Bamboo Groves

Just a mere 15 minute bikeride from the city, one can arrive in the mountains and enjoy walking through the bamboo groves. It's wonderful having the groves so close; sometimes one has to get out of the concrete!

These mild-mannered deer run wild in the grove and from what I understand, many Japanese have never seen one; it was a lucky day.

We began our walk with pleasure.

It was my first time in a bamboo grove, so naturally, I was excited.

This is a bamboo shoot and the brown "skin," if you will, is surprisingly soft. As the bamboo gets taller, the soft fuzz peels away and reveals a startling green.

Hot Mama "Charis" Cherries

The "Hot Mama Cherries" are referring to our bikes. Picture Julie Andrews with a slew of the Von Trapp children on thier single-geared bikes singing "Do Re Mi". That was us, complete with singing, on Sunday the 11th. We decided to take advantage of the gorgeous weather and ride to the ocean (1.5-2 hours) for a kite festival.








Ahhh, we made it.

The festival itself was really neat. There were international kite flying troups who performed to the beat of music; that is, 6 kites were choreographed to move simultaneously to the chosen piece.

Good Eats

If you know me at all, you probably know that one thing I make sure to do well is to eat well. At first, I thought that I would be hard-pressed to find anything that I liked... was I ever WRONG.

Left: Set lunch





Left: Flaming Squid. A good snack with drinks.









Left: Green Tea "Macha" and dessert

Kenroku-en Garden

Kenrokuen is one of Japan's most famous gardens. It is considered to have the 6 qualities of perfection: antiquity, artifice, seclusion, spaciousness, abundant water and spectacular panoramic views.
Ancient fountains, waterfalls, ponds, winding paths, cherry trees, teahouses and bridges make this garden lovely. However, the cherry blossom festival, complete with paper lanterns and throngs of reverant locals (and tourists), make the garden all the more gorgeous.