If you have never enjoyed the sight of the gorgeous cherry blossoms in Japan put it on your bucket list right away. It is one of the most beautiful sights you would ever come across. The sakura season is celebrated all over Japan. The atmosphere in the country feels festive from the time the first flower blooms in Okinawa till the final petal falls in Hokkaido. Here are a few places in Japan where you can enjoy the best sights of cherry blossoms.

Mount Yoshino

This mountain is one of the most famous places in Japan for sakura viewing. For many centuries, this place shows you more than 30,000 cherry blossom trees. Along this route, many visitors like to look at blossoms snakes at the mountain ridge’s foot but from the railway station. It goes via four sections (Naka Senbon, Shimo Senbon, Oku Senbon, and Kami Senbon), providing different viewpoints. You will also find many yatai food stalls on your way.

Shinjuku Gyoen, Tokyo

Most people who visit Japan, almost always make a trip to Tokyo. So, if you are looking for sakura viewing place here, it would be at Shinjuku Gyoen. This huge park is situated right in the middle of the city and within walking distance of some of the busiest and largest business and entertainment hubs. Shinjuku Gyoen houses more than 1,000 cherry blossom trees making it one of the best spots in the capital for sakura viewing. Some of these trees bloom early while some bloom late. So, you can enjoy the view of these beautiful sights longer than in other places in this city.

Himeji Castle

This is one of Japan’s most impressive and largest castles. It is also a great spot to look at cherry blossoms. It is a UNESCO Heritage Site and has survived earthquakes, fires, wars, and more. The place is surrounded by these trees. Visit this castle in the spring and you will fall in love with the view.

There truly is no country like Singapore! This amazing country has so much to offer citizens and tourists alike and being there simply improves overall happiness. Join us to find out all about Singapore’s hidden treasures!

Little do many people know, but Singapore is actually made up of as many as 64 separate islands. The land area that Singapore covers includes the main island and up to 64 offshore islands that are nearby. Whether it’s Pulau Ubin, Sisters’ Islands, or St John’s Island, Singapore has an island experience for anyone.

Singapore created a very unique nocturnal experience when they developed the first night zoo. Opening in 1994, this night safari offers a very different experience to any zoo visited during the daytime. See safari in a (pardon the pun) brand new light!

Spanning a total area of 35-hectares, the Singapore Night Safari features more than 1,000 animals in their naturalistic environment. See the nightlife of this zoo to learn how the animals live by night; a unique experience for all interested.

Singapore is home to one of the first man-made waterfalls. Built in 1971, in Jurong Bird Park, this man-made waterfall is said to be the tallest waterfall that can be found in an aviary to date! It is certainly spectacular.

Setting this trend, Singapore didn’t stop there. Gardens by the Bay – found in Cloud Forest – features a 35-meter waterfall in this misty conservatory which functions to protect plant life there from the tropical highlands. Serenity would certainly be an understatement!

Like all languages around the world, Singapore also incorporates their own slang into their famous “language” – Singlish. The exclamation of ‘lah’ or ‘leh’ added to their sentences is a common addition that is integral to all Singaporean daily dialectical delights.

Singaporeans also have the tendency to call strangers either “Uncles” or “Aunties”. This is a manner of addressing more elderly ladies or gentlemen with respectful endearment. Just don’t make the mistake of calling a younger person by such a name!

Singapore was the pioneer of the first Formula 1 night time race. The famous and globally known Grand Prix star event features entertainment activities, concerts, and high-speed races. Watching the racers speeding under the moonlight has never felt so elegant.

The F1 Singapore Grand Prix made racing history by hosting the world’s first-ever Formula 1 night race. Taking place in the Marina Bay, the street circuit has for the most part remained unchanged as citizens witnessed history created that night.

Singapore is known for being one of the greenest cities in the world. Compared to many other cities, Singapore’s skyscrapers even have lush greenery abundantly placed throughout them. Citizens can definitely breathe a little easier by going greener.

Almost half of Singapore’s 700 square kilometer landmass is covered in greenery of one form or another. Parks and gardens are countless while small pockets of plant life can be found in the most unique places, even on skyscrapers!

Singapore is home to one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The Singapore Botanic Gardens are well-known and have a history that spans 150 years since they were founded way back in 1859!

Of its popular attractions, Singapore’s National Orchid Garden contains more than 200 hybrid species of orchid over 19 hectares. This garden has been visited by the likes of Nelson Mandela, Jackie Chan, and even the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Singapore takes fun to the next level. The number of cultural festivals, lifestyle, art, and major sporting events are so limitless that there’s practically a celebration every single day. If that isn’t enough entertainment, we’re quite unsure what is!

