 Most viewed - Ichikawa 市川市 |
This is where most people enjoyed Satomi Park, under the cherry blossoms.7 views
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Straight ahead is the bridge for the Keisei Line. 江戸川沿い7 views
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Police motor scooter.7 views
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From the Edogawa riverside, we turned left on Route 14 and walked to Ichikawa Station. Welcome to Chiba! Ichikawa is one of Chiba Prefecture's cities adjacent to Tokyo. 7 views
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Map in front of JR Ichikawa Station showing another hiking route.7 views
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High-density housing.7 views
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Looking east toward Chiba. The tall building in the foreground is The Towers East. The JR Sobu Line tracks can be seen on the left.7 views
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Yamazaki Plaza Ichikawa, a bakery operated by Yamazaki Baking in front of Ichikawa Station. Freshly baked in their own hometown, looks yummy.7 views
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After Niomon Gate, this is the first building you see, Soshido Hall dedicated to Nichiren, founder of the Nichiren Buddhist sect. Reconstructed in 2010 on the 700th anniversary of Nichiren's death. 祖師堂 7 viewsThere are other temple buildings spread out on the hill.
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Guhoji's 400-year-old weeping cherry blossom tree is named "Fushihime Sakura." 伏姫桜7 views
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We can see that a few branches had been cut, which means the tree was larger.7 views
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7 views
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View of Ichikawa Station area from Guhoji. The two skyscrapers are The Towers East on the left and The Towers West on the right. The higher Towers West building has a lookout deck on the 45th floor.7 views
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View from The Towers West lookout deck on the 45th floor. The patch of green is the hill where Guhoji is located.7 views
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Sawara Park, we walked through here.6 views
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Some cherry blossoms along Junsai-ike Pond in late March. じゅん菜池6 views
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Cherry blossoms along Junsai-ike Pond.6 views
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In autumn, Junsai-ike Pond is also noted for fall leaves.6 views
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Small island in the middle of the pond.6 views
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Some cherry blossoms along Junsai-ike Pond. じゅん菜池6 views
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Ekoin Betsuin Temple's main hall rebuilt in 2009. There's actually a cafe (Cafe Terrace Ekoin) on the 2nd floor. It belongs to the Jodo-shu Buddhist sect and is a branch of Ekoin Temple in Ryogoku, Tokyo. 回向院市川別院源光寺6 views
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Places to sit in the park.6 views
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Satomi Park also has the Akedo Kofun burial mound complete with two stone coffins exposed on the mound. 明戸古墳石棺6 views
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Map of Satomi Park. The burial mound is on the upper part next to the red, dotted oval on the map. The park is next to Edogawa River.6 views
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Marker indicating Ichikawa city's highest point (elevation). A whopping 30.1 meters above sea level.6 views
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Cherry blossoms in Satomi Park. 6 views
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Edogawa River.6 views
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Satomi Park cherry blossoms.6 views
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6 views
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Satomi Park is also noted for roses in early summer and fall. The rose is Ichikawa's official flower. 6 views
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6 views
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江戸川沿い6 views
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Near the Ichikawa Sekisho Checkpoint is a Yamazaki Baking (山崎製パン) research and training facility ("Creation Center"). Yamazaki is the world's second largest bread-baking company. Founded in Ichikawa, Chiba in 1948.6 views
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View from I-Link Town Observatory, looking west toward Edogawa River. This deck is open 9 am to 10 pm. Closed on the first Monday of the month and during Dec. 29 to Jan. 3.6 views
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"Temple" marks the location of Guhoji Temple, famous for a 400-year-old weeping cherry blossom tree. See this album.6 views
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Another side of the lookout deck.6 views
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In front of Ichikawa Station, the building (Sun Plaza 55) on the left has a coffee shop and bakery operated by Yamazaki Baking.6 views
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Near Guhoji is Tekona Reijindo, another temple. We didn't go to see this temple though. (Too tired walking.) Tekona Reijindo is dedicated to a local girl named Tekona who lived 2,000 years ago. 手児奈霊神堂6 viewsHer job was to fetch water from a well. She was such a beautiful girl that every man who saw her fell in love with her and wanted to marry her. They even fought over her. Even the moon fell in love with her. She got so distraught by all the attention and fighting that she drowned herself in the well. Poor girl, she was loved to death.
