Hydrangeas, Farewell Kamakura

Rudely awakened by the earthquake on Saturday morning*, I didn't feed the pigeons but I did cook pancakes (which gave me a sense of enormous well-being - ok, lyrics over). I'd missed the hydrangea season in Kamakura for the last two years so third time lucky and I headed down there. Usual story; so did the rest of Tokyo.

Kamakura, the Buddha and Enoshima have been a great getaway for me, my usual haunt to escape the metropolis of Tokyo and clear my head. I'm pretty sure, unless inspiration/frustration hits, this weekend was my last time before I leave. I've been so many times now I feel fortunate more than anything, and so confident with the area a tour guide fallback position is not out of the question.

Surrounded by a cascade of multi-coloured hydrangeas:





There are a few hotspots for the hydrangeas around the area, firstly in Kita-Kamakura at Meigetsu-in, which is nothing special the rest of the year round. The flowers here varied slightly in colour but for some unknown reason, the temple tries to keep to a blue theme.


The temple also housed a zen rock garden and bamboo trees.


After that, I experienced the train-door-slamming-in-my-face-bone-crushing-glove-pushing from that video a few posts back on the electric railway. A frail old lady had been taken to the front to be saved one of the seats by a guard, but it's true that the Japanese are polite except when near a train, and was almost trampled over.

A quick sayonara to the Buddha:


On to Joujuin, another rather unspectacular temple 15 minutes walk from the Buddha. The temple is built up the top of a slope which would be a slug otherwise but it was here that the hydrangeas lined the path, and the view behind was over the coast. The colours were magnificent.


The final stop was Enoshima, a brisk walk over the Island stopping for a wasabi-seaweed rice cracker (much nicer than it sounds) and then back home. A few more flowers, if you haven't had enough:




A slice of heaven.

*the landslides have sadly resulted in 10 deaths, and counting.