Japanese Style Foliage Viewing

Well well, I’d been writing about Okinawa for so long that I don’t know what to write after I’m finished with it. I feel like I haven’t written anything that’s not related to Okinawa for a very long time... or rather, I guess I really haven’t written a normal entry for that long. Oh well.

So today, what should I write about? As far as I can remember, I was getting started with a petit Japan Countryside Guide about a month ago. Why don’t I just say that the entire Okinawa story was part of it? It’s not far off, though, right? It was traveling, it was within Japan, it was... sort of countryside, that’s good enough.

To get back to real-time today, my recommendation this season is above all, colored leaves which you can actually see pretty much anywhere across the country except for the very warm places. I hear that Nikko (which I already touched upon on the entry on Sep.1) has entered its peak season for autumnal foliage. I think it’s the perfect time of year to visit the region since it’s cool but not cold and the landscape would be just pretty pretty pretty. We have a featured section on foliage on Japan Mode so those of you interested in foliage please come see Japan Mode :-)

Personally I like places where they light up the trees so that you can see vivid red and gold colors against the dark night sky (see some pix below, they’re gorgeous!). Those kinds of places are most times parks and gardens which you have to pay a little to go in, but the bright vivid colors against the dark is truly breathtaking. You feel like everything – the trees and the leaves and the moon and stars – are embossed on the night sky, and if it’s quiet there is nothing to complain about.

Autumn leaves in the wild nature (I mean mountains and valleys) are beautiful too, but I wouldn’t really recommend go seeing them during night time because it’s highly likely that they won’t be lit up (illuminated) bright enough for you to really appreciate them. In fact, it’s rather dark and could be dangerous (maybe) and you probably won’t see anything anyway. They are gorgeous during the day, however, especially because if you go to the mountains and the valleys you can see humps and bumps and fields of colored leaves literally spreading in front of you. It’ll be even better if there’s a lake or a pond to double the colors ;-)

Maybe the best plan to enjoy autumn leaves is to get a bit away from central Tokyo during daytime to appreciate the wild nature, and to come back in the evening to see the illuminated garden trees. Having said that, it’s probably the best to just relax and lay back without worrying about time at all.



- JMode.com Japan Guide... http://www.jmode.com/japanguide/japanguide.html
- JMode.com Autumn Foliage... http://www.jmode.com/japanguide/koyo_nov1.html (November. Enter from Japan Guide)
- Autumn Leaves Photos: Koishikawa Korakuen /Rikugien (night) / Hamarikyu / Kamakura (night) / Akasaka (gold)