Inside Kenroku-en
No, seriously, where has my internet gone? So ever since I returned to Japan at the end of Golden Week, my internet has been kind of spotty. It will be fine and then suddenly crawl to stop. I can’t seem to figure it out.
But anyway, enough whining for now…It rained today, which made a trip to Kenroku-en especially nice.
今日は兼六園にいきました。雨が降って、でもきれいです。
Looking out from Kenroku-en
And check out some photos over at National Geographic Your Shot…
I thought that would make an awesome name for a novel or something…It’s just what happened on March 9th when a snowstorm moved into the area.
Anyway…My last post was me moaning about the lack of winter only to have winter come a knocking. March 9th I went out in a skirt, tights, and heels. It wasn’t bad outside and I wasn’t really expecting anything beyond the flurries. As I said before, winter has been disappointing in terms of snowy weather. And being March, how large of a storm could we get (says the girl who has gone to the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in NYC in boots and other winter-wear because of the amount of snow)? Yeah, it snowed. Yeah, I got splashed by cars driving by. Yeah, I almost got into a taxi despite the fare. And yeah, I ended up just walking home instead.
The walk home…
Why did I walk home instead of hoping into a taxi? It wasn’t really the taxi fare, it was the fact that I really love the snow. There is something magical about walking while white flakes of goodness fall all around you. Especially the big, fluffy kind that were falling that night. Okay, and the fact that it would have cost almost ￥700. It isn’t far of a walk in good weather, maybe ten to fifteen minutes at the most. This makes it real hard to justify the cost if I’m not carrying luggage. That night it took me around half an hour to walk home. Cold, wet, and strangely happy. And yes, my heels are fine. I put them on some old newspaper and dried them out. You’d never know they were out in the snow.
The next morning I woke up to SNOW! Not real surprising since when I went to bed it was snowing hard. I had plans to meet up with a good friend I hadn’t seen in a while. We ate sushi at this 24 hour sushi place in town. It’s good and real convenient (both location and hours). Lunch was great.
The view from my apartment the morning of March 10th.
We then walked over the Kenroku-en. The garden was beautiful in the snow. It kept flurrying on and off all day, sometimes treading into squall territory. We walked around the garden for a bit and took some pictures before going to warmup with some hot drinks and doughnuts.
Kenroku-en in the snow
Seriously, Kenroku-en is absolutely stunning in the snow. The clouds would breakup every so often, creating great light and amazing color and contrast.
Kenroku-en in the snow
By the next day the snow was just about gone. I don’t think we will be getting any more snow this season. Rain and wind yes, but sadly, no snow.
Yesterday evening I walked to Kanazawa Castle Park and Kenroku-en to view the changing leaves and yukitsuri (雪つり) lit up. It started out as a beautiful evening. As I strolled around the castle park I kept seeing flashes of light and hearing a rumble. The flashing and rumbling became more frequent and moved closer. The view from the platform near the Kahokumon (河北門) of the approaching storm was fantastic. Lightening danced across the sky, mingling with the clouds and moon. For the time being, however, I was warm and dry.
I moved on to Kenroku-en, following the crowds of people across the street and past various venders. On my way in I stopped to admire seven wagasa (和傘) that were on display. They were protected by plastic sheeting; a good idea considering the approaching storm. Many people stopped to admire the umbrellas. They were lit from behind to showcase their designs.
Walking around Kenroku-en I enjoyed the views of the illuminated trees. The yukitsuri were also quite interesting to look at. I wish I had thought to bring my tripod with me. In order to take photos without upping the ISO on my camera, I had to drop the shutter speed. This has the downside of blur from movement. It was difficult to get a clear shot. Next weekend the light-up is happening again. I plan to head back on Saturday evening with my tripod to get some clearer shots.
After leaving the garden, I decided to stop and get a bowl of udon. Luckily, the udon shop in the basement of M’za was open. It was quite tasty and warmed me up. During my walk from the garden to M’za it had begun to drizzle. By the time I left M’za (about 20-30 minutes later) it was pouring outside. A complete change from earlier in the day, when I did my laundry and hung it outside to dry.
The thunder and lightening continued all night. Even today, although I haven’t heard any thunder, there has been rain and ominous dark clouds swirling about in the sky. Today I went with some of my co-workers to have a health check and flu shot. As we were driving I think I saw some snow on the mountains. Sometimes it was sunny, sometimes it was pouring, and sometimes it was hailing! This means winter has come to the Hokuriku region from what I gather.
Here is the view from my apartment today:
And one last shot from yesterday:
Hope you all enjoyed the photos!
