Usually rain isn’t what you want when the cherry blossoms are blooming, but this is a very beautiful exception.

After the cherry blossoms bloom, there are only a few days before they start to fall from the trees. Since the window to go out and see the flowers so narrow, all of Japan keeps an eye on the weather forecast during sakura season, with their fingers crossed for clear skies.

So a lot of people were probably disappointed when rain was predicted in Kyoto after the sakura started blooming this year, spoiling outdoor party plans. But rain was exactly what Iori Takano (@_iori_xx21 on Twitter) was hoping for, and so he grabbed his camera and headed out before sunrise to take this incredible picture.

With the patches of the dark pre-dawn sky enhancing the pink of the sakura, and the crimson traditional umbrellas providing another point of color contrast, the photo would be breathtaking even if it were only half as tall as it is. But what really makes it magical is how the rain has turned the street into a mirror, reflecting the view so that there are seemingly sakura both above and below.

If you’re wondering what part of Kyoto Takano took the photo in, it’s the Shirakawa section of the Gion district, Kyoto’s geisha quarter. On the other hand, if you’re wondering if this is the only ethereally elegant rainy day image of the city he captured during cherry blossom season this year, the answer is no, as his most recently shared is this collection of shots of Kurumazaki Shrine, in the Saga Asahi-cho neighborhood on the northwest edge of downtown.

So remember, if there’s rain on the way, you don’t need to cancel your cherry blossom viewing plans entirely. Just grab your umbrella and your camera, and you’ll be treated to a while different, but still amazing, type of sakura scenery.

Source: Twitter/@_iori_xx21 via IT Media
Images: Twitter/@_iori_xx21
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