Ichigaya-honmurachō

When researching where to visit on this trip to Japan, Kanazawa, or Little Kyoto as some call it, caught my eye immediately. I read of charming historic geisha (geikko as they are known as here) districts, tea houses, preserved samurai residences, gold maki-e lacquerware, Kutani-taking pottery, and gold leaf production. I couldn’t imagine a place more suited for me to discover.

The Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo, pierces through two mountainous national parks, and skims a Bay Area, where the mountains meets the sea, known as the “Jade Coast” - how exotic sounding! Jade is formed deep in the earth and is pushed up by tectonic plates and eventually is swept away by currents or rivers.

Anyway, our train ride of 3 hours went by like lightening. You can bring outside food and drink onto the train and consume it. I found a sake bottle at the station with a tiny cup as its lid to use - how fun! We also bought a meal kit that when you pull the tab it heats it up in 6 minutes! Japan really knows how to make eating on the go easy and convenient.

I used air tags for this trip on our luggage since we would be shipping it and it’s been fun watching it move across the country, and so convenient to have it already at the next hotel. No more schleppin!

We are staying in a Japanese style hotel, which has been interesting. The staff are prepared to greet and direct you with basic procedures such as: put your suitcase on the first rug to “remove stain” and then in the second one to “finish”, and to remove your shoes in the specified area and to put them in a locker with assigned key. Finally, people who understand my fetish for “contamination” of feet and floor 😂

The Japanese are also prepared for emergencies, specifically earthquakes. In the elevator is a seat for emergencies, which can also double as a toilet, which is stocked with water, TP, flashlight, & deodorant. And when I opened the rooms’ closet, I found a pair of emergency slippers, just in case you have to run out and your shoes are locked up downstairs!

Ok dinner time, what will it be? So many options, but we decided on tempura. Tempura is a style of food that was introduced by the Portuguese during the Age of Discovery (1400s+). I’m a sucker for food history - I love to eat history. The sign outside the door said that they didn’t speak English, but if you don’t mind, then they don’t mind, so of course we entered. It was empty and small, and they did know some English, I think they didn’t want the expectation of a conversation.

Dan ordered a sake which came with a box that the glass sat it. The server pour his sake and overfilled his cup, which was caught in the box. I looked this up and it’s a sign of their generosity. Our meal was great, we had some fish, vegetables, “angel shrimp”, just what we needed. An Indonesian guy sat next to us and started conversation, he did the Tokyo Marathon, and we made small talk until he left.

It was late when we returned but I needed to visit the Onsen at the hotel since the congestion queue on the TV indicated that it was low. Onsens are hot spring pools. After a brief “How To” of etiquette refresher, I put on my yukata (Japanese bathrobe) and went to try it out. Here’s how it went: enter female Onsen, strip naked, go to cubicle with seat and shower head and scrub clean with soap and rinse, enter hot pool and relax. I can feel my body melt just thinking about it. It was after midnight so just one or two people were there. I enjoyed the outdoor pool the best as it was surrounded by a Japanese garden. Nothing but the sound of water trickling and lapping, and the leaves rubbing together. Perfect relaxation to prepare for bed.

The next day we explore Kanazawa’s market. Fresh fish and seafood on ice was around every corner, fried stuffed croquettes and some with Kanazawa curry (another example of food history through the age of discovery), fresh fruit and vegetables, dessert store fronts, and many specialty products. I tasted a strawberry skewer and it was the best strawberry I’ve eaten. So much flavor! I’ll need to get more of those before I leave. I even found a mugwort mochi which had a shelf life of 1 day!

We only got halfway through the market when we decided it was time for our next adventure: a tea house district, one of the main reasons that I chose to visit here, and I was freezing and needed to warm up. Well, my internal compass must’ve been reversed or frozen, which is a rare thing as I have an amazing sense of direction, and I took us in the opposite direction. Trying to make the most of the error, we strolled through the castle park, and to a famous garden here known to be 1 of 3 of Japans “perfect gardens”, and is designed to be perfect in every season. It was aesthetically pleasing, and I was trying to imagine it in full bloom in spring and summer, but the cold was getting to me. We visited a tea house in the gardens and had 20 minute formal matcha and sweet treat, admired the garden and carried on.

I was looking forward to the plum blossom orchard since they were so beautiful in Tokyo, and the day really needed to have some color added to its bleakness. Upon arrival of said orchard, there was nothing but sticks. More fricken sticks. Hardly even a budding stick. I was so disappointed. I had had enough at this point as I was still cold to the bone and getting to the tea house district wasn’t likely as they would be closing soon. Dan then directed us to a waterfall in the garden, which was lovely. On the way out we went into a cafe and had some tea. Not enough tea though to cure me though.

Walking back through the castle park was brutal. The wind was bitter and I had become so dehydrated. We went inside a mall to warm up and find food and drink and maybe a winter coat or base layers. We wandered around a bit but by now I was exhausted, still cold, thirsty, and just not feeling good. I returned to the hotel to warm up in the Onsen. But it was brief and not that enjoyable since you can’t really Onsen during menstruation (I stuck to the sauna and just dipped my legs in the water) and I came back very nauseated.

Not long after returning, I had several episodes of vomiting. This day just isn’t working out. I got through most of the night and in the early hours ended up getting sick again. This time I didn’t make it to the toilet, let me explain why. The space between the side of the bed and the wall is barely large enough for my feet to fit, I was trying to throw my hair up and remove my night guard from my mouth, there’s a sliding door, a bathroom door, and a toilet seat to lift. I didn’t stand a chance 😔

Not sure what I have/had but Dans GI isn’t cooperating either, not as bad as my issues, but still. I did look out the window during what I call “blue hour”, the time of day when there’s just enough light left in the sky to saturate it was blue, and saw beautiful snowflakes filling the air and powdering the Japanese streets while the people bustled by. A simple scene, with no particular meaning, and a moment in time that is my own.

Around 4pm we decided to make the effort to see the tea house district, even though it would be shutting down soon. We’re both glad we did. The sun had been shining all day, and it felt good to feel the sun again in my face. Here there were many shops promoting the gold leaf production (99% of Japans gold leaf comes from here). Any food can be covered (soft serve ice cream) or sprinkled with gold leaf flakes. I would’ve enjoyed making crafts with this gold, but another time.

The Edo style housing and streets took me back to a time of old Japan, where I could imagine samurai, geisha/geikka, and commoners going about their lives. Temples and shrines dotted the way, and Japanese pine trees scattered among the streets. Once past austere wooden facades, the inside of the homes and shops led to a small private garden behind a large glass window.

The sun was down and the cold set in so it was time to return. I found instant miso soup and rice crackers and called it dinner. The Kanazawa I saw in my dreams did not come to fruition due to a few bumps in the road, but I’ll leave room for it when I return to Japan one day.

Tomorrow, Saturday, we go further into the mountains to another historic town called Takayama. Here we will relax at a traditional Japanese ryokan (an inn), with our own private patio Onsen ☺️Read more