A few terms:
紅葉 / kōyō – The viewing of the changing leaves in autumn
Yukitsuri – Bamboo poles with ropes used to protect trees and shrubs from the heavy snow that falls in Kanazawa
Kahokumon – One of the gates at Kanazawa Castle Park
Kenroku-en – Considered to be one of the top three gardens in Japan
Kanazawa
As I write this post I’m sitting in a hostel in Kyoto over the Obon holiday. No, the above picture is not from Kyoto, it’s from just outside of Kanazawa. However, back to the current post…I woke up at five this morning to catch the 6:11 Thunderbird from Kanazawa to Kyoto. I then went on to Osaka to the Nikon Salon and Service Center to try and fix a camera issue. The camera issue isn’t fixed so I’ll be posting pictures from both my D90 and my V1. Up until now all the photos from this year were taken with the V1 (the earlier photos from last year were taken with my D90).
Things have fallen into place. I finally bought myself a garbage can and some more cleaning supplies as I started to run out of what was left in the apartment for me. I reorganized my closets again to make them a bit more tidy and compact. The more compact I get my stuff the better I feel about the space issues that come with living in a Japanese apartment. I’ve also settled into a kind of a schedule. I have a route I walk five to six times a week. It’s a nice twenty minute or so walk that I can vary to make it longer or shorter if I feel like it. In addition, I try to go to the sentō once a week. I found another one near my apartment, closer than the one I go to, but I still have only gone to the one. I like it, it’s comfortable and relaxing. Maybe one day I’ll branch out and try some of the others around my neighborhood but for right now I’m content visiting the one I’ve been using.
I’ve taken a bunch of photos from a few places I’ve visited. I need to get them edited/converted to jpeg and then I can post about some of the places I’ve gone. Last Sunday I ended up in Shirakawa-go, a UNESCO site. The day before when I left work there was some sort of festival happening in Kanazawa. The weekend before I took the train to Takaoka to see the fireworks. So I have much to write about and much to post! And photos to share with you all!
It’s getting late here in Kyoto so I’ll leave you all with one more photo (again, not of Kyoto but of Kanazawa)…
Well, I’ve arrived in Japan. After over a day in transit I landed at KIX in one piece. The journey from JFK was long and interesting. First, I flew to Hong Kong. It’s a long flight but even back in steerage Cathay Pacific keeps you comfortable. However, that wasn’t enough for some people. Never before have I been on a plane where the smoke detectors have gone off. Yeah, smoking in the restroom will do that. Smoking on a plane will also fill the back of the plane with a cloud of smoke which is then recycled for the remainder of the flight.
When we flew into Hong Kong it was pouring. Oh, and windy. Needless to say, the landing was a bit shaky. In the end, we landed in one piece. But remember the smoke and the smoke detectors that were going off? Yeah, the police were waiting at the gate for our plane. The lesson to take away from this is to not smoke on an airplane. Apparently all those warning signs they have up aren’t just for show.
I didn’t really see any of Hong Kong, just the airport. The airport was nice enough. From what I saw, there is a lot of shopping. I changed, ate breakfast, and waited for my next flight. The wait wasn’t bad since my layover was only four hours and fifty minutes. The views from the terminal I was in were impressive. My polarizer wasn’t accessible but I still took some photos. The mountains provided a relaxing backdrop.
Afterwards I continued on to KIX in Japan. The flight lasted three hours and fifteen minutes and once again I was impressed with the service on the plane. It wasn’t a long flight. In the United States you have longer flights where you are lucky if you get more than a tiny bag of nuts or pretzels and a cup of water. Not this flight. So the flight attendants came around with small bags of nuts and beverages (including beer) back in steerage. I thought, “Hey, this is probably the only food and drink I’m going to be able to get on this flight…might as well make the best of it” and proceeded to order a beer. Not much further into the flight they came around again, this time with food. Honest to goodness food and wine. Free meals and alcohol on a flight that doesn’t even take four hours? Needless to say I’m putting them on my “Fly Again” list.
Having arrived safe in Japan I had two days free before beginning training for my new job. I walked around Okayama visiting a few shrines and temples, the castle, and Korakuen – one of the top three gardens in Japan.
A few of my fellow trainees and I took the train to Kurashiki where we visited the Bikan Historical Quarter. They run boat rides in the canal of the Bikan Historical Quarter. We walked around the area for a little while and took a boat ride before catching the train back to Okayama.
I’ve been busy with training the past couple of days. In a few days I’ll be headed to Kanazawa…
In fifty-five days I’ll be on my way to Osaka, with a brief stopover in Hong Kong. Well, fifty-four days till I leave if you consider the fact that my flight leaves at 1:30 in the morning. That means I’ll be at the airport waiting to board in fifty-four days. Not that I’m counting or anything like that…
Before I know it, I’ll be hanging out with these guys down at Kenroku-en:
Life in Japan with Lady Caladium 