Jonelle Patrick's Blog, page 42
May 13, 2015
Vast Carpets Of Lawn Cherries!
Outside of Japan, nobody has heard of shibazakura, but they should! Check out the rolling hills covered with pink flowers that bloom in the middle of May! (They’re actually a variety of phlox, so I’m guessing the “sakura” part of the name is a feeble-ish attempt to ride the coattails of Japan’s more famous flower season, but they DO deliver that pink cloud thing, even if you have to look down to see it.)
And the best part for Tokyo dwellers is that this year I discovered a place to see them that is a LOT closer than the more famous places (which involve daunting & expensive train schleps). Hitsujiyama in Chichibu is only a ¥1600 train ride from Ikebukuro Station!
The hills are carved up into slices of pink and white and blue.
How do they manage to make it bloom so perfectly, with no holes in the patterns?
Of course there’s a heart-shaped pinkness, for the mandatory couples selfies.
And here’s an overview of the park, so you can get an idea of how big it is. I was there during the very tail end of the season, and it was still amazing. You can imagine how great it was when ALL those fields were in bloom!
Shibazakura bloom during the entire month of May. If you want to feast your eyes on their vast pinkness, a map is on my website, The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had . I took the train (98 minutes from Ikebukuro to Chichibu Station) then walked to the park from there (it takes about 15 minutes). Admission to the shibazakura fields during the blooming season is ¥300.
Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
May 12, 2015
Precision Drinking At The Science Bar
I must insist that you hoist a glass at the Science Bar Incubator, in the name of research! The bartender/owner has a degree in medical engineering, but his most successful experiments to date seem to be shots of tequila served with salt and lemon wedges in petri dishes, flights of wine measured out in test tubes, and beer chasers drafted into 500 ml beakers.
After donning one of the bar’s collection of white coats, you can peer into a nearby microscope to ponder whether you’re seeing a cross-section of knee tissue or a cosmic metaphor for the metaverse.
Your chosen of saké comes with its own Bunsen burner, so you can warm it to the ideal temperature.
It pays to drink that beer quickly, before it begins to resemble a beaker full of some other…yellow…stop, don’t go there. Just…don’t go there.
If you’d like to visit the Science Bar Incubator the next time you’re in Tokyo, a map is on my website, The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had.
Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
May 11, 2015
Suddenly, Godzilla!
Yes, I’m history.
Warning: when you’re in Japan, be careful never to say, “Just bite me!” because THIS might happen. If you walk out of the Tokyo Midtown exit of Roppongi Station right now, you too can be snarfed up by everyone’s favorite radioactive mutant.
Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
May 8, 2015
What Japanese People Talk About At The Aquarium
Can apparently be made into quite tasty sashimi. WHO KNEW?
So, today as I wandered around the Sunshine City Aquarium, I couldn’t help but overhear a few conversations between my fellow fish enthusiasts.
Wow, look at the size of that thing. It could easily feed an entire family.
After some discussion, it was decided that this kind is best served grilled.
But this kind makes excellent sushi.
Skewered and grilled over charcoal, with salt.
Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
May 5, 2015
5,000 Fluttering Fish Flags
Actually, 5,283. That’s how many koi nobori it took to snag Tatebayashi a place in the Guinness Book, and this is what they look like, flying over the river near Tsutsujigaoka Park!
Because these carp flags are flown in honor of Children’s Day (formerly Boys’ Day, in gender inequality eras of yore), the big fish flags alongside the river were decorated by local kindergarteners.
As the wind blows, it looks like they’re all swimming together above the river.
Hundreds of lines are strung across the river to make the mother of all fish flag schools.
And this bad boy is the biggest koi nobori of them all.
If you’re in Japan anytime from late March to early May, and would like to see the koi nobori display in Tsutsujigaoka Park at Tatebayashi, directions & a map are on my website, The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had. This year (2015) you can still see them until May 8!
Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
April 18, 2015
Real Life Tokyo Drift
The roar of unmufflered engines! The smell of burning rubber! The gratuitously skimpy costumes of booth babes! Yes, this weekend is the Gran Turismo D1 Professional Drifting Grand Prix, and it does not disappoint!
Coming around the first curve…
…drifting into the next one…
…screeching into the turn
There are two rounds in each heat, on a tight track.
The action is occasionally paused to remove the occasional fender bender
The track is right next to Funenokagakukan Station, in Odaiba, where you can catch a glimpse of the racing between trains
…after which, the inevitable guys with twig brooms arrive to sweep up.
