Kanazawa, part 3: We Be Jammin'

~Before I conclude my adventures in Kanazawa, I'd like to make a small announcement. As "David Does Japan" implies, the blog has thus far dealt almost exclusively with my explorations and daily life in Japan, but that's not all I plan to post. I love taking pictures and writing about new and amazing things I've found, but there is more to my life than simply being a working tourist. I'll start off with some exciting space news: the European Space Agency's Venus Express space probe has successfully put itself into orbit around the planet Venus.

^Starting in June, the instruments of Venus Express will begin a detailed study of the hellish Venusian atmosphere, which is over 800º F, 90 times standard Earth pressure, and rains sulfuric acid. The resulting data will tell us a great deal about the greenhouse effect on a global level, and help humanity better understand climate change on Earth (natural and otherwise).

~Now that that's out of the way, here's a pretty picture for you:

^ Kanazawa Castle. What you see in this picture is actually a carefully-restored version of the original castle, which had a bad habit of burning down. As you might remember from 'Kanazawa, part 2', the original castle was built over 400 years ago by Lord Maeda, only to burn down several times in the succeeding centuries (most recently in 1881). All that's left of the original castle is the gate. I'd have liked to go inside the castle, but it was closed because of the festival that you can see in the picture. At least I got some ice cream for my troubles.

^This old guy was a one-man-band, and let me tell you, he was bloody amazing. Do you see that black headband he's wearing? To play the drums, he would bang his fist against the headband sensor (and by extension, his own head). He wasn't playing old-man music, either (no offense, Dad); he was rocking out really hard. He attracted a large crowd, and from what I could see, made quite a killing.

^Kasumigaike Pond, located in the middle of Kanazawa's Kenrokuen Garden. On the right, you can see this garden's version of Horaijima Island, which means "Island of Eternal Happiness" and represents a paradise innaccessable to mortals (there is no bridge to it or structures on it). The island is meant to be contemplated at a distance while you meditate on your own mortality. A traditional Japanese garden always has three islands, one of which is always Horaijima Island.

^Sekireijima Isle, a small island in the middle of a stream in the garden. Like Horaijima Island, this isle has no bridge, but it does have a shrine (with a torii gate, remember?). On the right, you can see a stone pagoda. Google Translate could only do so much, but I think the four stories of the pagoda each represent a stage of life.

^The gigantic Neagarinomatsu Pine tree. Check out the massive root system! For scale, click on the picture and look at the people on the lower-left.

^A huge statue of Prince Yamato Takeru, a mythological Japanese hero. This statue was made in 1880 to commemorate warriors who died in the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877.

^The legendary Kotojitoro Lantern. Stone lanterns are scattered all over the garden, but this particular lantern is by far the most famous. There was a large crowd of people lined up to have their picture taken on a bridge in front of this lantern, with professional photograhpers obliging them.

^It may not look like much, but this is the oldest stone fountain in Japan. The engineering is ingenious: the water pressure is created by the difference in elevation between this small pond and the much larger Kasumigaike Pond nearby (the one with Horaijima Island). Pay no attention to the two clowns in front of the fountain.

^Remember how I said that some shrines have multiple torii gates? This small shrine is part of the Ishiurajinja Shrine, just outside of Kenrokuen Garden. The neat thing about this shrine was that when you walked up to it, a motion sensor (or a watchful spirit) turned the inside lights on for you. High-tech!

^A statue at the Ishiurajinja Shrine. Perhaps if someone attempted to vandalize the shrine, the statue would burst free of the stone and rip the intruder to shreds. Or maybe not.

~I hope you enjoyed my pictures of the castle and garden. To round out the post, here's an interesting bit of Japanglish I spotted near the castle entrance:

^So, you can park your car but can't stop it, or you can stop your car but not park it. One or the other; make your choice!

~That's all from Kanazawa. Coming soon: pictures (including a panoramic) and stories from the town of Yuzawa, high in the mountains south of Nagaoka. There will also be postings about other things that interest me, so stay tuned for more insights into the cloudy mirror that is the mind of David. I leave you with this final image of a sculpture outside of Kanazawa's train station, taken at sunset. I'm pleased with how it came out: