Bonn Cherry Blossom love

Spring officially brings an end to the winter and the whole planet comes alive again. The sun shines more boldly, trees sprout faintest twinges of green, and the earth looks pretty and happy. Pleasant vibes fill the air, and people start emerging from the winter gloom. It is the season of flowers and the earliest blossoms push through the earth in brave beautiful clumps. It is one of the most beautiful times of the year and irrespective of the location, every place on earth looks soul-soothing in spring. In this series dedicated to spring, I have shared beautiful floral locations from across the world. There was the mind-blowing Red Lotus Sea in Thailand, the beautiful Srinagar Tulip Festival in India, and the elusive, yet astonishingly gorgeous Hallerbos Blue Forest in Belgium. As you will notice, that my best memories of spring are associated with flowers and the Bonn Cherry Blossom festival in Germany is one such event.

A day trip to the lovely Bonn Cherry Blossom Festival

That winter in Germany was very hard for me. Rain, dim weather, and cold nearly withered my life essence the life, and more than once I considered running away from it all. Spring, thus arrived as a welcome change and with the re-invigorating season, I blossomed into life once again. The sight of green leaves in the trees in the streets eased away my blues and the neighbourhood church steeple glittering against a sunny sky lifted my spirit.  Birds started visiting my windowsill again and my potted tropical plants came out with vivid flowers. It was just too beautiful to stay at home and so on one fine morning, I found myself heading for Bonn with Tarek. Located around 40 minutes away by train from Cologne, Bonn is my favourite city in Germany, after Munich and I love its preserved neoclassical buildings. Despite the vibrant cosmopolitan crowd, Bonn has a very relaxing and lovely town on the Rhine makes a perfect day trip from Cologne. Erstwhile capital of West Germany, it’s prettiness lies in its rows of pastel coloured mansions, the preserved Old Town and the famous Heerstrase, which hosts the Bonn Cherry Blossom festival in spring.

More from Germany: THE PRETTY LITTLE TOWN OF MONSCHAU

Heerstrasse, the venue of Bonn Cherry Blossom Festival

Located in the stylish Nordstadt neighbourhood just a few minutes away from the famous Beethoven’s House, Heerstrasse is also known as the Bonn Cherry Blossom Avenue. Every spring the picturesque lane becomes a tunnel of pink and rows of ornamental Japanese cherry trees that had been planted in the 1980’s burst out in flowers. They create a striking sight and Bonn Cherry Blossom Festival is a major yearly tourist attraction. Bonn is a very picturesque city in its own right and the romantic historic old center is very popular among the visitors, even without the pink flowering cherry trees. The old city, complete with cast-iron lanterns, cobblestoned lanes, and classical old buildings decorated with stucco comes alive on weekends with lively flea markets and crowds of strolling tourists throng the narrow lanes. With the cherry trees blossoming, the entire atmosphere gets, even prettier, and the scattered pink petals carpet the romantic cobblestone avenue.

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Try a cherry blossom cocktail at Bonn Cherry Blossom Festival

It was quite cold, the day I visited Bonn Cherry Blossom Festival and gusts of chilly wind made the petals fall like incessant pink rain. Occasional drizzles splattered too and Bonn was experiencing a moody spring day. The fluffy cherry blossoms, however, were robustly blooming and a thick crowd thronged the avenue. Complete with a quirky flea market, buskers, live bands and humming ice cream shops, Heerstrasse was brimming with fun. Each year the cherry trees in Bonn start blooming around mid-April for about two to three weeks and the first blossoms that come out are the white ones in the Maxstrasse in mid-March. With the advent of warmer temperatures, the pink ones too start frothing in masses and people start signing up for historic guided tours to the French-inspired Old Town district in hordes. The celebration of Bonn’s cherry blossoms culminates in an annual festival called Altstadt (Bonn cherry blossom Festival) and refreshments and knickknacks booths line the cobblestone streets. In the Old Town, crowds jostle busily under the magical pink “ceiling” and the cherry blossom cocktail, which is made with real petals is one of the highlights of the event.

Recommended Read: ANNUAL CAMELLIA EXHIBITION AT COLOGNE BOTANICAL GARDEN

My opinion on Bonn Cherry Blossom Festival

Bonn’s pink season is truly magical. What begins with small buds, grow into light pink blossoms in the areas of the Altstadt before donning their typical, intensive pink hue. Thus it is no wonder that the Cherry Blossom Avenue of Bonn has been listed in travel guidebooks across the world as one of the Places to See Before You Die. Although not a great believer in ticking off bucket list, I had lusted after the Cherry Blossom Avenue for years and last spring had all been about Je ‘taime Bonn. Presenting the Bonn Cherry Blossom Festival photo series.

P.S – This blog post is part of the series called the Cologne Diaries, which highlights a new theme, emotion, and beauty of an expat life in Cologne. For more exotic fun, check out my Cairo Chronicles in the Expat Life category.

Follow the rest of the Germany travel series

• PHOTO ESSAY OF SANSSOUCI PALACE OF POTSDAM
• AN AUTUMN IN POTSDAM
• BONN CHERRY BLOSSOM
• HEATHER BLOOMING IN LÜNEBURGER HEIDE IN GERMANY
• WHAT TO EAT AT A BRAUHAUS IN COLOGNE
• ROMANTIC COCHEM
• ROMANTIC ROUTE ALONG THE MOSEL RIVER
• BEAUTY OF COLOGNE CATHEDRAL
• INCREDIBLE MOSAICS OF AACHEN CATHEDRAL
• BAVARIA WINTER HOLIDAY
• BREITENBERG MOUNTAIN TOBOGGANING TRIP
• TEGELBERG MOUNTAIN DAY TRIP
• NEUSCHWANSTEIN CASTLE
• WIESKIRCHE, A LOVELY ROCOCO CHURCH
• BAVARIA ON MY PLATE
• WHY VISIT FÜSSEN

RESPONSIBLE TRAVELING-BECAUSE I CARE