Easy Japanese news in translation: Cherry trees start blooming in Hokkaido
Somei Yoshino cherry trees bloomed on April 20 at Matsumae Park in the town of Matsumae, located in the southernmost part of Hokkaido. This was seven days earlier than usual and the earliest blooming in Hokkaido. Matsumae Park is famous for cherry blossoms and Matsumae Castle is located there. In the park, there are 10,000 cherry trees of 250 varieties, including those that will bloom later. The Matsumae cherry blossom festival is being held there until May 11.
Easy Japanese news is taken from the Mainichi Shogakusei Shimbun, a newspaper for children. This is perfect material for anyone studying Japanese who has learned hiragana and katakana. We encourage beginners to read the article in English followed by Japanese, or vice versa, to test their comprehension.
A fresh set will be published every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 4 p.m., Japan time. Click/tap here for past installments.
Intermediate learners who do not need English assistance can directly access the Mainichi Shogakusei Shimbun site here. Furigana (hiragana) is added to all kanji in the text.
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