Kanazawa | Hello from the Five Star Vagabond

Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants

November 30, 2016 by David Herd

Kanazawa-Japan-shrines-parks-restaurants

Oyama Shrine

Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants

Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants kept me very busy for the short time I was in this interesting city. This was my first stop after 3 nights in Tokyo on my 7 city Shinkansen adventure.

The Oyama Shrine gate originally guarded the entrance of Kanazawa Castle, and was later moved to Oyama Shrine.

Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants

The Oyama Shrine is in the heart of the city only 7 minutes walk from my hotel. First established in 1599 and moved to its present location in 1873.

I stumbled on a little princess

You won’t see too many sweeter young Japanese girls as this little princess. I almost had to beg to get this great photo. 🙂

Map of the city

An interesting sculpture of Kanazawa city.

My hotel was great value in a perfect location with free WiFi, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount.

People having fun in Central park

A sunny day without a cloud in the sky, so lets go to the park.

Central park is between the main city street & the castle, there were some Hawaiian dancers entetaining the crowd.

Kanazawa Hawiian dancers

Watch this video on YouTube

Tere is a cute little Japanese girl here stealing the limelight from the Hawaiian dancers.

Wedding

The Museum of Cultural Exchange is also in Central park, a wedding reception was about to begin in the restaurant.

Gorgeous girls

The girls look absolutely gorgeous dressed in Kimonos.

The bikers come to town

These fabulous looking machines were parked on the footpath outside my hotel. Very expensive looking machines.

Kanazawa parking

Making the most of the available space.

Kanazawa railway station

A very modern railway station, almost a work of art.

Department store

Most cities I have visited in Japan all seem to have at least one department store at the railway station.

Lunch boxes

Naturally I purchases one of these salmon roe or caviar, whatever you wish to call it, absolutely delicious. I ate it on my way to Hiroshima on the shinkansen.

Yakitori tour of Japan 🙂

This should be the name of my holiday, I was always searching for good Yakitori restaurants.

Yakitori no Meimon Akiyoshi was the restaurants name.

There are 2,969 restaurants in Kanazawa & tripAdvisor rated this one 426th.

Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants, lots of chefs

A typical busy noise yakitori restaurant with delicious food.

Toyoko Inn

My hotel was great value in a perfect location with free WiFi, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount.

Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants

My hotel is beside bus stop number 16 & is within walking distance of all the places of interest.

Thank you for visiting my Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants photo blog.

Here are some more posts to check out

Istanbul Budapest London

Mostar Dubrobnik Split

Saigon Zagreb Vung tau

Pattaya live webcam

9a1fec74-4461-46cd-8663-97f5893c8f6e (1)

That’s all folks

Pattaya live webcam

Dotonbori in Osaka

Piss Alley Tokyo

Oyster bar Sendai

Shinkansen bullet train

Fukuoka – Hiroshima – Sapporo – Sendai

Tokyo – Kagoshima – Kanazawa – Nagoya

Nagasaki – Yokohama – Kyoto – Kamakura

Counter only started June 16 2020.

This gallery contains 2 photos

Japanese Garden Kanazawa Castle

November 30, 2016 by David Herd

Gyokusen’inmaru Garden

Japanese Garden Kanazawa Castle

Japanese Garden Kanazawa Castle is absolutely stunning as you can see from the header in this post. This is one of my favourite photos from my two week seven city Shinkansen trip in October 2016.

Constructed in 1634 if flourished for between 200 & 300 years before being abandoned. However a full reconstruction began in 2013 to produce the wonderful result we see today.

Japanese Garden Kanazawa Castle

After a five minute uphill walk you arrive at the castle entrance.

Adjacent to the castle

These are a few shops just before you reach the castle.

Kanazawa Castle

A huge fire in 1759 destroyed the whole castle then it was re-built in 1788. That year is also when 11 ships with 1,530 people onboard, 736 of them convicts, arrived in Botany Bay a few miles south of Sydney Harbour in Australia. This event is known to all us Aussies as “the first fleet”.

My hotel was great value in a perfect location, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount. Make sure you are in the downtown one at Korinbo, it’s more convenient than the one near the station.

The Imori moat

If you are going to build a castle then you gotta have a moat.

