Thank you for joining our tour! We welcomed 38 guests from France, Germany, Australia, Bulgaria, USA, Spain, Norway, UK, Canada, and Croatia. The cherry blossoms may be over but spring is still in full swing with colorful flowers in the Ninomaru Garden. We guides shared delightful moments with our guests. In our tour we talk about the feud between 2 high class samurais (Asano and Kira) and the consequence of the 47 Ronins. But do you know that there is a spin-off to this story? Let me introduce the Tsuwano clan and Genji-maki. Genji-maki is a signature sweet cake of the Tsuwano region (Shimane prefecture). Wheat flour is mixed with eggs and sugar and spread out thinly, and the outer layer is baked until it is golden brown. It is later filled with sweet bean paste and rolled up into a flat, rolled cake that is 1.5 cm thick. This confectionary has a long history, dating back to the 17th century. In 1698, only a few years before the Asano’s attach on Kira, a feudal lord Kamei from the Tsuwano clan was working on his mission under mentorship of Kira to welcome the imperial envoy in Edo Castle. No different […]
Many thanks for joining us on our tour of the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace in the morning on April 16. We welcomed 20 guests from Italy, Canada, Germany, Lithuania, Morocco, Australia, and Taiwan. It was a tremendous opportunity for us to meet wonderful guests from all over the world and to share interesting conversations. As promised, group photos and snapshots are attached so that you can remember the fun we had during the tour. Group A Group B Group C Somei Yoshino, a cherry variety said to account for 80% of Japan’s cherry blossoms, have already passed their prime, but other types of cherry trees continue to welcome us in the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace. The yellowish-green cherry trees are called Ukon or Gyoiko. The double-flowered cherry trees, such as Kanzan, have plump pink flowers, which makes me hungry for Sakuramochi (Cherry-flavored mochi wrapped in cherry leaves). In the Ninomaru Garden, Kurume-tsutsuji azaleas are blooming beautifully. The striking dark pink color brightens our hearts. If you like azaleas, Nezu Shrine is also recommended. Azaleas of various colors are arranged on the slope and are gorgeous.The irises, another symbolic flower of Ninomaru Garden, are still in buds, […]
Many thanks for joining us on our tour at the East Garden of the Imperial Palace on Apr. 13th. We welcomed 23 guests from UK, USA, Philippines, Hong Kong, India, Australia, Switzerland, Spain and Germany. Meeting incredible individuals from various corners of the globe and exchanging cultural insights presented us with an invaluable opportunity. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all our guests for graciously sharing their time and enriching our experience with engaging conversations. As pledged, we have included group photos and snapshots for you to reminisce about the enjoyable moments we shared during the tour. We trust that you derived as much pleasure from the tour as we did. (GroupA) It was a lovely day to visit the exquisite garden and admire the flowers. The cherry blossoms (Sakura) at the East Garden were in full bloom, and vibrant flowers adorned the surroundings, welcoming guests who had come to Japan for their honeymoon. These flowers were likely to add to their celebration as well. (GroupB) We always strive to give high-quality tours. Your feedback is especially important and useful to us. If you have a moment, please consider posting comments about the tour on our TripAdvisor /Facebook etc. (GroupC) […]
Many thanks for joining us on our tour at the East Garden of the Imperial Palace on Apr. 6th. We welcomed 16 guests from UK, USA, Italy, Canada, Israel, UAE, Brazil and Australia. It was a tremendous opportunity for us to meet wonderful people from all over the world and exchange the cultural information. We really appreciate all guest for sharing precious time and inspiring us with interesting conversations. As promised, group photos and snapshots are attached so that you can remember the fun we had during the tour. I hope you enjoyed out tour as we did very much. (Group A) (Group B) (Group C) (Group D) (Group E) It was a morning tour today, so it was a little chilly at the start of the tour, but as the tour progressed, we gradually warmed up and had a lively conversation with the guests.The cherry blossoms (Sakura) at the East Garden were in full bloom, and clouds of flowers seemed to be floating everywhere, and both guests and guides thoroughly enjoyed the scenery. Sakura are in full bloom all over the city, and the illuminations at night are a must-see.However, the full bloom of Sakura does not last long. […]
Spring has come!Cherry blossoms are in full bloom soon！ We had a pleasant Saturday afternoon tour with more than 40 guests from the US,Canada, Italy, Australia, Israel, Croatia, UK. and Argentine. Thank you all for joining our tour!We hope all of you enjoyed and shared interesting conversations with us during the tour.As promised, group photos are attached to remember the fun times we had. We always strive to give high-quality tours. Your feedback is very important and useful tous. If you have a moment, please consider posting comments about tours on TripAdvisor /Facebook, etc. Also, please tell your family and friends about us. Next time you’re inTokyo, please come to another one of our tours. Once again thank you very much. Formore information about our tour, please visit our website at https://tfwt.jp/top/east-gardens-of-the-imperial-palace/, https://www.facebook.com/TokyoFWT or Tokyo FreeWalking Tour at https://www.tripadvisor.jp/. (Posted by Takaori)
