Another cloudy day with a little rain. I decided to visit a few local places in Ikebukuro.
First stop was lunch. At ZOZOÏ. A very local place, where there are no English menus and only the manager speaks a little English. But it was easy for me to decide what I wanted to eat.
Because the woman at the next table ordered this delicious vegetable stew with salad and rice pilaf. And it was very delicious, with lots of flavorful herbs and a hint of red wine in the sauce. It might have been a red wine vinegar used during cooking. A European style stew with Japanese vegetables. I want to try to make something similar.
The restaurant is small and they also sell various goods in there. A quaint feeling. It's popular because they also offer tea with a dessert. I do recommend it for lunch.
The staff was very kind and gracious. And a little nervous, but everything went fine. ZOZOÏ is at 3 chome 22-6, Nishi-Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Tokyo.
I had plans to visit a small garden, but it was closed. Luckily there was something interesting to see on my long walk there. The back ends of komainu? I couldn't help but laugh.
Turns out there a little Inari shrine right there. It's 延壽稲荷大明神, which may translate into Enshu Inari Daimyojin. There really isn't any English information that I could find.
It does have interesting features like these komainu in their unusual positions. Usually they look out from the shrine towards the entrance, since they guard the shrine. And rearing up with their back legs, that is different.
The main Shinto shrine is most likely for the neighborhood residences. It is for Inari Okami, god of prosperity. There are a few businesses in the area also.
Very worn stone pagoda. Most of the objects around the shrine look old but I could not find information as to when it was established. Many have obvious signs of repair.
The chozubashi hand washing basin. The flowers added a nice touch to it's appearance.
The little kitsune protectors. Cute how their ears are curled.
Lots of recent repairs. It is a sign that the shrine is well tended to.
A smaller shrine protected by the komainu is for the Sixth Heaven. I am not sure what this is about, and people online who visited here also were not sure. My guess is this is actually a Buddhist shrine for those who want to pray against forces that detract from their practices of Buddhism. The Sixth Heaven is the highest heaven of worldly desires where the king of devils rules. He takes from others to use for himself, including life forces.
In the back, by itself, is this relief. Someone wrote that it is Kannon, indicated by holding a lotus and written on it is the date 1764. Again there is no information as to whether this is originally created for the shrine or brought there from another shrine.
One last look at the shrine. The address of Enshu Inari Daimyojin Shrine is 2 chome 19-7 Nishi-Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Tokyo.
No sign of the sky clearing but the trees were really pretty with autumn color.
A tiny bit of blue sky up there.
Since the weather wasn't getting better and the garden was closed, I ended up taking the Yamanote to Shinjuku Station and going to Pure Sound. Where I found a couple good buys. The MALICE MIZER Garnet single has never been opened. This was good because taking the Yamanote Line and dealing with Shinjuku Station, not fun. At least I had one more thing planned for the day. Which will be in my next post.