Spectacular

Once again I was very lucky to have the beautiful blue sky to highlight my photos of Kanazawa Castle.

The buildings look new

Even though it was rebuilt 228 years ago it still looks brand new. 🙂

As usual built on a hill

The castles always take the high ground, all the better to resist their enemies.

Through the gate we go

The Ni-no Mon is what they call the second gate.

Picture perfect

As you can see the buildings and grounds are in perfect condition.

Not a cloud in the sky

A perfect day for wandering around Japanese Garden Kanazawa Castle and the beautiful Kenrokuen garden right next door to the castle.

I was so fortunate to have perfect weather

Photos look so much better when there is a beautiful blue sky. There seems to be a lot of rain between November & February.

Japanese Garden Kanazawa Castle

A final look at this beautiful garden within the castle walls.

Toyoko Inn

My hotel was great value in a perfect location with free WiFi, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount.

Thank you for visiting my Japanese Garden Kanazawa Castle photo blog.

Please check out these fabulous posts

Gold Coast Pattaya Cinque Terre

Rio de Janeiro Singapore Eastern Europe

Bangkok Bars Tokyo Cape Town Safari

Great hotel room rates anywhere in the world if you book

through these links below. Book now & pay later.

Free Cancellation.

Bangkok Hotels Pattaya Hotels

Brazil Hotels

That’s all folks

Pattaya live webcam

Pattaya live webcam

Dotonbori in Osaka

Piss Alley Tokyo

Oyster bar Sendai

Shinkansen bullet train

Fukuoka – Hiroshima – Sapporo – Sendai

Tokyo – Kagoshima – Kanazawa – Nagoya

Nagasaki – Yokohama – Kyoto – Kamakura

Counter only started June 16 2020.

This gallery contains 2 photos

Famous Japanese Garden Kanazawa

November 27, 2016 by David Herd

Beautiful Japanese garden

Famous Japanese Garden Kanazawa

Famous Japanese Garden Kanazawa, an eastern coastal city, Kenrokuen is rated number one out of 167 things to do in Kanazawa by TripAdvisor. It certainly is a tranquil peaceful place to wile away a few hours.

Famous Japanese Garden Kanazawa

The garden has an area of 11.4 hectares & is located on a hill in central Kanazawa next to Kanazawa Castle.

Absolutely beautiful

My hotel was great value in a perfect location only 14 minutes walk from the gardens, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount.

Close to everything

Toyoko Inn is an excellent place to stay.

Artificial lake

Close to the Kenrokuen Garden Kanazawa Japan is the Kanazawa castle which is certainly worth a visit.

Prince Yamoto Takeru

His historical existence is a mystery but there are books that date his life to the 4th century.

Kenrokuen Garden lantern

There is a surprise around every corner of Famous Japanese Garden Kanazawa.

Which way shall I go?

Decisions, decisions, there is so much to see at Kenrokuen Garden Kanazawa Japan. Perhaps I’ll just take a selfie. 🙂

Make sure you have lots of time

The gardens are quite huge so make sure you allocate at least 2 or 3 hours to enjoy it fully.

I was so fortunate to have perfect weather

Photos look so much better when there is a beautiful blue sky. There seems to be a lot of rain between November & February.

Let’s check the maps

It seems like these ladies are planning carefully planning their schedule. 🙂

Just behind those ladies

Is this rather large stone statue.

Famous Japanese Garden Kanazawa, stone bridge

One of the stone bridges at Kenrokuen Garden Kanazawa Japan.

Carp or Koi I presume

There were quite a lot swimming in the lake.

Rated one of the three best gardens in Japan

It’s easy to see why this garden is so highly rated in Japan.

Toyoko Inn

Thanks for visiting my Famous Japanese Garden Kanazawa photo blog.

Please check out these fabulous posts

Zagreb Croatia Rio de Janeiro Brisbane River

Koh Samui Korea London

Bangkok Osaka Pattaya

Chiang Mai Pattaya Chao Phraya river

Pattaya live webcam

That’s all folks

Dotonbori in Osaka

Piss Alley Tokyo

Oyster bar Sendai

Shinkansen bullet train

Fukuoka – Hiroshima – Sapporo – Sendai

Tokyo – Kagoshima – Kanazawa – Nagoya

Nagasaki – Yokohama – Kyoto – Kamakura

Counter only started June 16 2020.