Thank you for choosing our East Garden of the Imperial Palace tour on March 23rd,2024 We welcomed 20 guests from US, UK, Germany, Australia, Malaysia, Dominican and Chile. I hope all of you enjoyed and shared interesting conversations with us during the tour. As promised, group photos and snapshots are attached to remember the fun times we had. GR A Gr B Gr C Gr D In Japan, cherry blossoms are in season from around late March to late April. The forecast for cherry blossom blooming in 2024 of Tokyo is March 24th. That is tomorrow. Today is beginning to bloom for 20 %. Somei Yoshino cherry trees are belonging to the Rose family, representing over 300 types of cherry blossoms in Japan. The name Somei Yoshino comes from the fact that it was improved and made by craftsmen in Somei Village, Toshima Ward, Tokyo. Japanese people love cherry flower because it is a fleeting and beautiful and is symbolizing the arrival of spring. These flowers fall only in two weeks. Hanami is “Cherry Blossom Viewing”. In spring, when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom, people picnic under the trees. Sometimes the parties last late into the night and […]
Many thanks for joining us on our tours at Imperial Palace in the afternoon on March 16th. We welcomed 15 guests from the United States, Germany, Hungary, and Argentina. It was a tremendous opportunity for us to meet wonderful guests from many countries and to share interesting conversations. We’ve posted group photos and snapshots so that you can look back on the fun times we had. Currently, the forecast for cherry blossom blooming in the Tokyo area is March 22. So the cherry blossoms are expected to be in full bloom starting next week. If you have time, please enjoy the beautiful cherry blossoms in Japan. Once again, thank you so much for joining us on our tour. We always make efforts to improve our tours and highly appreciate your feedback on our TripAdvisor/Facebook etc. Your comments motivate us to continue our volunteer activities. Please tell your family and friends about how you enjoyed our tour. Next time you’re in Tokyo, please join another one of our tours (Asakusa, Meiji Shrine/Harajuku, and Ueno Park）. We’d love to see you again.For more information about our tour, please visit our website athttps://tfwt.jp/top/east-gardens-of-the-imperial-palace/https://www.facebook.com/TokyoFWTor Tokyo Free Walking Tour athttps://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g14129528-d3587204-Reviews-Tokyo_Free_Walking_Tour-Marunouchi_Chiyoda_Tokyo_Tokyo_Prefecture_Kanto.html(Posted by Akito)
Thank you very much for participating in the tour of that day. On that day we hosted 22 guests from Italy, USA, Singapore, South Korea, and Chile. The weather was fine although it was sometimes windy and overall cold. We enjoyed the stroll of the garden looking out the transition of the season from winter to spring. We hope all of you enjoyed and shared interesting conversations with us during the tour. As promised, group photos and snap shots are attached to remember the fun times we had. The imperial Palace is the typical and most famous tourist spot and most convenient location in the city since it is the heart of the city. From there you can view not only the imperial palace ground, Japan’s symbolic and historical site but other symbolic figures such as red brick Tokyo Station, where we met as well as the red and white Tokyo Tower. The below are group photos. We had 4 groups. Tokyo Tower can be seen at the point we usually take group photos, in front of Tatsumi Yagura Defense Fort. The tower was established in 1958 and the height is 333 meters. It is just 3 meters higher than […]
Thank you for choosing our weekday tour at the East Garden of the Imperial Palace on March 5. We welcomed 10 guests from Greece, Switzerland, Vietnam, and Malaysia. I hope all of you enjoyed and shared interesting conversations with us during the tour. As promised, group photos and snap shots are attached to remember the fun times we had. It was cold and a light rain. We were so surprised that one of our guests ran the Tokyo marathon and completed the race. That was amazing! The latest announcement of Japan Weather Forecast Association says that the earliest cherry blossoms will bloom in Tokyo on March 19th. Spring will come in two weeks. This news makes us so happy! In addition, we give a great news for all our future guests. We’ll join Sakura Festival in Chiyoda as guides of free walking tour in East Garden of the Imperial Palace. Sakura Festival in Chiyoda will be held from March 22 to April 2 at Chidrigafuchi, a famous cherry blossoms viewing spot. It is near East Garden of the Imperial Palace. We will host special walking tour at East Garden of the Imperial Palace every morning 10:00AM during this period except […]
Many thanks to the guests who joined the tour on that day. We welcomed 7 guests from USA, Singapore, UK and Belgium. I hope all of you enjoyed and shared interesting conversations with us during the tour. As promised, group photos and snapshots are attached to remember the fun times we had. Recently I watched TV news that flea market in Japan is very popular for foreign visitors. Going to flea market is main reason to come to Japan for some of them. I thought that just old or unnecessary items were sold in flea market, however it is valuable antique items for visitors who is collecting and interested in Japanese cultural items. The TV news reported people who bought Ukiyoe pictures, battledore, Kokeshi doll and mailbox. After watching this news, I checked where flea markets are held in Tokyo area. And I reraised that many flea markets are held in Tokyo than I thought. Example: If you like Japanese cultural items and want to get them at reasonable price, I think it’s worth to visit. One more information for guests in the future. Our meeting place is the Marunouchi Central Gate (ground floor) at JR Tokyo Station. Please find […]
