In Kanazawa

 Just inside the grounds of Ninjadera was this little white building which apparently contains an altar or a statue. I have never seen a building like this on temple grounds, very perplexing. I wish I had some way of finding out about it.

 Walking up to the entrance to the main building, I could just see some of the altar.

 The next building was more traditional. You can see a bit of the white building on the left.

Inside this building was a statue and some other paraphernalia. Obviously this building is frequently used for some sort of rite.

 The trees on the grounds were covered with a rich layer of moss.

We had to wait for about half an hour until our scheduled tour. Cameras were prohibited so I have no pictures of the inside. We removed our shoes and were allowed into the large room that contains the main altar. We sat there, in front of oil space heaters, for another 15 minutes or so. Then a guide arrived and took us through the temple. The place was amazing. The building was constructed in such a way that there were no clear floors, each room seemed to be a bit above or below the last. The whole place was constructed as a military warren, a maze. This was to protect the daimyo, the local ruler, who is said to have been the richest man in Japan at the time. There was a tunnel leading from an indoor well back to the castle so that he could escape. Many places were designed so that attackers would be trapped and easily killed by soldiers who remained hidden behind false doors. In some places the risers on the stairs were made from paper so that soldiers hidden under the stairs could use spears to stab attackers. It was utterly amazing.

Walking back to our car, I noticed this gate leading into some sort of garden.

In Kanazawa

 After eating, we had a reservation to tour a temple. It is called ninjadera, or ninja temple, but it has nothing to do with ninja. I will explain the name in a future post. The parking lot for the temple was actual on the grounds of another temple. This temple had a very impressive red railing between the temple and the parking lot. Tour buses also park here.

 The temple gate is still there but the walls on each side have been removed and replaced by paved driveways. We left the car and the keys in the temple office and left the grounds, following signs to the left and then to the left again.

 We passed this souvenir shop but did not go in.

 And then passed another.

 We finally reached ninjadera and found it to be very unimpressive. It looked like just another neighborhood temple and the grounds were very small. It was obvious why we had to park at the other temple.

The temple gate was just an abstract representation of a gate, although there were doors. Again it was not at all impressive.

In Kanazawa

 The Kenrokuen garden is across the street from the castle. As we walked down the street, we had a good view of the tallest part of the castle.

 The next thing we were going to do was have lunch. We had a reservation at a special restaurant that specializes in fuu, gluten, and everything they serve contains fuu in some form. We had to park down a side street, lined with old buildings.

 We walked out to the main street where we found the entrance, the first open area in this building.

 We ate on the second floor in a tatami mat room. The food was delicious and I eat everything the served. I could barely move when we finished because my stomach was so full.

 On the first floor there was a store. This stone container full of water contains some fuu which comes in large sheets.

They sold a variety of snacks made from fuu that made excellent souvenirs to bring home with us. However, they were so good that most of them got eat rather than given as gifts.

Kenrokuen

 Another view of the tea house. I am thinking of using this picture as the basis of a drawing.

 No matter which way you looked, there was picturesque scenery.

 These places were both large, as in the pictures of the pond, and small like this lamp hidden in the trees.

 As we were leaving the Kenrokuen garden, I took one last photo of the tea house.

 Back out on the street, we walked downhill toward our car and passed this souvenir shop. These men were standing around smoking. Most places in Japan now prohibit indoor smoking so you often see people puffing away outside.

This is the inside of the souvenir shop. I bought some sweets to take back to my art class.

Kenrokuen

 One of the railings which keeps people on the path and out of the gardens is made from bamboo.

 As you can tell from the pictures I have posted, I was fascinated by the trees.

 This is a view of the gate into the museum but from a different direction.

 I was surprised to notice that this drain cover was made from cut stone that was about three inches (7.5 cm) thick.

 This is the tea house from the other side of the pond. The first pictures I posted were from the bank on the right.

Another picture of the tea house. Notice the interesting construction of the ridge line. Short horizontal pieces of wood hold down the roofing and then these pieces are held in place by a long pole that runs the length of the roof.

Kenrokuen

 Another statue with a winter hat.

 The ground around this tree was covered with moss, mostly covered with snow now but it must be beautiful in the summer.

 This would make a great second home, but they probably would not sell it.

 I was really surprised at how much water there was in the park and I wondered if there were fish in the summer.

 A Shinto torii and a Buddhist pagoda, side by side. It is so nice to be in a country where the various religions can coexist and even support each other.

This is a stone lamp. To use it, you would place a candle inside the opening.

Kenrokuen

 Another view of the museum garden.

 I was never able to figure out what this little house was for. My best guess is that it covers up some of the controls for the water system, but who knows?

 A tree lined path leading to a park exit, which can just be seen on the left.

 Another tree that looks like a cherry tree in full bloom.

 I really liked this bridge.

This is the fence along the outside of the museum.

Kenrokuen

 This straw is apparently covering stonework that might be damaged by the snow, ice and cold.

 I have no idea who this represents. Going to this sort of place on a tour limits your flexibility, but the guide usually can tell you the history of the statues and buildings.

 This is something I should try to look into sometime. Why and when did the Japanese start building these curved bridges?

 This fence surrounds a building that is now being used as a museum. Apparently the gate is seldom use, and never by the general public.

 This is the gate for the public. You can see the museum through the gate. They were showing the sets of miniatures that are put out for Girl's Day. My walking shoes are hard to put on, especially in a place like this, so I did not enter. In the end our wives went in, but the two men waited outside for them.

This was part of the garden between the museum and the fence.

Kenrokuen

I must apologize. Yesterday I was interrupted before finishing adding notes to the pictures, so today I went back and added them. Therefore, if you are interested, you might go back and read the notes.

 One of the interesting features of the park is that there is a winding stream that is laid out on one side of the pond. This stream is set up so that there is a natural current in it. I could not figure out where the water came from, but there are no mechanisms involved - the park is hundreds of years old. The pyramid-like objects are made from a pole and ropes. They protect the trees from the heavy snow.

 No matter what direction you looked in, the park was (is) beautiful.

 This tree is support by wooden poles that rise out of the stream.

 On one side of the park, you can look out over the city of Kanazawa. Of course, when it is snowing this hard, you can not see much of the city.

I thought that this looked like a black and white photo of a cherry tree just beginning to bloom.

This small group of large trees had a stone pagoda, mixed in among the trunks.

The same pagoda but from a different angel.

Another tree that has branches spreading so far from the trunk that they must be supported. These trees are very old and reminded me of bonsai, but they were full size rather than miniature.