Thursday 11 April 2024
Waiting to go out for another day...
First stop: Kenroku-en Garden (Kanazawa Castle Park) with the famous Kotoji Toro (Stone lantern).
The young man and girl in special dress are having their photos taken before the wedding ceremony.
Visiting Kanazawa Castle. The Sakuro, cherry blossom, is still very evident everywhere around us. We are so lucky.
After the castle followed a visit to the Nomura Family Samurai House.
The first items in the picture are nailhead covers. Every house of Bhuddist religion has a special altar. And I would love having such a peaceful Japanese garden!
Mister Donut! - Kanazawa
Omi-cho Market
And, last but not least, the bus brought us to the Higashi Chaya District. It was established in 1820 as a place for geiko (the local name for geisha) to entertain wealthy merchants with music, dance, and games.
A chaya (lit. teahouse) is an exclusive type of restaurant where guests are entertained by geisha who perform song and dance.
We went in two separate groups to one of the chayas to experience a tea ceremony. After the first bit, we could all take turns in making a bowl of tea ourselves. (Video courtesy of the first group)
In the end, when I asked where you could buy the matcha (green tea powder), I was told I could buy it there and then, so I ended up with my own Japanese souvenir! 😊
By the way, I seem to be the only one who likes it...
We walked around the area, and some of the group bought gold leaf ice cream or just a container of (edible) gold leaf. I prefer the tastier green tea. 😉
Finally, we make it back to our hotel, where I remember to take photos of our room before it all gets messed up. 😉 The view is not spectacular, but it's really of no importance.
The hotel next door to ours had an excellent Chinese restaurant, we were told, so that's where we headed tonight. Just as we were seated, Jacquie and Steve arrived and asked if they could join us. This made for a very pleasant dinner. Quite classy too, I might add, with very polite, friendly, and observant waiting staff. When they saw me struggling with my ramen and chopsticks, they came over instantly to offer a fork.
Kevin had fried rice with crab and ice cream for dessert. I had shark fin soup (a big no-no in Australia), hot and sour ramen, and almond jelly for dessert. All of us were offered a cup of Jasmine green tea. It's very fragrant and nothing like the green tea we buy in little tea bags at home!
