Ice Fishing Houses

Pileated Woodpecker

Root Beer Falls

This fall we drove up to the U.P. of Michigan for some fall photography. One of our first stops was Root Beer Falls just outside of Wakefield, Michigan. We were really disappointed with the waterflow over the falls. It had been a very dry fall and water levels in most of the streams were very low.

This is what it looks like in a good fall visit.

Winter of Northern Cardinals

It has been a great winter for watching Northern Cardinals. I’ve observed as many as sixteen around the feeder at any given time.

Frost on the White Pines

Hudson Hot Air Affair – Flight

Hudson Hot Air Affair – Preparations

Tokyo 22 Day 16 – Hotel New Otani Japanese Garden – Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens – Tokyo Dome – Rikugien Gardens – Seirinkan Pizza

We caught the train from Shbuya Station to Nagatacho Station. This was our last full day in Tokyo and we had a varied agenda. Our first destination was the Hotel New Otani Japanese Garden. I noticed an article on it on the web and it seemed to be worth a trip to visit it.

When we arrived at Nagatacho Station we discovered we were in an area that contained the National Diet Building and other governmental offices. We walked over and under a number of freeways, passed the Bonkei-bori, Moat  and past the Echoes Infinity Immortal Flowers statue at Tokyo Garden Terrace.

Hotel New Otani Japanese Garden

When we reached the Otani Hotel we discovered we had to navigate through the hotel to reach the garden. On our way we discovered this beautiful auditorium. We finally found a side door that opened out into the garden.

We wondered if a hotel garden would be worth the visit but once we found the garden, we discovered that it was well worth seeing. The garden contains a large pond bridges, stone lanterns, several waterfalls and some beautiful Japanese Maples.

There are beautiful paths and walkways throughout the garden.

Seisen Pond holds around 350 Koi, birds are also frequent visitors. There are several bridges in the park.The Taikobashi Bridge over Seisen Pond, is a perfect location for photographs and indeed while were visiting it was difficult to get a photograph of the bridge because there was large wedding photography shoot taking place. In fact there were several wedding photography shoots taking place during our visit.

We found three waterfalls on our stroll through the garden. The most obvious is the large six meter waterfall.

The Japanese Maples were spectacular in their fall colors.

We spent about an hour walking through the garden before looking for a train station to take us to our next destination. We exited the park through a back entrance and started looking for a way across a freeway. We found a sidewalk that took us past Sanadabori Athletic Field to the Yotsuya Station where we took a train to Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens.

As we were walking from Iidabashi Station to Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens we notice this telephone booth. We realized we had seen very few telephone booths in Tokyo. This one had free wi-fi available.

Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens

When we reached the park, we walked over to Tsurenko Bridge. The last time we visited the park the bridge was undergoing repair.

Our next stop was Tokujin-do Pavillion.

We walked past the Engetsukyo, Bridge Sho-rozan Hill and the Kanda Aqueduct Ruins.

The fall colors in the park were outstanding. We were also able to get some nice reflection shots.

Tokyo Dome

When we exited the park, we found ourselves at Tokyo Dome where we encountered throngs of teenage girls. At first we couldn’t figure out what was going on but soon realized a boy band Sexy Zone was going to be playing in Dome.

We walked over to Tokyo Dome City Amusement park and walked around but it was fairly dead so we headed over to the Korakuen Subway Station which would take to our next stop.

Rikugien Gardens

Our final stop of the day was Rikugien Gardens. We had visited several years ago in November and we thought the fall colors might be a little better in December. We weren’t disappointed.

Seirinkan Pizza

We then caught the train back to our hotel in Shbuya where we met our son and his wife. They took us to one of their favorite pizza places. It turned out to be Seirinkan Pizza of Meguro City. It was a strange place. When we entered, we entered in the kitchen were a large wood fired oven took up most of the space. We then walked up a narrow spiral staircase to the small dining area. If there was a fire it would have been a death trap.

We then took one last Christmas illumination shot at Naka-meguro Station before heading back to our hotel.

Tokyo 22 Day 15 – Jindai Botanical Gardens – Tokyo Station – Spring Valley Brewery

Today we were headed to Jindai Botanical Gardens, so we caught the train to Mitaka Station where we were confused for a while. We had to catch a bus to the Botanical Gardens but couldn’t figure out where the bus stop was. We walked around a bit before asking someone. Turns out the bus we wanted was on a side street. When we arrived at our destination we didn’t realize it and ended up going one stop too far. We ended up having to walk back a couple of blocks to the garden.

Jindai Botanical Gardens

The garden is divided into various sections, each showcasing different plant species and ecosystems. Some of the highlights include the Japanese Garden, which features a traditional pond and tea house, and the Tropical Plant Dome, which houses a vast collection of exotic plants from around the world. We headed for the Tropical Plant Dome and spent quite a bit of time photographing the plants.

One of the unique features of the Jindai Botanical Gardens is its extensive collection of native Japanese plants, including rare and endangered species. The garden also features a medicinal herb garden, a rose garden, and a collection of bonsai trees, which are meticulously maintained and displayed. It wasn’t the right time of year for roses but there were still some in bloom.

Visitors can enjoy a variety of seasonal events and exhibitions throughout the year, including cherry blossom viewing in the spring and autumn foliage viewing in the fall. The Japanese Maples were in good fall color.

We walked around the traditional Japanese pond.

As we were leaving, we noticed they were selling plants.

Tokyo Station

On the way back to our hotel we decided to stop at Tokyo Station and look for the golden escalator hidden at the Tokyo train station. We stopped at Tokyo Station to look around a bit. It is hugue and one could easily spend a day looking around. This is a project for a future rainy day visit to Tokyo.

