March 31, 2006

• Cherry Blossoms at Chidorigafuchi 2006

  I went to Chidorigafuchi in the Kudanshita area of Tokyo.  This is part of the moat that surrounded the former Edo Castle. I have always wanted to take pictures here from a rowboat and thought that I had my chance this year, but it was too windy and the boat renters closed down.  I mean, it is not as if there were any whitecaps in the castle moat or anything!!  I may try again next week or next year.

  

  Yeah, I've been waiting a year to do this!

  

  There is the boat house, and here I am with my camera and a couple of hours to spare.

  

  Then comes the announcement that they are shutting down because it is too windy!  They give us a rain check and tell us to come back later, because they will start up again if the wind dies down.

  

  All of the boats are hauled off the the side of the moat.  I hate it when that happens, especially when the wind shows no sign of dying down, and I am starting to get chilled in the late afternoon shadows.

  

  Forget this!  I'm going to go find a hot cup of coffee.

  

  Here is another shot from Chidorigafuchi, the former moat of Edo Castle.  Too bad that I did not take this.  It is from the Daily Yomiuri.

  

  I wish I had taken this picture, too.  It is also from the Daily Yomiuri, and was taken at Toshimaen, an amusement park on the Seibu-Ikebukuro Line.

  Yasukuni Shrine is right across the street from Chidorigafuchi, and since I didn't get a boat ride, I figgured that I could use the time for something else.  There were alot of booths selling goodies to eat while viewing the blossoms, so I decided to check it out.

  

  The lady in pink is taking pictures with her phonecam.

  

  You have to take off your shoes before getting on the picnic mat, and be sure to line them up neatly.

  

  Grilled Fishsicles

  

  Meat and Veggie Hotcakes Served with a Smile

  

  Which Stitch to Take Home?

  

  The Bathroom Line in Kudanshita Subway Station

  I STILL may go back tomorrow morning and try the boats again.  The petals will have fallen, but petals on the water are nice, too.

  Here goes my second attempt at a boat ride at Chidorigafuchi a few days later. 

  

  Kudanshita subway station and the surrounding area are unusually crowded because Teikyo University is holding a mass entrance ceremony at the nearby Budokan hall.  We are directed over the green pedestrian bridge to the right, but I think it's faster to go through Yasukuni Shrine, which by the way is still holding its cherry blossom festival.  We can cross at the crosswalk and backtrack to Chidorigafuchi.

  

  Are the boats in operation today?  The answer is a resounding YES!!

  

  After a short wait I get my boat and I'm off!  The charge is about $16 for an hour, which is just the right amount of time to paddle to the other end of the moat and back.  I have not rowed a boat since camp at Schroon Lake, and I don't even want to think about how long ago that was.  At any rate, it is no easy task to row straight when looking over my shoulder to avoid running into others, so I find that I can make better progress rowing backwards, pushing on the oars instead of pulling.

  

  We have arrived at the far end of the moat.  The wind pushes all of the fallen petals into this watery dead end, creating a pink carpet spread out over the water.

  

  More Pictures from Chidorigafuchi

  

  I thought that it might be nice to photograph from under the branches, and got hung up on them as they caught on the boat and the oars.

  

  A carpet of petals covers the surface of the water.

  

  I look at my watch, and see that I have about 20 minutes left in the boat, so it is time to head back to the other end of the moat.  Full speed ahead backwards!

  

  

  

  

  Doesn't God make good stuff?

  

  Sometimes we had an occasional breeze which sent more petals into the castle moat.  It would be nicer if this was a moving file so the readership could see the pink "snow."

  

  The boat and the moat are at my back as I sit on a ledge to finish my lunch.  How about a freshly stone-roasted sweet potato for dessert?  The guy even has tempting free samples on the little table in front of the truck.

  

  Here is my sweet potato shining in the glorious sunlight.  This is actually the second potato picture, because I got too close for the first one and smeared it all over my lens!  Don't worry Herr Compukermann, it was actually only the protective glass cover that I had to scrape potato off of.  I know that ending a sentence with a preposition is bad form, but hubby is wanting to go out for "walkies," so I gotta finish this quick.

  

  Here are a couple of parting shots from the path above the moat.  You can see where we were paddling around amidst the petals.

  

  Here's another shot from the other side.

  

  Here is a Zen priest standing at the edge of the sidewalk waiting for donations.  I stop and watch for awhile, but not one person in the passing crowds gives him anything.  If I were a good Buddhist I might give him 500 Yen to earn a bit of my way to Nirvana or where ever Buddhists suppose that they go after death.  I don't think that Japanese as a whole are actually very serious about Buddhism until it comes to a funeral, where they go through the Buddhist ceremonial motions.

  

  The Pilgrim is concerned about what happens to Buddhists who don't believe in Jesus.  Jesus is concerned, too, so I gave the guy 1000 Yen. This is extremely generous, as 100 Yen is probably the standard donation, but generosity was not the point here.  I wanted to get his attention, and told him that what he had received was in the name of Jesus of the Bible.  The Jesus who spoke the cherry blossoms into being with only a word of His love cares about this man even if not a single person in the crowd does, and I wanted to try to draw his attention to the fact.  The priest rang his bell in acceptance of the donation, and although I did not have a chance to talk to him, I hope that I planted a seed of truth that God can cause to grow.

  • 07:08
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