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The moray eel, enchanting taste of the gang fish

Posted on 2024年12月19日2025年1月26日 by japan flower tour home

My wife and I went to a restaurant in Ito on the Izu Peninsula that specializes in rare moray eel dishes. The moray eel, known as the gangster of the sea, has strong jaws and a unique bone structure, making it difficult to cut and to process it without giving off an unpleasant odor. It is difficult to cook, and this is the only restaurant in Japan that specializes in a full course of various moray eel dishes.

Starting with sashimi, sliced raw fish, and parboiled salad, we had gang-fried moray eels with their whole heads up, rolls in omelet, and kabayaki, grilled meal. The moray eel meat, which has plenty of collagen under the skin and is very elastic, was well-processed, had no unpleasant odor, and went perfectly with sake. I was so engrossed in the deliciousness and the sake that I forgot to take pictures of some of the dishes.

It had been a while since I last visited Ito, so I spent a relaxing time enjoying the hot springs at the roadside station and fishing on the port embankment.

Best season of autumn leaves in Koishikawa Korakuen Garden

Posted on 2024年12月9日2025年1月26日 by japan flower tour home

Beautiful Autumn Leaves

On Sunday, I guided a group of young people who are staying in Tokyo for a medium to long term, to Koishikawa Korakuen Garden as member of Tokyo City Guide Club. It was divided about 10 guests into four groups, and I guided two guests from India and Germany. The autumn leaves were in full bloom at that time, so I think the guests enjoyed themselves well.

However, since the pairings were decided at the entrance to the garden, it was the first time that both guides and guest group, so there were some confusions.

Koishikawa Korakuen Garden was built to make people in Edo, who could not easily travel to Kyoto, to enjoy a simulated Kyoto trip, but it was some difference for participants from Germany, which had a similar feudal system, and participants from India, which has a different history, to understand the background. In addition, the English pronunciation of the guests was different, so it was difficult to communicate within the participants.

I have explained this garden many times before, and I had information in advance about the type of people I would be guiding, so I was able to plan the scenario and time allocation of my explanation to a certain extent, but I also had to worry about how much I should improvise to suit the pace and level of understanding of the two guests.

Also, because we were divided into four groups, we had to coordinate the viewing time for the whole group, and I had to skip some places to explain, so as a guide, I was a little worried and left with regrets about how much the group enjoyed. However, we were saved by the fact that the autumn leaves were at their best.

Astonishing autumn leaves at Kitanomaru Park

Posted on 2024年12月7日2025年1月26日 by japan flower tour home

Best time for Maples and Ginkgo trees

I organized an autumn foliage observation event for a group of the Tokyo City Guide at Kitanomaru Park as a host. The maples in the forest were at their best on a cloudless day, and the gradations from orange to crimson were beautiful. The old ginkgo tree, said to be about 200 years old, was a beautiful yellow suitable for a landmark. Members of the event learned how to distinguish between species in maple trees, which can be difficult to distinguish between, and enjoyed not only the autumn leaves but also the red berries of evergreen trees.

A quiet and beautiful day in Odaiba in late autumn

Posted on 2024年11月30日2025年1月26日 by japan flower tour home

Joyful volunteer work

The last day of November, the 30th, was a calm day in Tokyo, blessed with good weather. It had been a while since I last volunteered in the Odaiba area, and I was able to spend the time leisurely giving instructions to people looking for their destinations at Yurikamome stations or other places, and providing consultation to their next destination or the airport. As the autumn leaves in Odaiba have turned a lot, and looking at the Christmas lights, I began to feel like the end of the year was finally upon us.

Amazing autumn views from Mt. Takao and Japanese gardens in Tokyo with wonderful guests from the U.S.A and Canada

Posted on 2024年11月13日2025年1月26日 by japan flower tour home

On Sunday (November 10th) and Monday (November 11th), I guided two friendly senior couples from Phoenix (Arizona) in the United States and Toronto, Canada, to gardens (Koishikawa Korakuen garden and Hama Rikyu Gardens) and other places in Tokyo and Mt. Takao. The customers had made a reservation about half year ago, and they wanted to see the Japanese gardens and autumn leaves, so I made the schedule above, taking into consideration the opening days of the gardens and the possibility of increasing the chances of enjoying the beautiful autumn leaves at a leisurely pace. However, as the scheduled date approached, I was worried about whether I could provide a satisfactory guide, as the autumn leaves were much later than usual and the weather forecast predicted a high probability of rain on both days.

In the meantime, I decided to thoroughly check out Mt. Takao last Wednesday and the gardens in Tokyo on Saturday to check the condition of the destinations. In addition, I found out just before the tour that all four of the guests were quite seniors, considering the walking distances we have to walk over the two-day trip and checked elevators and escalator on routes as much as possible (as there were no elevators nor escalators in the gardens or on the mountain paths, I thoroughly checked the stations and other places where escalators could be used).

I also sent photos of the summit of Mt. Takao during the pre-trip inspection in advance to provide information that while we can’t expect to see full colored maples, but can enjoy some colored maples on Mt. Takao, so as not to raise the guests’ expectations too much. Also, in the gardens in Tokyo, I decided to focus on the ingenuity of the gardens and the autumn leaves of zelkova and wax trees and acorns such as oaks instead of maples.

Fortunately, it was raining that night, but the weather changed from cloudy to sunny during the day, so we were able to enjoy the tour. The peak season for autumn leaves and cherry blossoms is limited, and the impression changes depending on the weather, so I realized how difficult it is to prepare in a limited schedule to ensure that our guests are as satisfied as possible.

Still, by making as much effort as possible, the sun was on our side, and we were able to see beautiful smiles at the end.

This tour was organized through Tours by Locals.

The magnificent traditional techniques of the world-famous female falconer

Posted on 2024年11月4日2025年1月26日 by japan flower tour home

On Sunday, the second day of the three-day weekend, the Kanto region was blessed with clear autumn weather, a huge contrast to the previous day. I went to see and enjoy a falconry procession in Iwatsuki, Saitama.

Iwatsuki is located north of Edo and was a key location for the defense of Edo. It was also an important town as a post station on the Onari Road, Shogun’s special road and a side road of the Nikko highway, where the shogun frequently passed. It was also a place where shoguns often enjoyed falconry, so a falconry procession was recreated to evoke those days.

I was able to see a female falconer demonstrate falconry, something I don’t usually get to see, and I also enjoyed watching the falcon fly into my hand.

Autumn harvest observation event in Yoyogi Park on a cold, rainy autumn day

Posted on 2024年11月3日2025年1月26日 by japan flower tour home

Unfortunately, it rained in Tokyo on Saturday, the first day of the three-day weekend. However, the rain was still a little light in the morning, so the Nature Exploration group in Tokyo City Guide Club held an observation event in Yoyogi Park with the theme of autumn fruits or nuts.

We don’t usually pay much attention to these small fruits, but if looking closely, I can see that Chinese hackberry, Scabrous aphananthe, and camphor trees are secretly bearing fruits.

Also, depending on the type of acorn, the way the fruit is formed and the shape and pattern of the cupule, also called a cap, vary, and when we understand the differences, we will feel a little proud. The autumn leaves in the park have started to change little by little, with flowering dogwood and winged spindle bearing red fruits, but most of the trees, including the maple, are still green.

The autumn leaves are a little late this year, but in a little while the leaves of the trees in the park will turn red and yellow and we will be able to enjoy them again, but I am a little worried about how the heat of this summer will affect the autumn leaves.

What surprised me a little was that the early-blooming Kawazu cherry trees was blooming out of season. Could this be due to the long, hot summer this year?