This gallery contains 2 photos

Japanese drummers Geisha District

November 26, 2016 by David Herd

Kazue-Machi-Chaya-District-Kanazawa-Japan

Near Higashi Chaya District

Japanese drummers Geisha District

Japanese drummers Geisha District Kanazawa is located along the Asanogawa river only five minutes walk from the larger more popular Higashi Chaya District. Geishas are the traditional, female Japanese entertainers who regularly perform in these areas.

Japanese drummers Geisha District

The district overlooks the Asanogawa river & seems rather quiet & peaceful.

That was until I heard the sound of drums

Fabulous Japanese drummers

The noise seemed to be somewhere up on the hill so I took some narrow winding steps up to the top. I was so lucky to be in the right place at the right time, I was walking through Kazue-machi, the old geisha district located along the river between Asanogawa Ohashi Bridge and Naka-no Hashi Bridge, when I heard these fabulous drums.

Five minutes they added a flute

Japanese drummers + flute

I was so happy to be able to see these wonderful street performers in action. About ten days later I had some more good fortune in Nagasaki when I saw some more fabulous drummers doing their thin. Check out my photo blog through THIS LINK.

Japanese drummers Geisha District

Chaya houses have a beautiful lattice called “kimusuko” on the walls of the ground floor.

Tiny streets

As you can see many of the streets are just tiny narrow alleys in Kazue Machi Chaya District Kanazawa.

Tea House

The historical rows in this tea-house town have been designated as Japan’s cultural assets since 2008.

Lattice is called “kimusuko”

A typical Chaya house which is noe a tea house or restaurant.

Many interesting buildings

So many photo opportunities in Japan which is one of the many reasons I love travelling here.

Torii Gate

Torii gates usually mark the entrance to Shinto shrines, however they seem to be used in many other areas as well.

Another example

This large Torii gate is quite different to the previous one.

Toyoko Inn

My hotel was great value in a perfect location, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount. Make sure you are in the downtown one, it’s more convenient than the one near the station.

You can take a bus but I prefer to walk

The Busses leave from the front of Toyoko Inn. Turn left just before you cross the river to get to Kazue Machi Chaya District Kanazawa.

Thanks for visiting my Japanese drummers Geisha District Kanazawa photo blog.

Holiday Inn

Fabulous views, excellent restaurants & a very good room rate if you book through THIS LINK.

The building in the middle is the Holiday Inn, on the left is the Amari Hotel which is another very good five star hotel. Use THIS LINK to book for a very good room rate.

Sabai Wing North Pattaya

The best Pattaya budget hotel, 3 pools & opposite Central Marina shopping mall. For a great room rate just book through THIS LINK.

Sutus Court is a great budget hotel right i the heart of one of Pattaya’s main bar areas, just use THIS LINK for a terrific room rate. 420/100 Moo 9 Soi Buakhao.

Pattaya Hilton

This is the view from Horizons the amazing rooftop bar. A great five star hotel located opposte the beach & above the Central Festival shopping mall. Just book through THIS LINK for an excellent room rate.

Pattaya live webcam

Dotonbori in Osaka

Piss Alley Tokyo

Oyster bar Sendai

Shinkansen bullet train

Fukuoka – Hiroshima – Sapporo – Sendai

Tokyo – Kagoshima – Kanazawa – Nagoya

Nagasaki – Yokohama – Kyoto – Kamakura

Counter only started June 16 2020.

This gallery contains 2 photos

Old Geisha Town Kanazawa

November 25, 2016 by David Herd

Higashi-Chaya-District-Kanazawa-Japan-Geisha

Two-story Chaya houses

Old Geisha Town Kanazawa

Old Geisha Town Kanazawa, Higashi Chaya is one of three similar districts in Kanazawa. The cities tourism department holds a Geisha show in these Chaya districts every Saturday. Another district is Kazue-machi which is featured in another post.

Higashi Chaya District Kanazawa

A chaya house has a beautiful lattice called “kimusuko” on the walls of the ground floor.

A close look at the lattice

Hopefully the rather large body of the well fed FiveStarVagabond does not stop you getting an idea of the “kimusuko”.

