Snowy Kenroku-en 兼六園 in Kanazawa

Last week, I visited Kenroku-en and this is the first time for me to see the garden with snow.  I feel extremely lucky to see the yukitsuri as it is always raining when I visit Kanazawa every time.  In Japan, there is a method of protecting the branches of the pine trees in the garden with ropes attached in a conical array to the trees in order to prevent the branches from breaking.  When it is covered with snow, the scenery is magnificent. 

Due to the new Shinkansen from Tokyo to Kanazawa, Kanazawa is getting more and more popular in Japan.  It is about 2.5 hours by bus or train from Takayama and famous of seafood, old houses, ninja temple, 21 century art museum and the Japanese Garden Kenroku-en. 

Kenroku-en is one of the three most beautiful gardens in Japan.  The name of garden explains it well in terms of six factors: spaciousness, tranquility, artifice, antiquity, water cources, and magnificent view from the garden.

If you have a chance to visit Kanazawa in winter, my recommendation is Kenroku-en.  There is a 500 yen one day bus pass sold in the bus center in front of the JR station.  With it, you can travel around easily within the town very easily.