Cherry Blossoms (sakura 櫻花 ying-hua) are out big-time.  Spring is finally here!  Currently flowering all over everywhere, but possibly the most famous place and most accessible for Taipei people is at Tianyuan Temple, just outside Tamsui.  Just happens to be not far from here, and there are huge traffic jams – ah, yes, we all love to see cherry blossom!

Tianyuan Temple Cherry Blossom is all Yoshino Cherry (吉野櫻) and, hey, they are looking spectacular.   You must go – and soon!

Tianyuan Temple is a Taoist Temple worshiping the Jade Emperor (Yu Huang Dadi 玉皇大帝), and the main attraction is the 5-story pagoda, with deities on each floor, and all surrounded by cherry blossom.

I’ve been waiting for a sunny day, and today was it!  So I went there late this afternoon, about 4:30 pm, and this was the scene….

And having the most fun taking photos were a group of very athletic students, who managed to perfect their pose after a few tries!

Getting to Tianyuan Temple is easy if you come by shuttle bus from Tamsui MRT Station, they’re currently running all day, but there’s also a long wait at weekends – I saw hundreds waiting in line last Saturday!  Traffic is very slow, and parking is not free, so come by shuttle bus.  For me it’s easy, just hop on the regular #876 bus that runs from Sanzhi to Tamsui over the mountain road, and it stops at the temple – only takes about 20 minutes.  And I caught the same bus back again about an hour later.  Yes, so easy!  Ah, the endless weekend traffic jams are well compensated for by having beautiful cherry blossoms within easy reach!

Do make the most of the cherry blossom season, it’ll be over before long ~ so get here quick ~ YES!