‘kanazawa’ カテゴリーのアーカイブ

Sazaeyama, a small hill in Kenrokuen Garden

2011年11月23日 水曜日

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Sazaeyama is a small artificial hill made by the soils, which came from when excavating Kasumiga-ike pond. It is 9 meters high from the ground. Gardners are working there.

Stone walls are built to prevent soils from falling.

A tiny bower shaped like an umbrelar is surrounded by bamboo hedges at the summit.

A memorial stone lantern is placed to dedicate to the 12th lord of the Maeda. Red and blue Tomuro stones are skillfully combined to form the stone lantern.

From the summit, you can command wide view of Kasumiga-ike pond and straw-roped Karasakinomatsu pine trees.

Red colored carp on the surface of the pond is identified.

A school of carps are swimming .

Carps swarm for bait.

Kutani Kosenkama Pottery Kiln

2011年9月20日 火曜日

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Potter’s wheel room to throw clay shapes.

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Shaped clay items are put on the shelves for drying.

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Kutani pottery has about 350 years of history.  Different styles and techniques are characteristic for each era.

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The room to demonstrate throwing technique for visitors.

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The kiln to fire shaped clay products. Electricity and red pine firewood are used for the kiln. Red pine firewood is for to get a pale color.

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Clay form shrinks 10 per cent from the original after firing.

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Painting experiment is provided for applicant.

Gold Leaf workshop in Kanazawa

2011年9月14日 水曜日

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99 per cent of Gold Leaf produced in Japan comes from workshops in Kanazawa. This is the final process of cutting gold leaf into two types of dimensions. one is 1o9 mm square, the other is 127 mm square.

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Bamboo stick is used to transfer gold leaf to a handy work stand.

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Delicate skills are required to remove the gold leaf.

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To cut gold leaf into standard dimensions by using bamboo cutting frame. Bamboo cutting tools are used to avoid static electricity. The craftwoman sits still to do her job. When I guided foreign tourists to this workshop, Do her legs become numb ?  asked some tourist.

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Gold leaf folding screen is on display. Gorgeous !!

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3 piles of gold leaf Sake marital cups for martrimonial ceremony. To use for San-San-Kudo ceremony.

Hyakumangoku Festival

2011年6月8日 水曜日

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The leading car of Hyakumangoku Festival Parade. Hyakumangoku Festival is taken place very year for 3 days centering on the first Saturday in June. The parade is on Saturday. This festival commemorates the entry of Lord Toshiie Maeda, founder of Kaga Hyakumangoku.

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Baton twirlers performance.

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Miss Hyakumangoku ladies parading on a car.

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Lion dance performance.

Iris and Azalea in Kenrokuen Garden

2011年6月7日 火曜日

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Iris and Azalea are blooming at the panoramic view point in early summer.

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Stream running near Meiji Memorial.

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Flower viewing bridge ahead.

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Iris reflecting stream.

Cherry trees are in full bloom alone the right bank of the Saigawa river

2011年4月16日 土曜日

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Cherry trees are in full bloom between Sakurabashi bridge and Saigawa Ohashi bridge along the right bank of the Saigawa river.

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People are strolling under the full bloom of cherry trees.

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Big old cherry trees are stretching their branches toward the river-bed. people enjoy their gathering with foods and drinks.

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Along the sidewalk, cherry trees are very beautiful.

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Cherry trees are blooming along the road.

Kinkato, local peculia sweets

2011年2月27日 日曜日

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Kinkato, local peculia sweets have been made since the mid-Edo period. They are local sweets offering for Hina Dolls in Kanazawa.

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How to make Kinkato is as follows. You boil sugar to melt and pour it into a wooden mold, then solidify it in the process of cooling down and color it.

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Cherry trees are mainly used to make wooden molds. A craftsman to cave a mold is scarce. So, these days sweetshops in Kanazawa order a mold to wood panel crafsman in Inami, Toyama Prefecture.   

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Shapes are a seabream, a shrimp, a cucumber, a bamboo shoot, fruits, flowers of camellia and Japanese apricot, Seven Deities of Good Fortune and so on.

Excellent local foods

2011年2月10日 木曜日

kaga-bocha

Kaga-bocha is different from ordinary green tea. It is a roasted brown tea made from stems of tea plant.

Kaga-bocha is locally made tea, which has excellent fragrance.

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How to make tea for 5 to 6 people is as follows. Firstly, you put about 10-gramme of roasted stem tea into a small teapot and pour hot water into it. You wait for about 1 minute and pour the tea into each of the teacups.

When you drink it cool especially in summer,  you boil 2- liter of water. Then  you put 20-gramme of Bocha into a kettle. You wait for about 15 minutes  to cool down after taking out tea stems inside the teapot.

3e-food

3E is an acronym of excellent quality, exact expression and harmony with ecology. 3E foods are locally produced processed foods, which are certified by Prefectural Government as foods that meet a certain standard of the quality and the expression. These processed foods must be made from agriculture, forest or marine products originally produced in Ishikawa Prefecture as main raw materials, or they must be made by using traditional skills inherited in Ishikawa Prefecture from the past.

maki-buri

Maki-buri,  yellowtail rolled with straw ropes is a preserved food. A yellowtail is salted, and then dried in air to make it a preserved food. Dried yellowtail is wrapped in a straw package and rolled with straw ropes. Originally it was a preserved food for fishermen in Noto Peninsular.

You can eat it by slicing it, or you can enjoy an excellent taste  by dipping it in sake or vinegar. It goes well with sake.

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Fillets of Maki-buri, salted and dried yellowtail.

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Inside the straw package.

Omicho Market, kanazawan’s kitchen

2011年2月9日 水曜日

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Omicho Market is a kitchen for people in kanazawa. 20 thousand customers including tourists visit the market daily. 

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Yellowtails landed on a local fishing port in Noto Peninsular.

Yellowtail in winter called Kan-buri.

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Crabs boiled in the morning on sale.

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The blue tags attached on crabs prove that the crabs are landed on  fishing ports in Ishikawa Prefecture.

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Crabs and shrimps are on sale.

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Crabs in water tank are on sale alive.

Zen priests of Daijoji Temple do Kanshugyo, winter ascetic practices.

2011年1月31日 月曜日

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I encountered Zen priests from Daijyoji Temple doing Kanshugyo, winter ascetic practices

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In the falling snow, Zen priests visit each household for donation.

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Zen priests are walking in heavy snow.

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Zen priests put on Waraji, straw sandals and chant sutra.

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Snow is falling on the back of the Zen priests.