They host the HSBC World Rugby Singapore Sevens at the Singapore Sports Hub annually for thousands of fans to come together and celebrate. More importantly, the Singapore Food Festival in July is a treat your taste buds will not forget!

The Merlion is Singapore’s iconic emblem and is formed with a lion’s head and a fish’s body/tail. This statue is partly inspired by Singapore’s Sanskrit name – Singapura – which means ‘lion city’. This name has quite the history behind it.

The name is said to have been given by Sumatran prince, Sang Nila Utama while hunting and seeing a strange creature moving quickly. Though his advisors had just identified it as a lion, Singapore had no native records of lions…

In Singapore, populations are so dense that getting around can be tough. Traffic lights are no different, but not for the elderly in Singapore. Using a smart card, pedestrian crossing can have their timing increased for more time to cross.

This excellent addition to normal pedestrian crossings makes crossing the roads that much safer and less stressful for those that need more time. This is just another way that Singapore truly stands out from the crowd, by supporting all citizens.

For lovers of vending machines and for lovers of fish, this combination could not come soon enough! In a world of junk food vending machines, Singapore takes another unique step out of the ordinary line to feature another pioneering venture.

This vending machine is the world’s first of its kind, offering Norwegian salmon to provide citizens with an omega-3 rich meal. It might seem crazy at first, but when the machine explains all the goodness, it definitely sells it well!

Laws are enforced all around the world that seem totally understandable, but then there’s Singapore. Have you ever fed the pigeons? Well, that’s a $500 fine in Singapore if you get caught in the act! Better put down the bread…

To keep the country’s status as one of the cleanest cities in the world, Singapore introduced the fail to flush fine. This issues toilet users with up to a $150 fine for failing to flush the toilet. Talk about clean!

Most of the time, journeys through the airport can be stressful. First making sure you have everything, going through security, and then finally waiting to board the airplane. What unique stress-relieving method do you think Singapore opts for? A slide!

Every child’s dream and every adult’s secret dream come true, Singapore’s Changi airport has a slide to make the experience a bit more fun. Feel the stress of security fade away as you slide down the world’s tallest airport slide.

Singapore has a canal right down the middle of a mall that allows citizens to ride a boat straight down it. As one of the cleanest cities, the water in this canal is as blue as the sky and clear.

When the stress of shopping becomes too much, take a load off and peacefully sail down the canal as your worries slip away. One canal boat’s journey is all it takes to make a good day a great one.

When we think of underground train stations, we think of packed areas that are completely crowded with people. Not in Singapore. In Singapore people line up to board the trains during rush hour to keep everything safe and organized.

This orderly fashion of lining up during rush hour is just one trend set by Singapore that the world needs. Imagine if rush hour involved less bumping into people and queues were formed naturally. What a breeze that would be!

Hiring cleaning staff can be tough, so why not let a robot do it for you? In Changi Airport, that’s exactly what they did. Featuring robot floor cleaners in the arrival hall, Singapore continues to hold strong to its values.

Cleanliness is next to godliness and Singapore knows this mantra all too well. By replacing human cleaners with robot cleaners, the cost to hire goes down significantly. But who knows, the cost for electricity must skyrocket…unless it takes diesel?

Do you ever get bored of the generic straightforward escalators and the boring view? Well, so too did Singapore. By opting for curved escalators, users get to experience a totally different perspective when traversing them in malls and while shopping.

Traveling up a curved escalator might seem strange at first, but the elegance and use of space are clear. Rather than taking you from point A to B, it escorts you in a manner that would make even Cinderella jealous.

Remember when you were below 5ft in height? Some of us still are. Reaching the sink for kids in restrooms usually involves the parent lifting them up to the sink to wash their hands. Well, once again, not in Singapore.

Restrooms feature lower height sinks for kids to wash their hands. This might seem like a small deal for non-parents, but for parents, this is essentially saving them from back pains in later life! Singapore’s innovation wins it once again.

Commuting usually involves being charged a ticket to ride, but now the new Singapore public buses give a little back. These new buses feature USB charging points to charge your electronics during the commute ahead. That saves your battery dying!

Of the many times we all commute, there are not enough people living in Singapore to count the number of times a phone has died mid-journey. Like a beacon of hope, here come buses with charging ports to save us!

We have all been there when we arrive at the train station only to find out that we don’t have enough to cover the fare. In Singapore, the alternative to going home is to exercise. That’s right, actual physical movement.

This machine which is located in Tampines MRT in Singapore exchanges 20 monitored squats for a free train ride. Just another way that Singapore makes life easier for commuters and encourages good health all around. Just don’t tear your pants!

