Japan’s annual cherry blossoms are one of the country’s biggest spectacles with travellers flocking to the country to watch the sakura in all their pink glory.
This year, the season is expected to start early – which could mean a change in itineraries for tourists hoping to catch the show.
According to Kansai University, an estimated 63 million people travel to and within the country to see the blossoms every year.
Typically, the season begins in April, but this year it’s set to start around a week earlier, said forecasters at Nihon Kisho. The Japanese weather forecasting company has predicted that cherry blossom season will begin on Thursday, March 19, 2020.
The flowers typically only bloom for a week, so visitors hoping to catch the spectacle may need to review their travel plans.
Forecasters say a warm early spring will lead to the cherry blossoms opening earlier in Tokyo, with the full bloom happening on or around Friday, March 27. That’s seven days earlier than average for the Japanese capital.
Hanami parties
Cherry blossoms aren’t unique to the Asian nation, but perhaps no other country takes the season quite as seriously as the Japanese.
The blooming has been celebrated for centuries and plays an important part in Japanese culture. They’re so significant that the act of viewing them has its own word: “hanami”, and hanami parties are held across the country to coincide with the sakura blooms.
In Hokkaido, typically the last prefecture where the cherry blossoms bloom, forecasters predict this will happen this year in the last week of May.
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level
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American households borrowed another $601 billion (Dh2.2bn) in 2019, the largest yearly gain since 2007, just before the global financial crisis, according to February data from the New York Federal Reserve Bank.
Fuelled by rising mortgage debt as homebuyers continued to take advantage of low interest rates, the increase last year brought total household debt to a record high, surpassing the previous peak reached in 2008 just before the market crash, according to the report.
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Bio:
Favourite Quote: Prophet Mohammad's quotes There is reward for kindness to every living thing and A good man treats women with honour
Favourite Hobby: Serving poor people
Favourite Book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite food: Fish and vegetables
Favourite place to visit: London
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The specs: 2018 BMW R nineT Scrambler
Price, base / as tested Dh57,000
Engine 1,170cc air/oil-cooled flat twin four-stroke engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm
Torque 116Nm @ 6,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km
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4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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