Sumo, Sake and Sapporo Beer

[bPeteb]

More 21_21 Design Site, 'Grove of Life' Seicho-No-Ie, Nogi Garden and Temple

 

[bPeteb]

and this one I couldn't resist posting

 

[bPeteb]

We had way more success with gardens today!

Out very early to visit garden number one - Kyosumi Garden Japan, 〒135-0024 東京都Kōtō-ku, Kiyosumi, 3 Chome−3, 江東区清澄三丁目

Created in 1875 by the founders of Mitsubishi for their workers to enjoy. One of the most beautiful gardens we have visited in Japan, or anywhere. We were there longer than we planned to, and could have been longer as a wedding party, in traditional Shinto dress, had just arrived and I would have loved to take some more photos.

 

[bPeteb]

a couple more at Kyosumi Garden

 

[bPeteb]

Garden two Hamarikyu Japan, 〒104-0046 Tōkyō-to, Chūō-ku, Hamarikyūteien, 1−1, Edo-age gardens of a shogun. We walked in and thought meh but the further we got in the more beautiful they were. Vast. Huge lakes. Amazing trees. Sadly we had to race through as we were meeting up at Edo-Tokyo Museum, one of our favourites from our first visit to Tokyo.

 

[bPeteb]

We caught a riverboat up to Asakusa then got our subway stops horribly confused and walked a kilometre above ground when we could have walked 200m under.
Very big single house right on the river.


The first evidence of homeless people that we have seen in Japan


So must be like a sauna inside


Philippe Starck's Asahi Beer Hall

 

[bPeteb]

By the time we eventually got to Edo-Tokyo EDO-TOKYO MUSEUM the girls were nearly done but we had time for a bit of a look.




Right next door was our main destination for the day, Ryogoku Kokugikan where we were going to see SUMO!! When we were in Nagoya on our first trip to Japan the Grand Sumo tournament was on there but we had no chance of getting tickets. When we saw that the 2018 Grand Sumo Tournament was on in Tokyo we knew we had to go. Again, Kristin managed to score us tickets. We'd thought about a box down near the 'ring' but when we saw how small they were, seats it was. A seats were gone in a flash but we were very happy to get Bs.

You can see the view we had from the photos. We could see everything. The thigh slaps, the bum slaps, the man cough slaps. It was serious and hilarious in equal parts. It was fantastic. I'd go again in a flash.

 

[bPeteb]

We had dinner at Yoshikawa 和食事処　よし川, literally just down the hill from the embassy. Brilliant fresh food prepared by two charming women. Amazing.

 

[drron]

Tokyo,it's gardens,temples and shrines are fantastic.It really doesn't matter how often we go we still love the place.
And that was indeed a long walk you did.We thought we had done well walking from our hotel,around and through the State Guest house and back to the hotel on our last trip.

 

[bPeteb]

When we visited Japan in 2011 our splurge hotel was one night at The Prince Lake Ashinoko at Hakone. I showed J the photos and she was all for joining us for a return visit, but this time for two nights. It's not cheap, but no five star hotel in Japan is, especially one on a lake with views of Mt Fuji.

We made use of day five of our rail pass by catching a limited express to Odawara.



It didn't cover shinkansen south of Tokyo. I'd pre-booked the hotel's own bus up to Hakone and it arrived just before the heavens opened.

Our room was ready on arrival and I was really disappointed that we were given a room in the annex. In hindsight the room was ok. It was huge. It had a giant picture window looking out to the lake. But it wasn't in one of the beautiful 'doughnut' shaped buildings, I think because I'd booked a triple. I was bitterly, and very childishly disappointed. Worst of all, we had three single beds, again.


Last time this carpark was the hotel's tennis courts



We caught the hotel shuttle back to Moto-Hakone where we visited the beautiful Narukawa Art Museum.


View from the gallery. Mt Fuji would be there, if the mist and rain would clear.



Then had a lunch of the most fantastic noodles and tempura. The noodles weren't normal soba but for the life of me I can't remember what they were. Apparently Leonardo Di Caprio liked the noodles too!



Back to the hotel and straight down to the beautiful lakefront onsen that we remember so well. We went for a soak and all was well with the world.

 

[bPeteb]

Breakfast was served in the poorly name Lakefront Grill that fronted a rock wall but the breakfast was fantastic.

The roof of the onsen from our room

The not so Lakefront Grill where breakfast was very good

Fuji is there, just behind the clouds

 

[bPeteb]

We caught the local bus from the hotel up to Gora where our first target was The Hakone Open-Air Museum. Just wow. It was what I had hoped and a whole lot more. The curse of the stairs nearly got me again as I stumbled, and just caught myself, inside the Picasso gallery. But the damage was done and the over-rotation of my knee bothered me for the rest of day and until well after we got home.

 

[bPeteb]

More at the Hakone Open-Air Museum

 

[bPeteb]

J headed back down to the lake after we left and we went further up the mountains to the Pola. I had seen this museum in various shows on the architecture of Japan, and of museums in general. It was a beautiful space, with an amazing collection. The Monets. Ahhhhhh.

When we visited it was featuring the works of Emile Galle. Wow. Such beautiful glass.

Sadly, its architectural highlight, the cafe that cantilevers out into the forest was shrouded in scaffold

 

[bPeteb]

We caught a combination of odd local bus, a cable car/funicular up a very steep hill, a ropeway across a weird sulphurous valley then another bus down to the lake where we took a pirate ship to Moto-Hakone, in first class, as you do.

 

[bPeteb]

Another soak in the onsen of course.

We went to dinner at the hotel's French Restaurant. Degustation with three paired wines that started with vintage Perrier Jouet Belle Epoque. It's the most expensive meal we've ever eaten. It was delicious. The service was impeccable but it could hardly not have been. For most of the meal we were the only people in the restaurant.

Glasses to match the champagne!

 

[bPeteb]

the last couple of dinner

 

[VPS]

I have just added the Hakone open air museum to my list of places to go

 

[bPeteb]

I have just added the Hakone open air museum to my list of places to go

It was fantastic. I'd go back without a second thought and spend much longer just dawdling about. I think we'd also stay in Gora as there's plenty of other galleries and museums to visit up there as well as a number of onsens.

 

[bPeteb]

Hakone back to Tokyo

We decided to make the most of the morning at Hakone-en and booked the 1pm shuttle back to Odawara Station.

We woke to a beautiful clear morning. Surely Fuji would have revealed itself so we all walked down to the edge of the lake and there it was. It’s not really that close, but it's close enough to look impressive.



Took some arty snaps then breakfast, a final soak and pack the bags.

Love the little skillets your fried eggs came in

[ View attachment 129499

Some more of the beautiful hotel grounds and the carvings found through the hotel