As we transition into the digital world of money and use of digital money, so too has Singapore. Supermarkets in Singapore now feature digital price tags that come with a vast number of benefits for both employees and customers alike.

By using digital price tags, Singapore saves the use of paper, ensures that prices can be easily changed, and helps customers identify the exact price of an item. This method helps to keep Singapore greener and easier to live in.

ATMs aren’t always our best friend as they tend to be used only when we have to use money. In Singapore, ATMs instead become a source of inspiration and motivation. Giving you a quote as you wait, learning actually occurs!

Whether it’s a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr., or perhaps a quote from Gandhi, either way, Singapore ATMs leave you feeling imbuing with positivity. Learn, be inspired, and become motivated as you wait and use the ATMs in Singapore.

Getting caught out in the rain on a good day can quickly leave us all a little low, but not anymore. In Singapore, there is an umbrella sharing project that features a number of umbrellas out for public use.

This project makes life just a bit easier for the public and helps to promote a sharing community that supports each other. In Singapore, there’s no need to fear the rain with sharing projects like this one happily in place.

As modernity progresses, traffic lights and other systems steadily have become more functional and adaptive to change. In Singapore, their walkway traffic lights are just one such example of this improvement as they make traveling safer for pedestrians using phones.

Although this design is clearly appealing to the eye, it’s purpose is to ensure people looking at their phones know the status of the traffic lights. To avoid any accidents, this design in Singapore makes life safer for phone users.

Waiting around with little to do can be really boring. Worse yet, sometimes our phones die while we wait and use them to occupy our time. In Singapore, however, there are phone charging exercise machines that are actually pedal powered!

Fashioned in a similar manner to a bike, as you pedal with your phone plugged into the dock, the wattage you generate charges your phone. Who needs portable chargers when you can simply pedal your way to full charge?

In Singapore, there is always a contingency plan in place for students that might be late for exams as the result of major train disruptions. This ensures students have the opportunity to defer their exams and reduce commuting related stress.

If students in Singapore arrive at their exam center before the end of the paper, they are still given the full duration to sit their exam. In the cases where they can’t arrive before the end, there are other options available to them.

Singapore’s famous treat is a delicacy known as the ice cream sandwich. When journeying around street corners and outside of schools, these ice cream sandwiches can be found by the dozen. A cheap snack that’s perfect in the summer heat.

This snack comes in flavors such as coffee, coconut and even sweetcorn or durian. With such an array of flavors, there is something for everybody. Singapore turns bread and ice cream into what is essentially a sweet treat taco.

In Singapore, hotels can often have complimentary smartphones available. These smartphones often come with unlimited calls, data and a Singapore city guide/map. Getting around the city is easier when your hotel ensures you have a communications device with GPS.

In terms of use, these complimentary smartphones might not be up to speed with gaming, but they function very well. For tourists just arriving, these complimentary smartphones make getting around a breeze and reduce the stress of gaining familiarity with the area.

Singapore is quickly becoming somewhat of a sci-fi movie with its regular use of robots all throughout the city. With this smart robot, any food trays are placed upon one of the tray tiers on its shelf and then transports them back.

This friendly robot provides a helping hand by saving staff time and customers by not having to even get out of their seats. As Singapore turns progressively to robot use in work, life in Singapore just becomes better and easier.

Bus stops have long-since become interactive and developed smart features over the years, but Singapore does it right. By featuring educational information on bus stops, waiting for buses becomes a learning process while users stand and wait for their bus.

In educational bus stops such as the ones found in Singapore, pedestrians can learn vital information such as the F.A.S.T system to spot a person having a stroke. Simply incorporating these bus stops helps to save lives.

Singapore ensures that many of its supermarkets include special assistance features such as a ‘call for assistance’ button and a magnifying glass. This may be a simple addition, but it comes with a wide range of benefits for all users.

In the case of sight, the magnifying glass helps provide accurate vision and ensures a customer is purchasing the correct item. The ‘call for assistance’ button helps people with and without disabilities by enlisting staff to help them where required.

Changi airport has an array of fun features throughout all terminals, but terminal 3 is one of the most popular. Why? Because they host free movie screenings in a public area throughout the day which makes waiting for your flight much more enjoyable.

When waiting for three hours for a slight to take off, sitting doing nothing can make that three hours feel like 10. At Terminal 3 in Changi airport, just watch out that you don’t forget to leave the movie in time to catch your flight!

When you’re a kid, being in the mall and going shopping can be awfully boring unless it’s for toys. In this mall in Singapore, there’s a jungle gym that spans a total of four floors to be explored in full.

