Heather Sweeney

Cherry blossom forecasts are included in the local news like weather reports, and people plan their travel around the cherry blossom peak blooms. So when I found two locations in the U.S. with a collection of cherry blossoms beautiful enough to (almost) compare to those in Japan, I started making sure to follow those bloom forecasts closely and plan an annual viewing. Red Wing Park in Virginia Beach, Virginia hosts an annual Cherry Blossom Festival to celebrate Spring and its sister city Miyazaki City, Japan while taking in the beauty of the trees that form the perfect pink canopy to walk through. From watching Japanese locals picnic under the trees, to walking through town at night to see the blooms lit up by lanterns, to going to popular parks with American friends to stage photos of our kids, my memories of sakura season in Japan remain among my favorites of my time there.

It means I meditated every single day for a month thanks to the daily guided meditations that dropped in my inbox from Sharon Salzberg, meditation teacher for over 40 years and writer of many books on meditation. In fact, years ago when I was contemplating joining the meditation bandwagon to combat stress, the first book I read was Salzberg’s “Real Happiness,” a book that made meditation less intimidating and more realistic in my eyes. When it came time to sign up for the Real Happiness challenge again this year, not only was I onboard for the daily meditations, but I also blogged about my experiences on Salzberg’s website. I rarely meditate in front of my kids, but they hear me talk about meditating and the benefits of establishing a regular practice, especially during last month’s challenge.

While 826 miles doesn’t sound like a road trip that requires at least 10 days, you’ll need it for the Ring Road. So swing into a gas station like N1 and buy at least one prepaid gas card as soon as you see one on the Ring Road. And speaking of gas stops, there are some stretches of the Ring Road that offer few gas station options, particularly in the Eastfjords, so it’s best to top off your tank whenever you can. Even if there’s no rain in the forecast, even if it’s summer and you don’t think you’ll be cold, chances are good you’ll get wet at some point thanks to the mist from the waterfalls you’ll be stopping to admire all along the Ring Road.

Reykjavík offers a large variety of things to do, from museums and shopping, to restaurants and bars, so we spent our first day in Iceland exploring on foot and then spent the night at the Storm Hotel. Our second day in Iceland led us to what’s known as the Golden Circle, which consists of three stops: Þingvellir National Park, the Geysir Geothermal Area, and Gullfoss waterfall. As we headed toward Akureyri, the capital of the north and our overnight destination, we spotted Godafoss waterfall from the Ring Road (but I have to admit we didn’t stop because it was raining). We spent our last night in Iceland at the Icelandair Hotel Reykjavík Marina after walking around downtown, eating great food and experiencing the city’s fun night life.