To mark the blossoming friendship between Japan and the United States in 1912, the mayor of Tokyo gifted D.C. with a forest of Japanese Cherry Trees. Now, every spring these trees bloom with peaceful hues of white and pink along the Tidal Basin.

The annual festival kicks off on the last Saturday in March and goes on for two weeks. Family activities, cultural events, concerts and parades are just a few popular highlights of the Cherry Blossom Festival, with plenty of unofficial events going on around the rest of the city