Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Edo Ise Katagami Museum
ߐށҏ੎ܕࢴඒज़ؗ , Edo Ise Katagami Bijutsukan • 3-32 Kioichō, Chiyoda-ku • Tues & Thurs-Sun 11am-6pm • ¥1000; tea
ceremonies ¥1000 • T 03 3265 4001 • Akasaka-mitsuke or Nagatachō stations
The delightful Edo Ise Katagami Museum is tucked away in an apartment building
behind the Akasaka Prince Hotel . The light-flooded museum and gallery display a
dazzling collection of intricately carved stencils used for making patterns on kimono.
Some of the stencils are used for original gifts in the museum shop, and the curator,
who speaks good English, is happy to explain the collection. Call ahead - especially if
you want to book a tea ceremony here - as they do keep erratic hours.
New Ōtani hotel garden
4-1 Kiyoichō, Chiyoda-ku • Garden free • Kojimachi, Akasaka-mitsuke or Nagatachō stations
Near Benkei-bashi, the bridge that spans what was once the outer moat of the shogun's
castle, you'll find the New Ōtani hotel . Within its grounds is a traditional Japanese
garden , originally designed for the daimyō Katō Kiyomasa, lord of Kumamoto in
Kyūshū over four hundred years ago. It's actually one of the most spectacular in the
whole city, with a vermillion bridge overlooking a miniature waterfall. Depending on
when you visit you'll see cheery pink flowers or fiery autumnal leaves.
Toyokawa Inari Tokyo Betsuin
๛઒Ҵՙ౦ژผӃ • 1-4-7 Motoakasaka, Minato-ku • 24hr • Free • Akasaka-mitsuke station
The colourful Toyokawa Inari Tokyo Betsuin , also known as Toyokawa Inari, is a
combined temple and shrine. Such holy places were much more common across Japan
before the Meiji government forcibly separated Shinto and Buddhist places of worship.
The temple's compact precincts are decked with red lanterns and banners, while the
main hall is guarded by statues of pointy-eared foxes wearing red bibs: messengers of
the Shinto god Inari, they are found at all Inari shrines.
8
Akasaka Detached Palace
ܴෂؗ , Geihinkan • 2-1-1 Motoakasaka, Minato-ku • Entry by lottery in July & Aug • W www8.cao.go.jp/geihinkan • Yotsuya station
Sitting amid extensive grounds, the grand, European-style Akasaka Detached Palace
serves as the o cial State Guest House. When it was completed in 1909, this vast
building, modelled on Buckingham Palace on the outside and Versailles on the inside,
had only one bathroom in the basement, and the empress's apartments were in a
separate wing from her husband's: this arrangement was fine by the emperor since he
was in the habit of taking his nightly pick from the ladies-in-waiting. The palace is only
open to the public for a few days each year around the end of July and early August,
with entry limited to 2000 people per day, chosen by lottery from postcard applications
- the process is detailed in Japanese on the website above. At other times of year you
can peek through the main gates, close to Yotusya station.
Sōgetsu Foundation
૲݄ձؗ , Sōgetsu kaikan • 7-2-21 Akasaka, Minato-ku • Classes in English Mon 10am; 2hr; ¥3800; reserve online • T 03 3408 1209,
W sogetsu.or.jp • Aoyama-itchōme station
he Sōgetsu Foundation is housed in a glass-fronted building designed by Tange Kenzō.
This famous school of ikebana - traditional Japanese flower-arranging - was founded in
1927 and holds classes in English. Besides strikingly contemporary ikebana displays, the
lobby also features sculptures by the renowned American-Japanese artist Isamu Noguchi.
Musée Tomo
ஐඒज़ؗ , Tomo Bijutsukan • 4-1-35 Toranomon, Minato-ku • Tues-Sun 11am-6pm • ¥1300 • T 03 5733 5131 • Roppongi-itchōme,
Kamiyachō or Toranomon stations
On the Edomi-zaka slope running between the Hotel Ōkura (see p.138) and its annexe
lies the classy Musée Tomo . Home to the outstanding contemporary Japanese ceramics
 
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