Chimes and Lotus: Summer in Ueno Park

Chimes and Lotus: Summer in Ueno Park

In mid-July, author friend Jonelle Patrick and I headed over to Ueno Park to see the lotus in bloom on Shinobazu Pond, just before the start of the Ueno Natsu Matsuri (Summer festival). Lotus blossoms open early in the morning, and close before noon, so you need to get up early to catch them at their peak. We arrived at the pond before 9 a.m., and walked around to the place where the festival setup was going on. The stands were still under construction, but the hundreds of furin (風鈴)–Japanese wind bells–were already hung and chiming away in the breeze.

Read more

The Koubai (Red Plum Blossom) Festival at Ushi-Tenjin Kitano Shrine in Tokyo

The Koubai (Red Plum Blossom) Festival at Ushi-Tenjin Kitano Shrine in Tokyo

Every February, Ushi-Tenjin Kitano Jinja (shrine) holds a koubai (red plum blossom) festival to celebrate the blooming ume (Japanese plum) trees that grow around the shrine. Last weekend, a friend and I hopped a train to Bunkyo to check out the festival, and the early blooms.

Read more

The First Ume of 2023

The First Ume of 2023

Since moving to Katsushika (one of Tokyo’s northern wards) last September, I’ve spent a lot of time walking by the river in Mizumoto Koen (Park), not far from my new home. The park is particularly lovely on sunny days, when flocks of ducks swim in the Edogawa (Edo River), and sometimes kids fly kites — you can see one in the picture below, on the far side of the river – which is technically in neighboring Chiba Prefecture. This afternoon, while walking in the park, I noticed a pair of ume (plum) trees beginning to bloom – a traditional harbinger

Read more