On Sunday we took a morning walk back to the Meguro River to stroll around the canal one more time before the cherry blossoms fall and the trees leaf out. It did not disappoint.
Remember this photo from March 18th that I posted a couple weeks ago?
Kevin took this one from the same spot and this is how it looked on Sunday April 5th.
Later that day we headed to the Tokyo Skytree; it’s the tallest structure in Tokyo and currently it’s also the world’s tallest freestanding broadcast tower, at 634 meters/2080 feet high.
While you can’t go all the way to the top, you can pay to take the elevator to the Tembo Galleria 450 meters up. The gallery is kind of a tube-shaped walkway that spirals around the outside of the tower.
The views are very similar to what you can see from other observation decks around the city (although the objects below are smaller because you’re much higher up). On a clear sunny day you can see Mount Fuji, but the weather today was too cloudy. We had a good view of the cherry trees along the Sumida River right below the tower.
As part of our ticket we also had access to the lower Tembo observation deck, which is at the 350 meter mark. The views were very similar but this level had a small glass floor so you could see the ground waaay down there beneath you.
We took a short bus ride (made longer by us taking the wrong bus at first, and having to switch and walk a bit further than intended). Our intention was to visit the Kameido Tenjin Shrine for its famous Wisteria Festival that had just started the day before on April 4th according to all the enticing posters we’ve been seeing on the Metros around town.
Haha, I guess we were the April Fools! This was the state of the garden so I suppose the dates on the posters were more of an educated guess as to bloom time. These barren vines still have quite a ways to go before they resemble anything like the photo on the poster. I imagine they'll be at their peak by early May.
The temple’s cute decorated ema plaques were also hyping the wisteria. Similar to the ones we saw in Taiwan, worshippers write their prayers or wishes on the back of these votive tablets and leave them at the temple hoping the god will grant their wish. My wish would be for the wisteria to have been blooming.
We walked back to the Sumida River and made it just in time for the golden hour right as the sun was setting. The building behind Kevin with the golden …er…flame? horn? piece of…? is the Asahi Beer Hall company headquarters. The taller building to the left of it is supposed to look like a mug of beer. Architectural design is not the company’s strong point, obviously.
What an incredible sunset it was though! On second thought my ema wish for the temple would’ve been to have skipped the wisteria fest and have stayed up in the Skytree to see the sun setting over the city. It still looked pretty great from ground level.
After the gorgeous sunset the illuminated cherry trees at Sumida Park were just a tiny bit of a letdown. We had thought the atmosphere would be similar to the Meguro River, with food stalls and vendors. This was much more quiet, just a few groups here and there having their hanami picnics with blankets and tarps spread out on the pavement. Maybe we were on the wrong bank of the river, but there wasn’t a whole lot going on even for a Sunday night. That's okay, we have certainly made the most of Sakura season during this trip!
On Mondays, many of the museums and attractions in the city are closed. It was the perfect day to take a long train ride to Mount Takao. Takao-san is about an hour west of Tokyo by train, but its natural beauty is a true contrast to the bustling city. The mountain is only about 2000 feet in elevation and there are several hiking trails that lead up to its many spiritual places, including sacred trees, lanterns, and temples. This mountain has been considered a sacred site since the 700s, and is a very popular daytrip from Tokyo for tourists and locals alike.
In addition to the trails up the slope, there is also a funicular cable car and a ropeway lift that will both take you about halfway up the mountain. Since I am still having issues with my knee from overdoing it in Taiwan, we opted to take the ropeway up to shave off some of the hiking distance to the summit. The views as we climbed higher were stunning. I would've taken more photos on the way up but you can maybe tell by this picture that Kevin was super nervous I was going to drop my phone.
Once we got off of the chairlift I was able to get some less risky shots of the view. Looking to the east you could see Tokyo waaay off in the distance, and to the northwest you could see the mountains at the eastern edge of the Chichibu Tama Kai National Park.
It helped that there was a beer garden at the top of the ropeway so we could fortify ourselves for the steep hike ahead to the summit. Since our goal was to be sure to reach the top, we fortified with green tea, not beers.
The main hiking trail is paved, with plenty of stairs. It walks you right through the Yakuo-in Temple which was founded in 744 and it is known for the Buddhist practice of Shugendo (mountain asceticism). This spiritual practice merges physical hardship and trials (like mountain climbing, for example) with meditation and rituals so that the practitioner becomes strong in both body and mind. Maybe Shugendo will help heal my knee.
There are also statues representing Tengu spirits. These are supernatural creatures from Shinto legends that have long noses and usually bright red faces. They pre-date Buddhism and through the centuries they have at times been considered threatening, sometimes protective. Here at Yakuo-in they are revered as the guardians of the mountains and forests, and masters of the martial arts. Despite looking a bit like Cyrano de Bergerac they seem mighty fierce -- don't mess with them!
After a long climb, we finally reached the summit of Mount Takao and were greeted with expansive views of the mountains to the west, including Mount Fuji.
What, you don't believe me? Look closely, I swear it is there -- it's covered in snow and blends in with the white haze behind it. Here, maybe if I draw an outline, that'll help it materialize for you. I call this masterpiece "The Thirty-Seventh View of Mount Fuji".
Just be grateful I didn't use AI to fake a photo. Although Kevin tried. He gave the AI that same photo of me with the prompt "can you adjust the background to make Mount Fuji more visible?" thinking it would simply adjust the background contrast. But here's the AI's cheeky response -- a completely altered background showing the mountain from a very different angle! Ha!
My reward for reaching the summit was a view of Fuji-san, Kevin's reward was a bright green matcha-flavored ice cream.
After our victorious summit of Mount Takao, we took a day off from strenuous sightseeing today. We stuck close to home and went over to the Daikanyama neighborhood for a nice lunch and a tour of the Kyu Asakura ("old Asakura") House, a well-preserved traditional Japanese home built in 1919. This beautiful home has survived the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, bombing raids during WWII, and the steady gentrification of the Daikanyama area over the decades. It has been preserved as an excellent example of Taisho era architecture.
Quick sidebar: I know I keep repeating phrases like "Edo era" or "Meiji era". Basically Japan's history is broken into eras based on where or who the rulers were (before 1868) or by Emperor name (1868 to modern times). So for example, here are a few important ones with dates:
- Nara (710-794 AD) Nara was the capital of Japan during this time
- Heian (794-1185) Imperial court moved to Kyoto
- Kamakura (1185-1333) Shogunate in Kamakura ruled even though emperor was in Kyoto
- Edo (1603-1868) Tokugawa Shogunate began, capital moved to Edo (modern day Tokyo)
- More recent: Meiji (1868-1912), Taisho (1912-1926), Showa (1926-1989), Heisei (1989-2019), and Reiwa (current)
And now you know.
Okay, back to the Asakura residence! The house originally belonged to Torajiro Asakura who was a politician in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly in the 1920s. He needed a space where he could formally welcome other VIPs and entertain them in style. The house is traditional in style, with tatami mats on the floors and beautiful wood paneled sliding doors (called fusuma) and paper covered sliding doors (called shoji).
A central feature of the home is its mossy green garden which turns into a showcase of red maple during the autumn. Even though we visited in spring, it was still beautiful to stroll the grounds.
On the way back to the apartment, we stopped for a drink at a cafe called "Epulor". This bar and coffee spot was worlds away from a Starbucks. The barista made coffee and drinks while also acting as a DJ, choosing vinyl records from a massive collection and playing a selection of light jazz and other chill music (with the exception of one ill-chosen Weezer song, which I could've done without). Relaxing with a nice cafe mocha was just what I needed!
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