Japan's Cultural Treasures

Japan 2016

Tuesday, May 10

After breakfast in our hotel in Hakone, we embarked on a tour of this scenic city.

We first went to a preschool with students aged 3-5.  The children greeted us with "hello".  They then proceeded to sing and dance.  Their mothers were there and they did a couple of numbers dancing with their preschoolers.  Some of the children were very enthusiastic, while some of the younger ones looked dazed.  The tallest boy in the group, who was 5 years old, reminded me of Noah.  He even had the same haircut.

We then went to Hamamatsuya, a workshop specializing in wooden handcrafts.  Here we watched the owner make Hakone Yosegi Zaiku, a special product of Hakone featuring complex inlaid marquetry designs. http://www.hakonemaruyama.co.jp/howto_yosegi-e.htm and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5nOS5QQFBs

The elaborate patterns are produced by making the most of various natural colors of woods and used to make small boxes and other products. They are so unique that woodworks of this kind can hardly be found in any other area in Japan. We received a bookmark made in the manner of the woodworks; it showed how thin the veneer was that covered all the products made there.  After the demonstration, we were free to browse the gift shop where I bought two coasters and two tops.

We had a fabulous buffet lunch in a local hotel.  After lunch proceeded to Lake Ashi where we took a boat from Kojiri to Moto-Hakone where we visited the Narukawa Art Museum, (http://www.narukawamuseum.co.jp/en/) which displays countless examples of traditional paintings that owner Minoru Narukawa has collected in the past 20 years.

Their were also great views of Lake Ashi and Hakone from the museum.  On a clear day we would have been able to see Mt Fuji from the museum.

Later, we continued our discovery of Hakone's artistic culture by visiting the Hakone Open-Air Museum and Picasso Gallery. It includes an impressive selection of 19th- and 20th-century Japanese and Western sculptures (including works by Henry Moore, Rodin and Miró) as well as an excellent Picasso Pavilion with more than 300 works ranging from paintings and glass art to tapestry.

We returned to the hotel and had another fabulous dinner there.