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Poem about Tekona.6 views
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6 views
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Mama no Tsughihashi Bridge near the steps going up to Guhoji Temple. The bridge is mentioned in some poems in the Man'yoshu. 真間の継橋6 views
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About Mama no Tsughihashi Bridge. 真間の継橋6 views
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Mama River empties into Edogawa River. We later walked along Edogawa River toward Konodai Station on the Keisei Line.6 views
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While walking through Horinouchi Kaizuka Shell Mound, we indeed saw many pieces of shell or pottery on the ground.5 views
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Water hose manhole for firemen.5 views
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Konodai Tenmangu Shrine dedicated to Michizane, scholar deity. Stone lanterns behind the torii date from 1863. 国府台天満宮5 views
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Satomi Park, near the burial mound.5 views
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Cherry blossoms in Satomi Park. 5 views
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Castle-like stone foundation. Satomi Park is the site of Konodai Castle. However, this stone foundation is not original.5 views
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5 views
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Satomi Park water fountain. This is another area of the park. Totally different landscape. This was the main site of Konodai Castle. 国府台城5 views
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Satomi Park visit date.5 views
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About Shien-soja. It was originally located in Koiwa (Edogawa Ward, Tokyo) and moved here. (紫烟草舎).5 views
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The Rakan-no-I well was actually depicted in this 1834 illustration, part of Illustrations of Edo's Noted Sights. 羅漢の井5 views
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Edogawa River has a nice walking/cycling path.5 views
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Slightly south of Keisei Line's Konodai Station next to Edogawa River is the Ichikawa Sekisho Checkpoint site. This is only a marker monument (no original structures). 市川関所跡5 views
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Ichikawa Sekisho marker near Yamazaki Baking.5 views
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After Guhoji Temple, we walked back to Edogawa River along Mama River which had a few cherry blossoms.5 views
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Western-style buildings along Mama River. The Christian church on the right is the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church in Ichikawa and a National Tangible Cultural Property. 日本福音ルーテル市川教会【国登録有形文化財】5 views
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Junsai-ike Ryokuchi Park is a nature area where the flora and fauna are not to be disturbed. じゅん菜池緑地4 views
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Junsai-ike Pond. No swan boats or rowboats. Only ducks. じゅん菜池4 views
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Cherry blossoms along Junsai-ike Pond. じゅん菜池4 views
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Plum blossom trees near Junsai-ike Pond. 4 views
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Konodai Castle remains in Satomi Park. Embankments and rocks. 国府台城4 views
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Castle-like stone foundation.4 views
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During World War II, Satomi Park was an Imperial Army base camp. It finally became a public park in 1959. Flower beds now cover the site of Konodai Castle.4 views
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Satomi Park also has Shien-soja (紫烟草舎), the former home of famous tanka poet named Kitahara Hakushū (1885–1942) (北原白秋). He lived in this house for only a year in 1916. 4 views
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4 views
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Old well on the fringe of Satomi Park named "Rakan-no-I". 羅漢の井4 views
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Looking west toward Edogawa River. The JR Sobu Line (left) and Keisei Line (extreme right) over Edogawa River can be seen. The bridge in the middle is Route 14.4 views
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In 1501, Tekona's spirit told a priest to build a grave for her. This evolved into this temple where women pray for maternal happiness including safe childbirth and child rearing. 手児奈霊神堂4 views
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Photos of the park's flora and fauna by a local environmental group.3 views
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Being the site of Konodai Castle, Satomi Park was also the site of the Battles of Konodai fought twice between the local Satomi Clan (ruler of Awa Province in present-day Chiba) and the invading Hojo Clan (from Odawara) in the 16th century. 3 viewsThe Hojo won the final battle and thereby took control of present-day Chiba. The Hojo is said to have expanded and reinforced Konodai Castle.
However, when Tokugawa Ieyasu took control of Japan, he had Konodai Castle dismantled because it had a intimidating view of his own Edo Castle.
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Turnstiles at JR Ichikawa Station.3 views
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Directions at Ichikawa Station.3 views
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Scale model of the skyscraper buildings next to JR Ichikawa Station. On the left is The Towers West building and on the right is The Towers East. The West building has a nice lookout deck on the 45th floor.3 views
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Yamazaki Plaza Ichikawa, a coffee shop and bakery operated by Yamazaki Baking in front of Ichikawa Station. This was a good place for refreshments before heading home.3 views
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2 views
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