Toshogu Shrine (東照宮)
What a difference three months can make! On my second trip to Nikko, Toshogu looked quite different from that snowy day in February. Now I need an excuse to come back to Japan and see Nikko in the fall. Hmmmmmm…..
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Chanpon Taro Takadanobaba 元祖焼麺 ちゃんぽん太郎
After eating ramen at Ippudo (一風堂) I was presented with coupons for free gyoza at Chanpon Taro, a chanpon restaurant that recently opened in the neighborhood. Never having tasted the stuff before I wanted to give it a try. I immediately became a fan of chanpon (pictured above), sort of a variation on ramen. However, I must say that each time I eat chanpon it is a little less good. That first bowl was the best, and now I’ve run out of free gyoza coupons. 🙁
I like the fact that both Ippudo and Chanpon Taro are smoke free, but next time I think I’ll be back at Ippudo.
Mt. Kuratake (倉岳山) Hike
Do you live in Tokyo, Saitama Ken, or Yamanashi Ken? Do you like moss covered stones? The sound of a downhill stream?
A view of Mt. Fuji?
And need a little exercise (about 700 meters of elevation gain)?
Then Mt. Kuratake is the hike for you. I followed the guidelines in Day Walks Near Tokyo which was surprisingly accurate for once. One error is the view of Mt. Fuji. Weather permitting, you’ll get to see Fuji San from the top of the mountain, not from the ridge.
Regarding the Day Walks Near Tokyo guidebook, if you are coming from Shinjuku and want to save a few hundred yen, each way, take the Keio Line to Takao Station insead of the Chuo Line on JR as suggested.
The hiking course begins at Torisawa Station (鳥沢駅). There are few services nearby. I didn’t see any restaurants or any of the typical tourist shops that can usually be found next to hiking routes this close to Tokyo. There are two konbinis near the Torisawa Station (7-Eleven and Daily Yamazaki). These will be your last chance to get a bento. There are a few vending machines before you hit the real trail. I brought my usual one bottle of water and ran out so you may want more than one.
Above is a picture of Otsuki City down below from the top of Mt. Kuratake. Even though it was a clear day, the sun was so bright many things in the distance got washed out a bit in photos. To increase your odds of a good Fuji scene start your hike early, very early if possible. If you don’t get an early start, consider arriving at the top about a half hour or so before sunset. Don’t forget your headlamp for the way home though. Also, Mt. Fuji is usually easier to see in winter. However, the trails won’t be nearly as green and enjoyable after the leaves fall (in November) and before they return again (in April). I wouldn’t really recommend this hike in the winter unless you know the skies will be clear on top and your main objective is to see Fuji San.
Near the end of your hike you will cross the Katsura River (桂川), pictured above, for the second time. This river is called Sagamigawa (相模川) once it enters Tokyo.
Your journey on foot ends at Yanagawa Station (梁川駅). Again, there are no restaurants or places to get a bite to eat in this area as far as I could tell. Otsuki is spread over a large piece of territory and has a population of only 29,000 and shrinking every day.
I’ll post more details and pictures in the future. In the meantime, here is a map you’ll want to bring with you.
The danchi (団地) has evolved
I have seen this curious building, above, several times (on Shinmejiro Dori, just west of Takadanobaba Station). On this day it finally looked ready for a picture with the blue sky and white fluffy clouds passing by.
This second photo is from the beginning of Walk #2. The Shakujii River was at my back and the Azaleas were in bloom.
I’m sometimes asked what has changed in Japan from when I lived here in the late 1980s. One of the biggest changes is the aesthetics of the apartment housing. I’m not sure exactly when this change came about, but once upon a time nearly all apartments in Japan (danchi or 団地) were made of white concrete. These still exist, as you can see in the above photo, but they are no longer made to look this way. Most, in Tokyo anyway, have been rebuilt with a more modern design (or at least the facade covering the buildings make them look more modern than the white cement which doesn’t age very well).
Not all go for the blue of today’s top photo, but they still look more pleasing than the endless, dirty-white housings of Japan’s past.
Benten Shrine at Shakujii Park 石神井公園
The weather on the day I took this picture was most fabulous. Spring finally felt like spring. The shrine across the pond (三宝寺池) in Shakujii Koen is to Benten, the water god. I was doing Walk #2 in Water Walks in the Suburbs of Tokyo, a wonderful book that you should not be without if you are going to be in Tokyo for more than a couple of weeks.
Temple gate (法明寺の門)
I have two Japanese maple trees in my backyard in the USA, but I don’t remember them being extra beautiful, extra green in spring. In Japan the maples seem to have an extra spark this time of year. Maybe it’s just because they haven’t been green for so many months so they merely appear extra special now. Or maybe the green gets a little tired later in the summer. In any event, they looked great around the gate of the Homeiji Temple in Ikebukuro a week ago.
From the inside of the gate the azaleas (ツツジ) looked good too.