Hamarikyu Onshi-teien

Day One of Tokyo, continued:

What better way to get to a waterside garden than by waterbus? You sit and watch the city roll by, you bump up to the pier, and then you step off into a riot of still water and quiet greenery.

This was literally two feet from the pier.

The waterbus access channel. The hole we had to slide through from the Sumida River to this canal was incredibly narrow.

There were lots of these little algae-choked channels leading off from the main ponds. I'm not sure what they were for, other than to provide a place for ducks to dabble while the falconers snuck up on them.

Neat-o!

The tea house. You know, where the emperor and his minions would have a cuppa after massacrin' some ducks.

Am I doing better with my photo composition?

Hard to believe the whole city of Tokyo is just right over there...

This is another part of that canal. Here's how supplies were ferried from Edo Bay up to the old palace that used to be here. You know, so the poor porters wouldn't have to hump that stuff all the way from the docks.

The signs really made a big deal out of this here "300-year-old pine."

Well, erm, yeah. Did I say quiet greenery? 'Cause it wasn't. Go back and view all the pictures again, but this time keep in mind that, all the while I was walking around Hamarikyu, a steady barrage of noise assaulted my ears: the rumble of waterbus engines, the wail of sirens from the nearby city streets, the incessant cawing of crows, and the earsplitting whine of a thousand insects.

This was the Hamarikyu Onshi-teien, formerly a falconry and duck-hunting ground for the imperial family way back in the day. It's the only park I've ever been to that has a saltwater tidal pool in the center instead of a freshwater lake. Seabirds competed with the crows for space, butterflies flitted here and there, and the cicadas droned on like there was no tomorrow. I wandered around, each step giving me a fresh angle to shoot an enticing picture, heedless of the sweat which poured down my temples and brows and drenched my back, chest and collar. It was warm and the humidity couldn't have been less than 90%. Regardless, I stuck to my journalistic duties. I was on vacation, dammit. The mere heat or plenitude of moisture wasn't going to stop me.

Soon, I finished wandering among the groves of trees and along the shores of tidal pools and left the park in search of the third item on that first day's to-do list: Tsukiji Fish Market. That's right, people: fish. As in, actual Japanese sushi. The full report comes tomorrow. Stay tuned.