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Short Stories

Notes for a Spring in Japan

Notes for Spring in Japan Thira

Words MILES REDFER
Photos JASPER LENNOX

Spring in Japan carries a quiet magic — pale petals in the breeze, early morning light, and the sense that everything is about to begin again.

If I were there, I wouldn’t try to see it all. I’d let the season lead — slow, sensory, and fleeting. Here’s how I’d spend it.

See the Cherry Blossoms, Slowly

A morning walk through Shinjuku Gyoen. A quiet hour along Kyoto’s Philosopher’s Path. A riverside picnic in Meguro. No maps. No rush. Just being there, watching the petals fall like snow.

A Seasonal Kaiseki Meal

Young bamboo shoots. Sakura leaves folded into rice. Fresh mountain vegetables served in quiet sequence. A spring kaiseki dinner that feels like a ceremony — not of luxury, but of time.

Visit a Traditional Ryokan

Somewhere in Hakone or Kyoto, with tatami floors and the scent of hinoki wood. A soak in an onsen before dinner. Green tea in a yukata by the window. Time slows differently here.

Hanami Dango and Matcha in a Teahouse

A bowl of perfectly whisked matcha. A skewer of soft, pastel hanami dango. A low wooden table facing a still garden. Just a few minutes of sweetness and silence.

Early Morning at Fushimi Inari

Before the city wakes, walking through rows of vermillion torii. The air cool, the light low. Each step a soft rhythm. A kind of meditation you feel more than think.

Exploring Naoshima, the Art Island

A ferry across still water. Tadao Ando’s concrete curves. Yayoi Kusama’s pumpkins glowing against the shore. A museum that feels like a memory. The sea just beyond every frame.

A Slow Train Through the Countryside

Fields of yellow nanohana flowers. A glimpse of Fuji behind passing clouds. The lull of train sounds and the hush of spring outside the window. Not arriving, just moving through.

Sakura Sake Under the Stars

A quiet bar in Kyoto. A glass of seasonal sake. The soft hum of night just outside. The taste of spring — fleeting and unforgettable.

Some trips are about movement.

This one is about presence — about letting a season unfold around you, quietly and without agenda. To walk, to taste, to pause.

Spring in Japan doesn’t ask for much. Just that you notice.

Words MILES REDFER
Photos JASPER LENNOX