Photo= Plum flowers bloom sweetly (1:00 p.m., January 9, Keiunkan, Minato-cho, Nagahama City, Shiga Prefecture)

An early spring attraction of Kohoku in Shiga Prefecture, "Nagahama Bonbaiten," or the Bonsai Exhibition of Ume Trees with Blossoms, is being held at Keiunkan in Minato-cho, Nagahama City, Shiga Prefecture.

The event is sponsored by the Nagahama Tourism Association and this year marks the 67th exhibition. During the exhibition period until March 11, 90 plum tree bonsai are on display at all times, being rotated among approximately 300 bonsai trees. The plum flowers have bloomed a few days earlier than the average year and some early-flowering plum are already reaching their peak. Yoshihiro Ogawa, the building's director, said, "Visitors can enjoy the beauty of each stage of the blossoms, as they start to open, at full bloom and as they start to fall, during this exhibition."

The exhibition is open every day, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Entrance allowed until 4:30 p.m.) during the exhibition period. The plum tree bonsai will be illuminated mainly on Saturdays and Sundays from February 3 to March 4, and the admission will be also extended to 8:30 p.m. (Entrance allowed until 8:00 p.m.)

The admission fee is 500 yen for high school students or above and 200 yen for elementary and junior high school students. For more information, call Nagahama Tourism Association at 0749-65-6521.