Children are able to play jungle gym style games on any of the floors throughout the mall. This ensures they get to have fun while the adults can sit back and rest while their children tire themselves out. Talk about win-win!

When we think of a country, it’s easy to consider it to have huge mountainous terrain, hills, cliffs, and peaks, but what about Singapore? Bukit Timah Hill in Singapore is actually the highest natural point found throughout the entire country.

Standing just 164 meters high, Bukit Timah Hill is the highest point of the natural land throughout Singapore. The great thing about this is that you can see for miles over the flat terrain and really enjoy the endless view.

Located in Singapore at Suntec City, you will find one of the largest fountains in the world. This huge construct is made entirely of cast bronze and is estimated to have cost around $6 million way back in 1997. Now that’s pricey!

Imagine enjoying a daily commute to work in Suntec City and having the opportunity to admire this incredible fountain on a daily basis. Furthermore, imagine what a construct would even cost if it were built now, 23 years later!?

If you might be traveling through Suntec City, you might not notice its design at all, but from an aerial view, it’s quite different. To symbolize “feng shui”, Suntec City was actually built in the shape of the palm of a giant hand.

To see this you would need to take either the mentioned aerial view or a view similar to the picture above. “Feng Shui” is a traditional practice that originated from ancient China that believed that surrounding environments create different energies.

The Guiness Book of World Records is known globally and every nation strives to beat them. Singapore keeps it unique by holding the world’s longest human domino chain record which they set way back on the 30th of September 2000.

Featuring the involvement of 9,234 students, the Singaporean student human domino chain measured a total of 4.2 kilometers in length! The sheer time it must have taken to set up such a display of determination is truly admirable.

Not including Monaco, Singapore is the world’s most densely populated country. On average it has been calculated that there are 6,430 people per square kilometer which will definitely make the nightlife active to say the very least!

With such a dense population on a landmass, the city never stops and there is always something to do in Singapore. In Singapore, the fun never ends with a country so densely populated. You’ll certainly never be bored!

In Singapore, keeping the country’s strong values of cleanliness are of paramount importance and to do this, many fines are in place. One such legal obligation is for residents of the country to always flush the toilet or face fines.

This simple, yet effective rule ensures that Singapore remains one of the cleanest countries in the world. Just make sure that when you use the toilet in Singapore, you flush the toilet else you’ll empty your wallet or purse!

Among some of the more understandable finable offenses such as smoking or carrying flammable goods, there’s a ban on durians…yes, durians. This fruit is not allowed in areas such as airports while other types of fruit have no consequence.

Durians are very easy to spot with their large size and very spiky shells, but more so from their smell. Sometimes referred to as the ‘vomit fruit’, the smell of durian can make you leave a room pretty quickly.

Singaporeans are very big on toilets and promote their use profusely. Forming the World Toilet Organization on 19th November 2001, Singapore leads the way in the toilet world by dedicating November 19th as World Toilet Day. Just sit and breathe!

This passion is not just for vanity’s sake, but to inspire action in terms of tackling the global sanitation crisis. As over 4.2 billion people live in the world without safe sanitation, Singapore promotes this with World Toilet Day.

In a wonderful traditional manner, Singaporeans dedicate the 7th November as the annual national tree planting day. This tradition involves everyone from ordinary citizens to foreign diplomats and even the Prime Minister. This tradition only adds to Singapore’s green nation.

National tree planting day involves all Singaporeans planting trees, but also adopting and naming trees. They do this to name trees for their children and/or relatives as birthday presents or even wedding gifts. Just another way Singapore keeps green!

This huge structure is very similar looking to the London Eye but is colossal in size. Just to get an easy comparison to understand the height, you’d have to stack 30 male giraffes on top of each other and climb!

At a height of 165m, the Singapore Flyer missed out on creating the world’s biggest wheel by a mere two meters! Could you even imagine being the constructor only to realize that you were two meters off of first place?

To chew gum in Singapore is considered an illegal act that receives hefty fines. If you see a police officer and you’re chewing gum, stop immediately or face fines; better yet, don’t carry chewing gum with you to avoid temptation.

This enjoyable treat is not to be enjoyed in Singapore without a medical prescription, unfortunately. While it is not illegal, it works to make the streets a much cleaner place without all the discarded gum found in many countries.

Singapore sits comfortably amongst the 20 smallest countries in the world. With a total landmass consisting of just 682.7 square kilometers, Singapore is 15,000 times smaller than the USA. Just look at it on a map and see!

Being one of the smallest countries does have its perks. Being small means that you can traverse much of the country in a short period of time. This means that traveling to celebrations and events is just that much easier.