it's NOT just the weekends. Some people will put down tarps days before they plan to show up, and rope off the area around the tarp, so you CAN'T enjoy the park. If they want to show up early in the morning and sit on their tarps, waiting for others, I can see that, but not DAYS before. One of the tarps outside says, "Tanaka, Sunday the 31st. No entry", but I'm happy to say it's been fouled up a little by kids playing during their spring vacation. Hopefully the wind picks up and the Tanakas tarp gets blown away.

Those are some impressive cherry trees, and beer mask man is undoubtedly going to have some fun.

As some posters have pointed out, the whole reserving a piece of park if you're not even there is pretty cheeky. Get there early in the morning with a box of supplies and camp out until your friends arrive. That's the decent thing to do.

ElJeffeInJapan: "Smith, I would head down to the park late at night, neatly pack their tarps and leave a sign saying "No reservations at a public park"."

A few years back I DID take down one of the signs and tossed the tarp and set up there myself with friends. The family came some four or five hours later and seemed at a loss, and when the father finally approached me and said they had 'reserved' the spot I said I didn't know you could make reservations and that nothing had been there. I added he could join our party if they liked and they did for a while, but seemed pretty bummed out. I felt a little bad, but unless the park has an actual city hall reservation system you simply can't section off a part of the park for your personal use half a week later.

I love the cherry blossoms and like the odd cherry blossom party, but this whole 'reserving' a spot is for the birds. Add to that the blue tarps, ropes, garbage, and antics of people when they get drunk and you turn something beautiful into something that can be pretty awful.

Sure, there's nothing in law that makes it okay to reserve a space, but it's what people do and have done for years and years. Better to respect local tradition than behave like a thug.

Hanami wonderful. Not so wonderful to see people not respecting others. Well the flowers are beautiful that makes up for it all. thanks for the nice picture. Have a nice time everyone wish i were there.

Join my party ......... Pleeeeeeease !