Kakunodate Sakura manhole cover in winter

The Kakunodate town in Akita is renowned for two things, a wonderful and well preserved samurai district and many sakura cherry trees, both advertised by the town's artistic manhole covers.

Here is one of them, decorated with sakura blossoms, photographed in a snowy day, while it was snowing with large flakes slowly falling down, like withering sakura petals...