A Temple for Turtles

Shinjoin, a tiny Buddhist temple located right next to the famous Yushima Tenjin Shrine.

It must be about one-tenth the size of Yushima Tenjin, but is impeccably designed. And no wonder: the newly renovated temple was unveiled less than a year ago, in November 2011.

As beautiful as Yushima Tenjin is, I immediately grew fond of this little temple when I looked into the tiny man-made pond and saw that it was essentially a haven for turtles. Look at the turtle crossing the bridge!

Turtles, which are thought to be auspicious and bring good health, have been kept in this area since the 17th century. This little bridge is called Kamenokohashi, or "Turtle Bridge". Notice the golden turtles positioned on top of the posts.

It turned out, there were five to six turtles of varying sizes, and they spent their time shuffling from one small pond to the other via the bridge. They tended to move slowly, and would often turn around before reaching their destination, resulting in pile-ups and confusion.

Hydrangea, Pre-Fade

These photos were taken several weeks ago, just as the hydrangea had finished blooming and the flowers were about to embark on their long fading process. It's interesting how they don't wilt; they simply have a month-long period where the flowers stay intact but lose their color, gradually turning brown.

Even the little buds in the middle of each large flower bloom in the end.

A little path overgrown with hydrangea.

Notice how the leaves are colored by the small blue fallen petals.

They have a surprising amount of presence, considering that most people would not even recognize that they come from hydrangeas.

Koishikawa Botanical Gardens Again

Since it was hydrangea season, I visited Koishikawa Botanical Gardens again. Alas, there are no hydrangea photos in this post.

I really wanted to find a cute green tree frog (they have become very scarce over the years), but could only find this small toady one. Very cute nonetheless.

Tree roots coming out of the ground in full force.

Spot the tiny baby turtle!

The park explicitly states that fishing is not allowed, but some families were fishing for zarigani crayfish in broad view of everyone.

Fortunately, they were released back into the ponds at the end of the day. Here they are, swimming for cover in the lotus plants.

Another ibis.

Unidentified pretty flower with a very hard fruit.

Cat fast asleep, oblivious to visitors. Japanese parks always have stray cats.

Abandoned duck eggs. It seems the nest was in an area too close to prying visitors, and the mother had to flee her nest.

I found another shrine in the park!

The redwood section, so dense with trees you can look straight ahead and see nothing but forest. A true rarity in Tokyo!

Spotted in Ueno Park (Bonus: Baby Ducks!)

On the way to Shinobazu Pond in Ueno Park, I spotted a fervently sleeping cat.

The last time I was here, it was the dead of winter and the lotus leaves were all brown and withered. This was the end of June, so the lotus flowers were not in bloom yet. You can see a large bud on the right side of the photo, though, with turtles on the left. You can tell from the size of the lotus pond that the flowers in bloom would truly be something to behold.

Ueno Park is having a summer festival, so food stands had been set up around the area. I like this curly potato: essentially a whole potato stretched out into a spiral.

I see where Daffy Duck got his look.

The biggest draw of the area was the baby ducks. You didn't even have to look in the lake to know where they were, you simply had to follow the crowd.

Six adorable ducks and their mother. (One was hiding out near its mother's belly.)

They looked so relaxed, it looked as if they hardly had bones in their body.

Sparrows, taking over the hydrangeas.

A sparrow giving itself a sand bath...

...while another simply sunbathed in the dirt. It looked like a cicada.

Dogwatching in Front of a Supermarket

An old-looking cocker spaniel, awaiting its owner's return from the supermarket. You'd be surprised by the number of people who went gaga over the dog.

The supermarket security guard forgot he was on duty for a moment. It's rare to see someone who isn't overly concerned with making sure other people can see they are firmly at work.

A toddler, fascinated.

Expensive-looking poodles, more a status symbol than a pet.