Thursday Challenge – “Abundance” Yachts on the Marina

Thursday Challenge – ‘Abundance, wealth, food , people, love… In abundance,  yachts, sailboats  and water craft on the Marina, tinged by early morning sunlight. The pink monolith known as ‘Castle Hill’ rises in the background.   This picture post  shared in the Thursday Photo Challenge – for fun and learning. Related Posts: Thursday Challenge outdoors – parkstrailsriversplaygrounds Carnaval of flowers – […]

Paradise of Gold for an Artisan – Kanazawa

‘Marsh of Gold’  paradise for an Artisan Gold is symbolic of the region. The name Kanazawa means ‘marsh of gold’ in Japanese. Believed to have originated from a legend about  a peasant, Imohori Togoro who discovered gold dust as he was washing potatoes in a local marsh. Gold is found in Kanazawa and Ishikawa.  This sacred […]

Beautiful Geisha – Tea House of the Geisha – Ochaya Shima

1820  Higashi Kuruwa – a high-class eastern pleasure quarter After our visit to Nagamachi Samurai District we moved on to the Higashi Kuruwa, a high-class eastern pleasure quarter established by the Kaga  Clan in 1820. Wealthy merchants and men of letters sought the upper circles of society and its pleasures. In particular the geisha  performing the many Japanese […]

Samurai – Nagamachi Samurai District – Kanazawa a ‘Green City’

Samurai – feudal times under the Kaga Clan I guess we have all read about the Samurai and seen movies over the years. The stories of the Samurai has a special attraction for different people of  all different ages, a period of  intrigue and drama in such a different culture. I was most  interested to […]

Thursday Challenge-“Outdoors” (parks,trails,rivers,playgrounds..)

Living in the suburbs can prove quite boring sometimes. However, some of the newer suburbs now designed to be more welcoming for families and residents with attractive outdoors recreational park areas, incorporated in the estates. Doreen, an outer suburb of Melbourne city, Australia is one such suburb. An artificial pond with walking trails, bridges and playgrounds […]

Favorite Foto – Cherry blossom trees

Difficult to choose a favorite foto Travel around the main island of Japan and you will see the cherry blossom  everywhere. Many wild cherry blossom trees grow on the hillsides, in the fields and towns throughout the country. Cherry blossoms planted for centuries are a most revered tree in Japan, some trees are hundreds of […]

Spectacular Cherry Blossom display – Kanazawa Castle/Park-Japan

Kanazawa  under the Maeda Family The Maeda family ruled the Kaga clan during the Edo period. The most famous of the Maeda family, Toshiie Maeda ruled the Kaga clan from 1583, with their headquarters in Kanazawa, at what is now known as Kanazawa Castle Park until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. The Meiji Restoration brought about a chain of […]

Perfect Landscaping – Kenrokuen Garden/Park – Kanazawa

  Magnificent Kenroku-en Gardens  This magnificent Japanese garden  developed over centuries; from about  the 1620’s through to the 1840’s by the Maeda clan, the most powerful family under the Tokugawa Shogunate. Kenrokuen Park  considered one of the three Great Gardens of Japan. The reflections in the streams and ponds are magic. Perfect Landscaping The name Kenroku-en […]

Kanazawa Shrine – Kanazawa|Marsh of Gold Kanazawa

Kanazawa Shrine and purification fountain  Our first stop is the Kanazawa Shinto Shrine in vivid vermilion with a beautiful entrance door in  contrasting shades of blue, different from most shrines we visited recently. The symbol on the door  is  the Tokugawa Crest. The design work on the door reminds me of  inlay work  at the Toshugu Shrine. There […]

Kanazawa Railway Station – East Plaza – City Center

Kanazawa ruled by powerful samurai families In contrast to our visit to Shirakawago in the mountainous region of the Gifu Prefecture, Kanazawa is the capital city of Ishikawa Prefecture, a modern city of Japan, population 462,478 people. It lies on the coast of the Sea of Japan, bordered by the Japanese Alps. The city sits […]

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