Old Japanese Geisha Town Kanazawa

I’m guessing this is probably where the Geisha girls perform every Saturday.

A couple of locals sharing a happy moment.

The chaya houses used to be in central Kanazawa but were moved into four districts away from the city centre in 1820.

Photo opportunity

We all love photos to help us remember these wonderful places.

Hello boys

I’m sure the big guy on the right had an Australian accent.

Smile please

TripAdvisor rate the Higashi Chaya District 3rd out of 167 things to do in Kanazawa so naturally the tourists (including myself) flock here with their cameras.

Magnificent blue sky

How lucky was I to have this beautiful sky?

My hotel was great value in a perfect location, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount.

Time to relax with an icecream

A rather unique tradition in Kanazawa is to sprinkle edible gold leaf on top of ice cream and other food. Check out my Omicho Fresh Food Market Kanazawa photo blog for other examples.

Higashi Chaya District Kanazawa

This whole area along with Kazue-machi which is close by, and Gion in Kyoto have been designated as Japan’s cultural assets.

Just across the bridge is Kazue-machi

Kazue-machi overlooks the Asanogawa river.

sound of drums

Fabulous Japanese drummers

Watch this video on YouTube

The noise seemed to be somewhere up on the hill so I took some narrow winding steps up to the top. I was so lucky to be in the right place at the right time, I was walking through Kazue-machi, the old geisha district located along the river between Asanogawa Ohashi Bridge and Naka-no Hashi Bridge, when I heard these fabulous drums.

More great homes

Higashi Chaya District Kanazawa really has quite a wonderful unique style.

If you are feeling lazy

These guys are at your service. 🙂

But first lets negotiate the price. 🙂

It seems like a very friendly negotiation.

Lovely shop

Lots of nice shops & tea houses in Higashi Chaya District Kanazawa.

Toyoko Inn

My hotel was great value in a perfect location, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount. Make sure you are in the downtown one, it’s more convenient than the one near the station.

Thanks for visiting my Old Geisha Town Kanazawa photo blog.

Checkout some more of my terrific blogs on the links below.

Istanbul Budapest London

Mostar Dubrobnik Split

Saigon Zagreb Vung tau

Bangkok Hotels Pattaya Hotels

Brazil Hotels

Pattaya live webcam

That’s all folks

Holiday Inn

Fabulous views, excellent restaurants & a very good room rate if you book through THIS LINK.

The building in the middle is the Holiday Inn, on the left is the Amari Hotel which is another very good five star hotel. Use THIS LINK to book for a very good room rate.

Sabai Wing North Pattaya

The best Pattaya budget hotel, 3 pools & opposite Central Marina shopping mall. For a great room rate just book through THIS LINK.

Sutus Court is a great budget hotel right i the heart of one of Pattaya’s main bar areas, just use THIS LINK for a terrific room rate. 420/100 Moo 9 Soi Buakhao.

Pattaya Hilton

Check out these great photo blogs.

Dotonbori in Osaka – Piss Alley Tokyo

Oyster bar Sendai – Shinkansen bullet train

Fukuoka – Hiroshima – Sapporo – Sendai

Tokyo – Kagoshima – Kanazawa – Nagoya

Nagasaki – Yokohama – Kyoto – Kamakura

Counter only started June 16 2020.

This gallery contains 2 photos

Omicho Seafood Market Kanazawa

November 24, 2016 by David Herd

Omicho Seafood Market

Omicho Seafood Market Kanazawa

Omicho Seafood Market Kanazawa, Omicho was a delight to visit, the noise, the atmosphere & the food. I enjoyed a terrific lunch with edible gold leaf sprinkled on my sashimi.

Fresh seafood packed on ice

The only problem I found was finding somewhere to sit after you purchased some food.

Fresh crab very good

These look great but reasonably expensive at 4,500 Yen.

Omicho Seafood Market Kanazawa

There were lots of species here I was not familiar with.

Salmon roe is absolutely fantastic

I could almost eat it every day.

My hotel was in a perfect location just a short walk to the market, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount.

So many choices

The market really does have an enormous variety of seafood.

Fresh fruit as well

Being Japan the quality is very high indeed.

I decided to have lunch at one of the popular restaurants

Very busy and excellent fresh sashimi.

