On Japan’s west coast facing the cold winds of Mongolia is Kanazawa. Our penultimate destination. It was kept off the tourist map for a number of years, but thanks to the bullet train it’s now easily accessible. It’s very compact, a smaller version of Kyoto and a lot colder.
Our authentic bijou, traditional Japanese Air BnB accommodation turned out to be a container unit. Lined with tatami mats, it was actually quite cosy once the heating was on. Unfortunately the bathroom was almost inaccessible. The walls and windows were paper thin - a typical example of Japanese short-life building.
Higashi Chaya is a whole neighbourhood of beautifully preserved geisha houses. The geishas have now left and their houses have become restaurants, teahouses and many identical souvenir shops. There are many kimono wearers to be seen wandering around the town, but these are all rented ones.
Kenrokuen Garden is almost 30 acres and forms the green heart of Kanazawa. It’s ranked by the Japanese as one of the three perfect gardens in the country and ‘it’s a fine place for a peaceful and contemplative walk’.
Kenrokuen means “six attributes garden,” which is a reference to a Chinese book that describes the six attributes of the perfect garden. As you wander around you discover perfect viewpoints, traditional teahouses and water used in different ways, all tucked away. It is not the size that is breathtaking, its that every angle has a truly amazing view, almost in a surreal way.
It was perfect. Perhaps a little too perfect?
Throughout Japan’s towns and cities almost every bush and tree has been perfectly manicured or trained to grow in a particular way. Surely the beauty of nature is nature itself?
Digital birdsong in a garden with no wildlife, except for coy carp, is a complete mystery to me.
The garden has tea-ceremonies performed in the traditional teahouses. They are a bit strange to see - there’s multiple ones going on simultaneously. The buildings shutters are open so all the tourists can watch the tourists having a private ceremony.
But the uniqueness of Kanazawa we found were its conical trees. A visual spectacle like nothing we have seen before.
As the colours of autumn foliage deepens, November 1st hails the beginning of the winter preparations. Its a very labour intensive busy spectacle called Yukizuri.
Snow that falls in the winter of Kanazawa is heavy in weight because the snow contains a large quantity of moisture. In order to prevent the branches of the beloved Karasaki pine trees from breaking, Yukizuri is performed. This is a method of protecting the branches with ropes attached in a conical arrangement to the trees. Skillful gardeners use more than 800 ropes to give Yukizuri to the pines.
Gardeners on-top of the supporting poles throw out the ropes one by one until perfect cones of ropes are formed. Work continues round the city to mid-December; the Yukizuri ropes are left in place until March, when the heaviest snows finally stop falling.
It adds a surprisingly elegant touch to the garden’s winter scenery.
All around Kanazawa, these conical forms are being erected over trees, hedges and bushes . The great walls of the castle are also covered in woven matting to protect the stone. The town is literally wrapped up for winter.
How I would love to see this place in the snow, we were so close, it is was very much colder over this side of Japan. We were, however, pleased to see the colours of late Autumn.
In complete contrast, Kanazawa is known for its fresh fish and Omichi Market is where the locals all go in the mornings before the tourists arrive. The harsh fluorescent lighting indoor lighting and the shouting of the market traders makes this a completely different visual experience.
So we have reached the final leg of our unforgettable journey. Our last ride on the Bullet Train to our final destination - Tokyo.