June 17th, 2010

Hydrangea bloom all throughout Kamakura, but places of interest in particular are divided around the Meigetsu-in and Engaku-ji Temples in the Kitakamakura area, and the Hasedera and Jōju-in Temples in the Hase – Yuigahama area.

The best time to see hydrangea in bloom is from the beginning of June until mid-July. The location and type of blooming hydrangea varies slightly depending on the yearly weather, but the period which you can enjoy these flowers is longer than that of cherry blossoms, another popular flower for viewing.

Since the rainy season started we haven’t had very nice weather, so when it turned nicer this afternoon, I quickly headed over to Kamakura. The trip from Tokyo takes about one hour, making it easy to go and come back in the same day, or even spend only half a day while still seeing the main sights.

There were crowds of people as soon as I arrived at Kamakura station, where I switched to the Enoden line and headed to Gokuraku-ji Temple.

People from Kamakura, sightseers, students and others, waiting for the Enoden train.

The Enoden tram line connects Kamakura with Enoshima Island and all stops in between.

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Dogo Onsen is a hot spring in the city of Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture on the island of Shikoku, Japan.

I went to a tea ceremony class with my friend. Even though I am Japanese, it was my first time experiencing a tea ceremony.

The class was held by Shuntaro Kondo, the tea master of Urasenke. Working at a company, he is experienced in the way of tea, once being sent to China as the representative of Urasenka within the Culture and Art delegation. in November of 2009, he has started “Avant-garde Tea Ceremony”, a new organization where new style of tea ceremony is being explored. He is active in introducing Japanese culture. Please check his profile for more information.

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Shibuya street photo.

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