Fun of Good Old Japanese - 江戸・明治に学ぶ　楽しむ生き方

    Nikko has been a popular summer resort since among foreigners  since early Meiji period (1868-1912). Diplomats built country houses.   The prestigious hotel in Nikko is Kanaya Hotel which was established 1870 by the advice of an American doctor and missionary, Dr. Hepburn. The founder Mr. Kanaya renovated his house, which was built around 1660, to a hotel for foreigners. Japanese hotels were unsanitary because there were many fleas and other insects back then, but the Kanaya Hotel offered a sanitary and cozy space. The quality was written in the travel diary of Isabella L. Bird ( Travel of Isabella L. Bird in 1878, part 3 ) who was a British woman traveled from Tokyo to Hokkaido by rickshaw and horse in 1878. It was the first resort hotel in Japan.   It is sorry to say that the photography is prohibited inside the wooden building but I reckon you can imagen. There is a Japanese garden in front of the house. 建屋の前には池を配した日本庭園がある。 　 日光は、明治初期から外国人の避暑地と...

Nikko museum 、 日光市歴史民俗資料館   Nikko-douchu highway linked Edo (old name of Tokyo) and Nikko, this is where the tomb of Ieyasu Tokugawa is located.   Ieyasu was the founder of Edo Bakuhu ( shogunate ). This museum is in Imaichi which was the final posttown of Nikko-douchu.   The history of Nikko started in the eighth century when Shoudou shounin (holy monk) was inspired by the view from the top of Mt. Nantai (2,486m) and built a tiny temple there. After that, various political powers controlled it. However, Nikko became a Tokugawa’s holy place after Ieyasu’s tomb was built in the 17 th century. It prospered much more since then.   On the other hand, people took pains because they supplied horses and manpower to accommodate officers who moved on the highway. 資料館がある日光の手前・今市は、日光街道随一の町として発展しました。 日光は 8 世紀に勝道上人が、男体山頂上にからの景色に圧倒され祠を建てたことから始まります。その後、鎌倉を始め各所の支配を経て、 17 世紀に徳川の聖地となり、繁栄しました。 一方、地元住民は、街道の運営の助郷にかり出されて大変だったようです。ただ、庶民に関するものがほぼ展示されてなくて、残念ながら人の楽しみは見出せませ...

Koga is located at 60km north of Tokyo where Koga-kubou ruled around 120 years since 1455. The clan was a prestigious family whose ancestor established the Muromachi Bakuhu (shogunate) in the mid-14 th century. In the Edo period (1603 ～ 1868) , Doi clan, who was a daimyo , stationed here. Koga was a post town on the Nikko-douchu highway, too.   Toshitsura Doi, who was the daimyo of Koga and the chief executive of Tokugawa shogunate in the late Edo period, investigated the snow crystal, so he was called “Snow daimyo”.  The  building is good as an art museum, but photography is prohibited in the exhibition room.  　東京の北、 60 ｋｍの場所にある古河市は、足利尊氏の次男・基氏の流れをくむ古河公方が 1455 年以降、約 120 年支配した場所である。江戸時代には土井氏など徳川譜代の城下町として、また、日光道中の宿駅として栄えた。 　江戸後期の大名・土井利位は、老中首座であり、雪の結晶の研究を行い「雪の殿様」の異名で知られた。 　博物館は立派な作りで、美術館の趣きだが、展示室の撮影は禁止なのが残念。 Exhibition room is dim and graceful (brochure). 展示室の様子（パンフレットから）。照明を落とした落ち着いた部屋だ。   The trip of Tokugawa shogun to Nikko wh...

  This museum opened in 2018. The model of the lunch of the eighth shogun attracted me.  However,  many old photos mainly around one hundred years ago attracted me more. Because the lively faces of the people tell me how happy they were. 幸手の資料を分かりやすく纏めていて素晴らしい資料館だ。 2018 年オープン。目を引いたのは、八代将軍吉宗が幸手宿でとった昼食の再現。 でも、旧校舎を使った 民具展示室にある写真が、生き生きとした人々のくらしを見せてくれた 。写真は、う～ん良かった。昔の楽しみが、移っている人々の表情から伝わってくる。唸ってしまいます。  There are straw dragon for a ritual in the entrance hall. People pray for rich harvest and healthy lives. エントランス展示には神扇（かみおうぎ）春季神楽際の大蛇づくりの展示。五穀豊穣と無病息災を祈る。 A weaving machine is set in the entrance hall. A weaving seminar is held regularly. エントランスの機織り機。無料の機織り体験会が開かれていました。 Satte is famous for its sakura cherry blossom on the Gongendou bank . Those were planted in the early 20 th century.　(visited in April, 2022) 幸手といえば 春の権現堂堤 。桜が植えられたのは大正年間からとのこと。 Historical exhibition 、歴史展示室 Leaf shaped clay pendant in the Jomon period (more tha...