A trip to Ishikawa-ken. 2. Kanazawa

While Ted and Noriko headed back to Kyoto, Hideyo and I stayed behind for an extra day to explore Kanazawa (see map here). Kanazawa holds an almost unique place among Japanese cities in that it has been spared the Allied WWII fire-bombing. Consequently it is a city much still in touch with its history through its architecture and landscaping.

During the Edo period Kanazawa has been the feudal capital of the Maeda clan, known for both their wealth and liberal spending habits. The Maeda were allies of just everybody who mattered at the time, got Kanazawa through family connections in the late 1500's, and hang onto the city and the surrounding province until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.

"But wait... so how is Lady Matsu related to Toyotomi Hideyoshi again...?" Hideyo (no relation) puzzles over those all-important Maeda family connections

The Maeda clan's seat was the Kanazawa Castle, an impressive fortification that still dominates the centre of the city.

Kanazawa Castle from above. The gardens are to the lower right, and the geisha district is across the river to the upper right and so discretely offscreen. As it darn well should be! Note the street pattern, which to this day reflects the presence of the castle. Click on the image to get a closer look, or click here to go to the interactive googlesat page

While the wooden structures of the castle have burned down and been rebuild many a time during the last few centuries (do you, too, get the urge to quote from Monty Python and the Holy Grail?), the stone walls have always endured, and are indeed impressive. The latest rebuilding effort - of just part of the full castle - has been carried out in recent years and so we were able to get an idea of the construction techniques used in the wooden living quarters that historically surmounted them.

Parts of the reconstructed Kanazawa Castle. The stone walls are original, the living quarters above them have been rebuilt using traditional techniques and materials just a few years ago

Immediately outside the castle walls is Kenroku-en, considered one of the three most famous and most beautiful gardens in Japan. Before visiting the castle, we strolled around the garden - umbrellas in hand against the rain - and then warmed up with lovely hot soba noodles in one of the garden restaurants.

The first of the fall colours in the Kenroku-en...

... and a late-blossoming plum tree

Kanazawa is also home to one of the last surviving traditional geisha districts in Japan. While not as large or prestigious as, say, Kyoto's Gion, Kanazawa's geisha district is not nearly as crowded with tourists. It also contains several traditional tea-houses that have been preserved or restored to their Edo-jidai style and are now open to the public. These are certainly worth a visit and not just if you are a geiko fan.

Inside a Kanazawa teahouse

A long-gone geisha's taiko...

...and her koto

The teahouse garden at night

But it sure gets dark quickly now that it's November, so soon enough it was back to Kyoto on the good old JR densha with only a brief linger at the station noodle-shop for more hot soba.

A trip to Ishikawa-ken. 2. Kanazawa

While Ted and Noriko headed back to Kyoto, Hideyo and I stayed behind for an extra day to explore Kanazawa (see map here). Kanazawa holds an almost unique place among Japanese cities in that it has been spared the Allied WWII fire-bombing. Consequently it is a city much still in touch with its history through its architecture and landscaping.

During the Edo period Kanazawa has been the feudal capital of the Maeda clan, known for both their wealth and liberal spending habits. The Maeda were allies of just everybody who mattered at the time, got Kanazawa through family connections in the late 1500's, and hang onto the city and the surrounding province until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.

"But wait... so how is Lady Matsu related to Toyotomi Hideyoshi again...?" Hideyo (no relation) puzzles over those all-important Maeda family connections

The Maeda clan's seat was the Kanazawa Castle, an impressive fortification that still dominates the centre of the city.

Kanazawa Castle from above. The gardens are to the lower right, and the geisha district is across the river to the upper right and so discretely offscreen. As it darn well should be! Note the street pattern, which to this day reflects the presence of the castle. Click on the image to get a closer look, or click here to go to the interactive googlesat page

While the wooden structures of the castle have burned down and been rebuild many a time during the last few centuries (do you, too, get the urge to quote from Monty Python and the Holy Grail?), the stone walls have always endured, and are indeed impressive. The latest rebuilding effort - of just part of the full castle - has been carried out in recent years and so we were able to get an idea of the construction techniques used in the wooden living quarters that historically surmounted them.

Parts of the reconstructed Kanazawa Castle. The stone walls are original, the living quarters above them have been rebuilt using traditional techniques and materials just a few years ago

Immediately outside the castle walls is Kenroku-en, considered one of the three most famous and most beautiful gardens in Japan. Before visiting the castle, we strolled around the garden - umbrellas in hand against the rain - and then warmed up with lovely hot soba noodles in one of the garden restaurants.

The first of the fall colours in the Kenroku-en...

... and a late-blossoming plum tree

Kanazawa is also home to one of the last surviving traditional geisha districts in Japan. While not as large or prestigious as, say, Kyoto's Gion, Kanazawa's geisha district is not nearly as crowded with tourists. It also contains several traditional tea-houses that have been preserved or restored to their Edo-jidai style and are now open to the public. These are certainly worth a visit and not just if you are a geiko fan.

Inside a Kanazawa teahouse

A long-gone geisha's taiko...

...and her koto

The teahouse garden at night

But it sure gets dark quickly now that it's November, so soon enough it was back to Kyoto on the good old JR densha with only a brief linger at the station noodle-shop for more hot soba.