Omicho Seafood Market Kanazawa, very crowded

Well it was Sunday lunch time so I guess that is one of the busiest times to be there.

Omicho Seafood Market Kanazawa, check this out

The sashimi came in three sizes, I chose the middle one, it was excellent.

How about the edible gold leaf?

Kanazawa’s history with gold leaf began 400 years ago. Kyoto and Edo (modern-day Tokyo) used to make gold leaf, Kanazawa now is the only remaining production hub of the coveted craft.

Lets have a closer look

Naturally the leaf is used in jewelry, cosmetics etc as well as the edible product you see here.

Check out my YouTube video

Omicho seafood market Kanazawa Japan

The salmon roe is absolutely delicious.

Fresh oysters

I really love fresh oysters but I decided they were a little too expensive and I have five more cities to visit. 🙂

A great selection of seafood

Omicho Market has been around for over 300 years, initially however it only supplied the privileged towns near the castle. Finally in 1904, the market was opened to the public and ever since then has been one of the most popular places to shop in Kanazawa.

Sushizanmai

Sushizanmai is my favourite chain of Japanese restaurants with the best one at Tsujiki markets in Tokyo. I have also eaten at their branch in Osaka & Fukuoka.

The market is 10 minutes walk from my hotel

You can take the bus but I prefer to walk.

Toyoko Inn

My hotel was great value in a perfect location with free WiFi, book through THIS LINK for an excellent discount.

Thanks for visiting my Omicho Seafood Market Kanazawa photo blog.

Please check out some of the most popular below, and thank you for visiting.

Istanbul Budapest London

Mostar Dubrobnik Split

Saigon Zagreb Vung tau

Bangkok Hotels Pattaya Hotels

Brazil Hotels

Pattaya live webcam

Pattaya live webcam

Dotonbori in Osaka

Piss Alley Tokyo

Oyster bar Sendai

Shinkansen bullet train

Fukuoka – Hiroshima – Sapporo – Sendai

Tokyo – Kagoshima – Kanazawa – Nagoya

Nagasaki – Yokohama – Kyoto – Kamakura

Counter only started June 16 2020.

This gallery contains 2 photos

Oyama Shrine

Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants

I stumbled on a little princess

Map of the city

People having fun in Central park

Wedding

Gorgeous girls

The bikers come to town

Kanazawa parking

Kanazawa railway station

Department store

Lunch boxes

Yakitori tour of Japan 🙂

Yakitori no Meimon Akiyoshi was the restaurants name.

Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants, lots of chefs

Kanazawa shrines parks restaurants

That’s all folks

Gyokusen’inmaru Garden

Japanese Garden Kanazawa Castle

Adjacent to the castle

Kanazawa Castle

Spectacular

The buildings look new

As usual built on a hill

Through the gate we go

Picture perfect

Not a cloud in the sky

I was so fortunate to have perfect weather

Japanese Garden Kanazawa Castle

Beautiful Japanese garden

Famous Japanese Garden Kanazawa

Absolutely beautiful

Close to everything

Artificial lake

Prince Yamoto Takeru

Kenrokuen Garden lantern

Which way shall I go?

Make sure you have lots of time

I was so fortunate to have perfect weather

Let’s check the maps

Just behind those ladies

Famous Japanese Garden Kanazawa, stone bridge

Carp or Koi I presume

Rated one of the three best gardens in Japan

That’s all folks

Near Higashi Chaya District

Japanese drummers Geisha District

That was until I heard the sound of drums

Five minutes they added a flute

Japanese drummers Geisha District

Tiny streets

Tea House

Lattice is called “kimusuko”

Many interesting buildings

Torii Gate

Another example

You can take a bus but I prefer to walk

More posts for you to see

That’s all folks

Two-story Chaya houses

Higashi Chaya District Kanazawa

A close look at the lattice

Old Japanese Geisha Town Kanazawa

A couple of locals sharing a happy moment.

Photo opportunity

Hello boys

Smile please

Magnificent blue sky

Time to relax with an icecream

Higashi Chaya District Kanazawa

Just across the bridge is Kazue-machi

sound of drums

More great homes

If you are feeling lazy

But first lets negotiate the price. 🙂

Lovely shop

That’s all folks

Omicho Seafood Market

Fresh seafood packed on ice

Fresh crab very good