Arriving at Enoshima

Reaching Enoshima island I reached Nakamise Street where there were a lot of shops and restaurants.

This torii is made of bronze. The original one was built in 1747 and replaced in 1821. It is the first torii for Enoshima Daimyojin which is Enoshima Jinja or Enoshima Shrine.

The further I walked, the more the buildings went from concrete to more traditional Japanese architecture.

I was definitely thinking of lunch. And one of the foods that Enoshima is known for is shirashu, tiny whitebait fish. Plenty of places on the island serve it in various types of dishes. 

I'm not sure if the Hello Kitty restaurant serves it.

Because I stopped at a nearby small restaurant. Enoshima Harumi Shokudo.

My choice was the Enoshima Rice Bow. Local turban shellfish and shirasu, cooked with egg and dashi over rice. Also included were miso soup and tsukemono pickles.

It was a little heavy but I was able to finish it. I enjoyed eating something special for the location.

Back on the main walkway I headed uphill. Because basically Enoshima is that, hills.

Till I reached the large vermilion torii that signifies entering the area of the shrines.

I mentioned that Enoshima is hills. With lots of stairs. Many stairs. But there is an alternative. And because of the heat and because I wanted to see as much of the island as I could, I went to the building on the right.

I took the escalator. Even if a person decides to use the escalators on the island, there are still many stairs and also the fact that the only way back down is walking down stairs. For me, I just wanted to make sure I would be able to walk as much as possible. Anything that helps out, I will take advantage of. So escalators it was that day.

Meeting Norakuro

Next to Kiyosumi Garden is Kiyosumi Park. It's a place with lawns for kids to play and such. They have this interesting wooden clock tower. 

Walking back towards Kiyosumi-shirakawa Station, I saw this open gate. Buddhist Temple? Of course I had to take a look.

Really interesting chozubachi in the shape of a dragon. Impressive beast.

Kannon statue standing on a lotus holding the pearl of wisdom and what looks like a bag.

This was Honseiji Buddhist Temple in Kiyosumi. The buildings were mostly concrete so I did not take photos of them.

Leaving the temple I decided to walk past the train station and see the river.

It's the Onagigawa in case anyone was wondering. The bridge I was on has a simple name, High Bridge.

Just beyond the river I noticed a shopping street, a shotengai. Shopping streets are a more traditional place for communities to buy from. There are less these days, but some places still have strong support for their local stores.

Takahashi no Raku Road is located in Takahashi and they have adopted a manga character as their mascot.

It's a cute puppy called Norakuro. Norakuro dates back to 1931. The manga continued to 1981 and there were also anime films and a series.

There were also interesting pavers in the sidewalk. These are common in various parts of Japan. This one however had abacuses and what looked like eels. I wish they were clearer in the photo.

Back over the river, looking in the other direction. 

Walking Through Yanaka Ginza

After taking a look at a few of the shrines in Yanaka, I came back to the main street to see what was there. Which was cats.

And some older buildings on side streets. 

And more cats.

I didn't plan it but it was a day when stores put their wares out on the street and lots of people came to shop. 

It was nice. There was a real community feeling with so many people shopping and visiting. I didn't take photos of the groups of people sitting outside places to eat, having a good time, talking and laughing. There was a lot of that.

Because the shopping area in Yanaka is called Yanaka Ginza. Now they don't have expensive stores like Ginza, but it's the idea of having a main area for shopping where everyone can go to. 

And there were a lot of people there. And cats on buildings.

Cat hanko or stamps. 

Pick a place, there's probably a cat on the sign. 

Cat tail shaped donuts at Yana tail? Along with an advert for Nankozaka NecoJitaya, a stew and wine bar that serves food with cat decorations.

Even kanji cats. 

How about a maneki neko with a taiyaki?

Now this looked interesting. A crooked case with neko taiyaki. Or would that be nekoyaki? Except I'm not sure about that one with the hot dog. 

I had to take a look inside where they were baking up kitties. These taiyaki molds are actually special just for this business. Which is called Maneki-ya.

Yes, there were a lot of cat things in Yanaka Ginza. 

For all these cats, I did not see one single live cat. 

I did see a dog 

or three. Maybe why no live cats? The crowds of people would be another reason. But it was okay. I mostly came to see the sakura and to take a look in the area. What was nice was seeing the community.

And that was my visit to Yanaka. Except there are a couple more temples I will be sharing.

So with all that cat stuff, did I buy anything? Of course I did. And I ate it.

Nekoyaki from Maneki-ya. And these were delicious! I enjoyed the matcha with anko beans and the custard version. If you like taiyaki and are in Yanaka, I definitely recommend stopping there.