June 03, 2015

Ibaraki

Ibaraki(茨城)prefecture is in the Kanto(関東)region, northeast of Tokyo. It is ranked as the least appealing prefecture in the whole of Japan. Though I don't think it's that bad. (I can think of 3 prefectures that are less attractive already :P) At least it has 2 beautiful park/garden-- Kairakuen(偕楽園), 1 of the 3 best landscape gardens in Japan, and Hitachi Seaside Park(日立海浜公園)!


Visited the 2 places at their best times of the year. Kairakuen is famous for plum trees, so went there in March when they were in full bloom. The place can be reached by limited express train from Tokyo. Many people were there for the Mito Plum Festival, though it wasn't crowded as the place is huge.



Also got to enjoy a free tea ceremony there. With beautiful flowers and nice weather, the experience couldn't be any better!


The only congested area was Kobuntei(好文亭), a traditional Japanese house that has a great view of the whole park from its 2nd storey. The sliding doors are very pretty!







Enjoyed hanami bento(花見弁当)while chatting with friend in the garden. There were quite a number of food stalls selling plum taste products and natto(納豆), the local specialty :S




Enjoyed my time in Kairakuen, and would rank it 2nd out of the 3 best landscape gardens.

During Golden Week, went to this prefecture again for Nemophila in Hitachi Seaside Park. Yes, I'm crazy over seasonal flowers :)


The place is really crowded during this time. Took the first limited express train down from Tokyo, transferred to a local bus, and reached the park at around 9 am. As the park is huge, rented a bicycle and cycled to the Nemophila area.

The landscape was gorgeous! It was a sea of baby blue!




Another good time to visit the place is in October, when the Kochias are in bloom, and it becomes a sea of crimson!

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