Visitors to the Capitol grounds in Salt Lake City on Friday were treated to a display of cherry blossoms in full splendor. The nice spring weather should continue through the weekend, with colder weather expected early next week, forecasters say.
Some found a spot to sit and enjoy the scenery, while many others chose to enjoy a short walk along Memorial Walkway that winds around the Capitol.
According to the Capitol website, the 433 Yoshino cherry trees were originally sent by the Japanese to Utah as a symbol of friendship and reconciliation following World War II. In Japan, blossoming cherry trees, with their rapidly appearing flowers that die within weeks, symbolize the impermanence of life.
Those trees and others at the Capitol, however, were damaged or lost when a tornado struck downtown Salt Lake City in 1999. The current Yoshino cherry trees were planted during the 2004–08 Capitol restoration project.