There’s nothing quite like inhaling those fine petrocarbons up close, though!
And of course, you’d miss the booth babes and the driver meet-n-greet…
As well as the opportunity to fantasize yourself behind the wheel in one of these babies, or stock up on glow-in-the-dark rims.
And let’s not pass up the chance to see the rarest sight of all: a line for the men’s room that’s longer than the one for the ladies’.
If you happen to be in town and want to see Tokyo Drift, it’s a two day event and you can get info & buy tickets online here. The ¥2000 standing room tix are the best bargain, but you’ll be craning your neck (and camera) over the heads of fellow standees if you don’t get there an hour early and stake out a spot at the rail. Grandstand seats will run you ¥5000 – ¥7000.
Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
April 16, 2015
Flower Dream Strikes Again
Okay, it’s spring in Tokyo, so grit your teeth and strap on your martyr beanie, because it’s time to endure a higher than usual number of flower posts for a while!
Today’s is some of the wild and weird stuff I saw last weekend at Flower Dream 2015, the floral design show that’s more likely to feature bark and rusty sheet metal than roses.
For example: these. O_O
And, uh, yeah, THIS.
Of course, flowers did feature in a few things, like this not-yer-average bunch of posies.
The hot trend this year seemed to be encrusting things with pussy willow buds, go figure.
And bark. Did I mention bark?
And roots. This is a stalk of bamboo, with its roots still attached.
It being Japan, minimalism is always a thing.
And of course there were a few entries that were just achingly beautiful.
If you’re in Tokyo and want to go to the next Flower Dream, info and dates will be posted on their website.
Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
April 13, 2015
The Triple-Decker Noodle Burger
Just when you thought America had cornered the market when it came to eating ALL the carbs, Japanese burger chain Loteria one-ups the red-white-‘n-blue with this tri-deck noodle monster.
Yes, it’s that carbo-load favorite, noodles on a bun. Times three. Enjoy.
Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
April 10, 2015
The Best Places To See Late-Blooming Cherry Trees In Tokyo
Many a cherry blossom party has been thwarted by wacky weather or unavoidable business trips, but even if the gods throw a wrench into your best-laid plans, don’t despair! Late-blooming yaezakura come into their full glory after the regular sakura fade to black. The late-bloomers don’t deliver the big pink cloud thing in quite the same way, but I secretly think they’re much more beautiful than the early kind.
This is the order they bloom in: little frilly weeping kind first, then the pom-pom varieties explode from light to dark.
And just so you won’t waste time looking for yaezakura in less-than-amazing parks, here are my favorite places to see them in Tokyo…
SHINJUKU GYOU-EN GARDEN
The really choice ones start blooming near the bridge over the big pond.
Yaezakura bloom in lots and lots of little pink clouds.
As you walk around the big pond, you come to a whole grove of late-blooming trees.
I think that yaezakura are more beautiful up close than the more famous kind.
Every year I’m amazed at how HUGE the cherry trees in Japan are, compared to San Francisco!
Worth the wait, right?
Even if it rains, pull on yer boots & get thee to the yaezakura grove!
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IMPERIAL PALACE EAST GARDEN
Double yaezakura start blooming just as the regular sakura start to fade.
The flowers on this rare kind start out white , then turn green!
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IMPERIAL PALACE MOAT
At the end of the cherry blossom walk closest to Hanzomon Station, there is a row of lovely late-blooming trees.
Sorry, I checked this morning (4/11), and these aren’t quite blooming yet, because it’s been so cold! (>
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KYU-SHIBA-RIKYU GARDEN
This small garden has the latest-blooming yaezakura I’ve found – they’re still gorgeous well into the third week of April!
You can stand under the trees at Kyu-Shiba-Rikyu and feel like you are in a pink and white room.
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ASUKAYAMA PARK
You seldom see tourists at this wonderful northwest Tokyo park.
And they have an amazing variety of late-blooming trees.
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Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
April 6, 2015
In Which We Discover That Nothing Is Sacred
Ooo, cherry blossoms, ooo, ooo!
Hey, look, there’s a little sailboat on the water!
No, haha, it’s a guy paddleboarding the untamed canals of Tokyo.
…No. No, it’s not. It’s…it’s a PAID POLITICAL AD! (>_
Jonelle Patrick is the author of the Only In Tokyo mystery series, published by Penguin/Intermix.
