Our first port of call was Aomori, Japan. I started my day getting up early since I had booked an excursion to Hirosaki. Luckily, the gods smiled on me, and the day was reasonably clear with partial overcast. Most often, when I go on a cruise and we stop at a port, I will go to the top deck and walk around the ship, taking pictures of the shoreline. Then I would proceed to the main theater to meet with the rest of the tour group. When the Captain gets the clearance to depart the ship from the port authorities, the tourist group exits the ship, and we get loaded onto the tour buses.
Aomori is located just north of Honshu, the main island of Japan. The temperature today was approximately 65 degrees. The bus ride was approximately an hour to our first stop, which was Saishoin Temple. Saishoin Temple was officially named Kongozan Komyoji Saishoin Temple. It is a Shingon Buddhist temple of the Chisan sect. I learned that the red square archways with the black curve on top were a shrine (see picture). Saishoin Temple is home to the Five-Story Pagoda of Saishoin. This important cultural property is considered to be the most beautiful pagoda in the Tohoku region. Saishoin Temple is located on the hilltop about half a mile southeast of Hirosaki Castle, which would be our next stop on the tour. This temple is famous for the Hatsumode (New Year’s celebration) and Gion-e (summer festival).
Before we proceeded to Hirosaki Castle, the bus stopped next to an outdoor market, Taisho Roman Tea Room and the Fujita Memorial Garden. Inside the Tea Room, there were a lot of Japanese art for us to see and a cultural music group, which was quite good.
It was only a short walk by the Fujita Memorial Garden to Hirosaki Castle. The castle is in the middle of the gated area, but in grounds around the castle include the Hirosaki Botanical Garden, Museum, the Civic Hall, Lotus Pond Moat, and the oldest Somei-Yoshino Tree.
The shrines of Hirosaki and the castle were surrounded by rivers, ponds, and cherry blossoms. I hung out with a couple from Canada as we walked throughout the grounds and took pictures. Around the castle were several vendors that sold souvenirs, food, and drinks. There were a lot of people exploring the grounds in addition to our group.
In the distance, you could see the snowcapped mountains. The landscape was amazing. Upon returning to the ship, light sprinkles started. It was a great excursion.
I had a surf and turf dinner with escargot in the main dining hall that night. Even though the people I was supposed to be seated with did not show up for dinner, the server and assistant server were a pleasure to talk to. A couple of drinks at the Schooner Bar, then I walked around the ship checking out the night’s entertainment.