My wife had seen something about a golden escalator on the internet so we wanted to see if we could find it. The article mentioned that the author was meeting a friend at Otemachi Station where he found Japan’s longest underground passageway stretching 2.5 miles to Higashi-Ginza Station. He discovered the escalator at Otemachi First Square. He had a few pictures taken along the way, so we followed the breadcrumbs. We were about ready to give up when I noticed something casting a golden hue along the passage way. We found it and managed to ride it to the first floor of Otemachi First Square. We had fun taking photos and riding the escalator. The ride down is very dramatic. People probably thought we were nuts.

We made our way back to our hotel where we caught up with our son and his wife. They were going to take us out for Pizza. Unfortunately, when we arrived, the place was already book for the evening. They had been used to not having to book places because of the pandemic but things were starting to change as Japan opened back up. He hailed a cab and we were driving to the new location when we encountered a traffic jam so we got out and walked to the Spring Valley Brewery.

Spring Valley Brewery

My wife and I had a good laugh because we had walked past the brewery earlier in our visit and were telling our son about the log road that we discovered. He didn’t know what that was but we pointed out that the brewery was the largest business on the log road.

His favorite item on the menu was fried chicken on waffles with a honey and soy sauce vinaigrette. It didn’t sound appetizing to me but I said I would give it a try. It was actually very good.

We walked back to our hotel and called it a day.

Tokyo 22 Day 14 – Tokyo Port Wild Bird Park – Odaiba – Rainbow Bridge – Marunouchi Street – Tokyo Station

When we woke up in the morning and looked out the window, we noticed quite a few people standing around taking photographs. We thought it a little strange since it was the first time We had seen anything like this. Mitake Park is located just across the street from the hotel. When we exited the hotel we noticed that the entire park was surrounded by police. It turned out that the park was slated for redevelopment and there were a small number of homeless people living in the park. Most of the homeless people had been relocated but a few had to be forcibly removed and the park closed. Several of the homeless people appeared to be trying to climb the fence. The police remained at the park for the next several days.

As we walked to the train station, we noticed a couple of kids on their way to school. It is not uncommon to see very young children on their own traveling on the trains or walking the streets of Tokyo.

Tokyo Port Wild Bird Park

We caught the Yamanote Line for Hamamatsucho where we transferred to the monorail for Haneda Airport. This was a good trial run because we would be taking this route when we returned home in a few days. The monorail was supposed to stop close to the Tokyo Port Wild Bird Park which was our first scheduled stop of the day. Unfortunately, we caught the express train which did not stop at the bird park. We did have a nice ride out to the airport and had an opportunity to actually see the scenery. It is usually dark when we arrive and we are usually a little bit stressed. We then had to take the local monorail back to the bird park.

The Tokyo Port Wild Bird Park is a reserve located in the city. The park was established in 1989 and covers an area of approximately 2.6 hectares. The park is known for its diverse population of wild birds, which includes over 100 species.

The park is situated on the coast of Tokyo Bay and features a variety of habitats, including mudflats, tidal flats, salt marshes, and a freshwater pond. These habitats attract a wide variety of birds, including migratory birds that use the park as a stopover on their long journeys.

It turns out this was not a very productive use of our time. There were not that many birds but we did manage to get a few shots of fall color.

This is clearly a port and industrial area. We were constantly seeing large trucks on the road during the walk over to the park. Even from the park the industrial area was clearly visible.

It was a bit frustrating because I do bird photography at home, but I only had my small Sony camera with me, so I was limited in my bird photography. There were quite a few photographers around with the proper gear. One was really excited to show me a shot of a Mandarin Duck that he captured. It was a beautiful shot and we could see the duck but it was too far away for me to get a shot.

Odaiba 

After our visit to the bird park, we caught the train to Odaiba in Koto City. This is a site we visited on an earlier trip. It used to be the home of TeamLab and a giant Farris wheel. It was also the site of the Tokyo auto show. We were shocked to see that all of these sites had been torn down. Deconstruction was still underway.

We walked over to DiverCity Tokyo Plaza The complex opened in 2012 and has since become a popular destination for both locals and tourists. It features over 150 shops and restaurants, including a variety of international and Japanese brands. The complex is known for its large Gundam statue, which stands at over 18 meters tall and is a popular photo spot for visitors.

The last time we visited it was a holiday and the area was packed with locals and tourists. This time there were few people around and we seem to have the place to ourselves. We did a little shopping before heading back to the large food court for lunch.

We decided to head over to Tokyo station and look for the office where our son works. I faintly remembered where the train station was located that we needed. After walking around for a while, we found it. These two little kids were putting money on their IC train cards.

Rainbow Bridge

A few shots from the train as we went over the Rainbow Bridge.

Marunouchi Street

We made it to Tokyo and found his CBRE offices in the Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance building. Unfortunately, it is a secure building and we discovered he was working from home so we walked around the MY Plaza and took a few photos. It appears that a modern building was built over the top of some older buildings.

We then headed out to Marunouchi Street which is closed down late in the day and is all decorated for the holidays.

It was a bit bizarre because there were a couple taking wedding photos and people taking photos of their dogs (children). I really felt sorry for the young woman in the wedding dress because it was cold and windy.

There were games and rides for the children and the dogs.

This photo intrigued me because it shows two women purchasing coffee from a robot that was moving along the street. This is a new trend that is starting in Tokyo.

Tokyo Station

I was cold so we headed over to Tokyo Station to catch the train back to our hotel. We found several other couples having their wedding photos taken with the station as a backdrop.