Day 7: Kenrokuen, Kanazawa Castle and Omicho Market
Day 7 started at about 8.30am with a 15 minute walk to Kenrokuen. Cherry had booked us a morning teishoku breakfast and one of the tea houses with view outwards towards the garden. Apparently this was historically one of the spots the Lords would dine in. We were greeted by a lovely staff wearing the traditional kimono wear. The view outwards was towards the oldest fountain in the garden.
It is a pretty touristy joint but the experience and the food were pretty traditional. Other than the other Japanese group next to us, we were the only customers on New Year’s Eve at 9am. The food was wholesome. A mix of little dishes with grilled yellowtail as the highlight.
It felt a bit indulgent to have breakfast in this manner after last night’s omakase but I am glad to start the day with a hearty meal. The total cost came up to 6,000 yen for both of us (roughly $62 AUD).
Kenrokutei
〒920-09361-20 Kenroku-machi, Kanazawa, Ishikawa
Kenrokuen is rated one of the most beautiful gardens in Japan and was built in the Edo period by the Maeda clan. Records demonstrate that it served as the outer gardens for the Maedas who took residence in the castle near by. It was built upon as the years went on. With fourteen generations of rule by the Maeda clan, they sure had the time to build up their residences. Pretty fancy to have such a massive garden as your private outer garden!
In winter, the trees receive the yukitsuri treatment, whereby ropes are tied to support the branches so that heavy snowfall don’t cause them to break. The garden is pretty massive and can take an hour or two to walk around if you take your time. One can see how a site like this can go on to inspire and invoke emotions in its historical visitors, especially over the four different seasons.
At the base of the garden, we found a gourd shaped pond. Apparently it was this site that inspired the creation of the garden, and eventually, the garden grew around it.
Winter is yet to be in full swing in Kanazawa. That meant a little bit of residual autumn colours as well as some flowers blooming during this period. It was however raining a lot today!
Satisfied with our post-breakfast stroll around the massive garden grounds, we trekked next door towards Kanazawa castle. It started to rain even more heavily by this point, reminding us of Melbourne. Given Kanazawa’s somewhat coastal location, the weather pattern makes sense.
The castle and its structures have distinctive whitish roof tiles, which we initially attributed to the snow. We later found out that it was because much of the castle was tiled using lead as a form of fireproofing. Much of what we saw were restored buildings as the original buildings as the originals were ironically, burnt down multiple times.
The storehouse (pictured above) is one of the three remaining features that survived the fires. This would be the last photo I took because… a freak thunderstorm had just arrived. Initially, we pushed through with our waterproof attire but it proved to be no much for the severe wind and eventually, hail. Cherry and I made a mad dash for the near by rest stop which was filled with fellow visitors.
Eventually, a brief respite in the storm led us to making a dash to exit the castle grounds back towards the urban sprawl of Kanazawa. At this point, I had definitely caught the cold/flu bug that was affecting everyone around us. Throughout the trip, there were many people coughing and cleaning their nasal passages in public and I suppose it was time before it reached us.
Choosing to rest up, we napped for a bit in the hotel until about 2pm when we realised that Omicho market was opened for business today. A famous market for its seafood, Omicho market sees many visitors, both local and tourists alike. The rain was still a feature at this time but we were able to walk there within 15 minutes and mostly under shelter.
Despite it being New Year’s Eve day, the market was still bustling. Not every stall was open but it still had a very lively buzz to it. Most of the restaurants and eateries had massive queues.
Feeling peckish by this time, we eventually settled for a quiet diner hidden in a corner. It had surprisingly affordable food options. Cherry opted for the crab special while I had their signature chirashi don with Onsen egg.
The meal costed us a total of 4,850 yen (roughly $50 AUD). It wasn’t the best but it sure hit the spot on a rainy, stormy day like this. I really would’ve liked to try Kanazawa curry, which was meant to be thick and flavourful — perfect the weather, but all of the curry spots had wrapped up for the day. The Omicho market was pretty much closed by 3pm and we walked past stallholders rushing to clean up. No doubt rushing back to prepare for New Year’s Day tomorrow.
We decided to call it an early night at this point. Being sick, we walked past our local Lawson’s convenience store and stocked up on some dinner items for later. Cherry and I then spent the countdown together over some delicious bentos and onirigiris until the clock struck 12.
Happy New Year everyone!
