DC welcomes the start of spring every year with the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival, which showcases the city's 3,000 cherry blossom trees. The trees were a gift from the city of Tokyo in 1912, and they bloom every year to mark the beginning of the spring season.

This year, the National Cherry Blossom Festival will take place from March 20 through April 16 and will feature events across the entire city. There will be more than 200 international cultural performances, as well as more than 90 other special events. For a complete schedule of National Cherry Blossom Festival events, visit the festival's website.

CC-BY-SA-2.0/Flickr Björn S…