We returned to Tokyo on Saturday. I immediately went to Beaver Bread for my bread fix. Much as I love being in Japan the food gives me considerable difficulty. Too much salt. After a couple of weeks I get waterlogged and my diet tends to regress to yogurt, bananas and good bread, if I can get it.
Effectively the workshop was finished, but we had a few more things to do. We were scheduled to go to an art show opening on Saturday evening. First we went to a special shopping area. On our way we saw this wonderful little parade, complete with drumming. This is the second one I’ve seen on this trip. Not sure what they are about. The first, which was at Sensoji Temple, clearly had something to do with sake, since there was a huge cask of it on the float.
The art show was in a building that was formerly a middle school, now occupied by galleries and some tech start-ups. The opening was at the Mi-lab gallery, the people who ran our workshop.
On Sunday I went to the Nezu Museum, which has a huge garden I had never seen. It was filled with trees, almost a forest but with many interesting stone lanterns. Although I enjoyed it, I would never have fallen in love with gardens had it been the only one I saw.
I spent the remainder of the day wandering around Ginza and a little time in Ueno.
Yesterday, Monday, was our last day. As a group we went to Team Lab borderless, a huge hi-tech installation. It was very exciting at first with all of the colored lights and movement, but somehow, after we were there for awhile, I wanted more from it.
From there I went to another garden I had never been to: Kyu Shiba Rikyu. This was a truly special garden and I fell in love all over again. It was the perfect ending for my trip.
100 Books Before I Die 