Cherry blossoms

I'm so glad you liked the pictures!

1910 2,000 cherry trees arrived as a present from Japan. Nine days later the USDA said they were diseased. They were all burned. 1912 Japan gave us three thousand cherry trees. 

The cherry blossoms are a major tourism draw. I went last year and there were thousands upon thousands of people smiling and relishing in them, taking pictures in front of them. 

One of the trees has a fan following and the nickname, "Stumpy." Most of the tree is gone. The insides are gone. Still it lives, like a miracle. 

With climate change the water in the tidal basin has risen. It floods the walkway and the trees. The park service will be cutting down lots of trees and rebuilding a retaining wall and planting new trees. They don't believe Stumpy stands a chance of surviving replanting. This is Stumpy's last year in this incarnation but they will clone Stumpy. 

And that is why I went to the Tidal Basin last night.

 https://abc7chicago.com/washington-dc-cherry-blossoms-stumpy-the-tree-tidal-basin-jefferson-memorial/14570722/

Today we picked flights and a hotel in Abu Dhabi. 

Ukraine won against Iceland in the play-offs final. Ukraine I going to Euro 2024. 

Ukraine's tech sector has continued to grow despite the war. 

Women are taking on more leadership roles in tech. Men can't leave Ukraine so women are raising capital, finding new clients abroad, and taking on other roles. 

Bloomberg said that the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic said that Ukraine can receive twice as many shells as initially announced. Just knowing that ammunition is coming is allowing Ukraine to fight better with the ammunition they currently have.