Ueno Park (上野公園) in Tokyo is famous for its cherry blossoms. Unfortunately, we were a bit too early (in late March) to see many. Another week or two and this road would have been really spectacular. The fact that there weren’t many blossoms didn’t seem to deter the Japanese from having all sorts of hanami (花見, flower viewing) parties.

If you look closely at this picture (maybe after clicking on it so it becomes larger) you’ll see hundreds of bins for recycling on either side of this road. It’s rare that you see trash bins in Japan even though things are cleaner than just about any place on earth. But in Ueno Park during the hanami season there are more recycling bins than anywhere I’ve seen before.

The sign on the lower right says そう資源 別ゴミ箱 which means something like “preserve our natural resources by separating garbage into the different bins.” On the lower left it says カン (cans) and 生ゴミ (living garbage, like banana peels, etc.)

I should also mention that the above picture was taken at about 10 a.m. in the morning. Imagine the number of people in the afternoon and evening when the blossoms are going crazy!

Posted on November 17th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: cherry blossoms, japan pictures, sakura, Tokyo. Comments: None

Otherwise known, in English, as the Walk of Philosophy, The Philosopher’s Path, or The Philosopher’s Walk (哲学の道 or tetsugaku no michi), this is a small path beside a canal between Ginkakuji (The Silver Pavilion) and the Nanzenji area of Kyoto.

Early in April you will see many cherry blossoms along this path. We purchased some hand-painted postcards from an artist immediately after she painted them along the path. They hang in a frame in my bathroom where I am happily reminded of this path on a daily basis.

Posted on November 13th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: cherry blossoms, japan pictures, kyoto, sakura. Comments: None

In Kyoto, and other places in Japan, you can view cherry blossoms (sakura) at night. Spotlights or lanterns are frequently used to get the desired affect.

Posted on September 29th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: cherry blossoms, japan pictures, kyoto, night photography, sakura. Comments: None

Himejijo (姫路城) is probably the most impressive castle in Japan. The city of Himeji is a relatively short side trip from Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, and Okayama. We went on a Saturday, which was a mistake, just before the cherry blossoms peaked. It was so crowded inside that we could barely move. In fact, we couldn’t move at times. But we still had a good time, especially on the grounds.

If you decide to visit Himeji, your best bet is to go on a weekday. If you must go on a weekend, be sure to get there before 11 a.m. The afternoons can get out of control with people.

Himejijo and the grounds are featured prominently in the Shogun miniseries. We had a good time watching it after having been there.

Posted on September 17th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: castle, cherry blossoms, himeji, japan pictures, sakura. Comments: None

Perhaps the best day we had in Japan was the day we road the train to Arashiyama. Near the station we rented bikes and then spent the day exploring north-eastern Kyoto on bicycles. I’ll show you some more pictures from this part of town and Sagano in future entries.

The above photograph is what things looked like during the first week of April. The cherry blossoms were in full bloom. Unfortunately, we had overcast skies so the picture isn’t that spectacular. The sakura tree was so large that I couldn’t get it all in the frame. Notice the posts that hold up the tree.

Posted on September 5th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: arashiyama, cherry blossoms, japan pictures, kyoto, sakura. Comments: None

I just started reading a book called The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama. I say “just started,” but I’m actually more than half done with it in just two days. It is conjuring up all sorts of memories of my time in Japan.

Even though we only spent a few nights in Yanaka last year, it became a magical place in my head. This probably has more to do with the fact that it was the first place I’d been to in Japan in 20 years than anything else. But maybe, just maybe, Yanaka is a magical place.

Tsukiyama’s book is set mostly in Yanaka (for the first half of the book anyway), and I really feel like I’m there again as I read it. When she speaks of the temple bell (or gong) being stuck 108 times on the New Year (joya no kane) I think back to visiting Zenshoan (全生庵寺院‎) in the Yanaka neighborhood with its gold Buddha and beautiful Zen Buddhist bell pictured below.

The title of the book refers to the path through Yanaka Cemetery (谷中霊園) between Tennoji and Jomyoin (loads of jizo here and all over the streets and temples in the Yanaka area).

I’ll post more once I finish the book in a few days.

The above photo shows some Yanaka jizo.

The above picture is of the Yanaka Ginza (谷中銀座) frequently mentioned in the book.

We got lost one time coming out of the wrong exit at Nippori Station and ended up at the large Buddah statue in Tennoji pictured above. We then walked through the Yanaka Cemetery, the “street of a thousand blossoms,” purchased and ate yakiimo (baked sweet potato) from an old man selling them out of the cart he cooked them in, and chatted with some people who were enjoying the evening hanami (the cherry blossom viewing parties; there weren’t yet really many blossoms in Tokyo though).

That experience was, by far, the best time I’ve ever had getting lost.

Posted on June 13th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: book review, books, cherry blossoms, Japan, japan pictures, sakura, Tokyo. Comments: 4