By Honorary Reporter Kathleen Recinos from El Salvador

As cherry blossoms have bloomed all over Korea this spring, I've received many pictures from friends in the country enjoying the beautiful beginning of the season.

Many events in Korea feature the lovely blossoms like the Jinhae Gunhangje Cherry Blossom Festival in Changwon, Gyeongsangnam-do Province, and Yeouido Spring Flower Festival in Seoul, two popular events for taking pictures.

I've yet to visit Korea in spring but I know of two trees in my country having flowers like cherry blossoms. My Korean teachers in El Salvador said one of them reminded them of cherry blossoms in Korea and the other of the beautiful gaenari (Korean forsythia) due to its color. 

A cherry blossom tree (left) in Busan has flowers similar to those on a pink trumpet tree (right) in El Salvador. (@dan_photo_ and Kathleen Recinos)

Korea has several cherry blossom festivals, and spring is when social media is full of pictures showing the beauty of such blossoms and gaenari.

Cherry blossoms, called beotkkot in Korean, usually bloom in March and April and Korea's streets are filled with them. They start blooming in the south on Jeju Island and slowly work their way up to Seoul by early April. Also called the Korean goldenbell tree, gaenari has a typical height of one to three m and is found all over Korea.

El Salvador has just two seasons -- dry and rainy -- but February and March have two trees blooming. The pink trumpet tree, called maquilishuat in El Salvador, blooms also in different shades of pink and can reach a height of 25 m. This is also the country's national tree since 1939. The golden trumpet tree (cortez blanco) has beautiful yellow flowers with a height of up to 30 m. 

The pink trumpet tree (left) in Alegria and the golden trumpet tree (right) in San Miguel show beautiful shades of pink and yellow. (Kathleen Recinos)

Despite differences in physical characteristics, trees in the two countries bloom at the beginning of every year. People in El Salvador see pink and golden trumpet trees just as Koreans enjoy spring when all types of flowers bloom. 

Cherry blossoms (left) have five petals and the flower of the pink trumpet tree is shaped like its namesake (right). (@dan_photo_ and Kathleen Recinos)

El Salvador has no streets dedicated to pink or golden trumpet trees like Korea does with cherry blossoms, but a drive toward El Salvador International Airport features trees along the road. Such trees are also at random spots in cities or towns and downtown San Salvador, where a walk offers a great view of the trees and architecture.

msjeon22@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things.