This is Kimura from Tokyo.
Today I would like to introduce a small mountain called Asukayama Park, located in the northern part of Tokyo.

This mountain can be reached by Oji station or Tokyo Sakura Tram (streetcar) in the northern part of Tokyo,
It is also a favorite park of local residents and the home of Shibusawa Eiichi (1840-1931), who laid the foundation for the current Japanese economy.

It is not a priority destination for tourists visiting Tokyo.
However, the historical buildings and trees that stand beside running children and the view from the park are familiar to us Japanese, as are the skyscrapers, bullet trains, and downtown residential areas. This may seem like an exotic landscape to foreign tourists.
Today, I would like to tell you about my daily scenery as it is.

If you want to visit Asukayama Park, I recommend you to take a tram.
The line is called Sakura Tram.
It is a small train that runs mainly in the northern part of Tokyo.

It is a small train line that runs between residential areas and is used by many locals by locals. It is a different kind of fun from the big trains that run through Tokyo and Shinjuku stations.

This Sakura Tram has Asukayama Koen-mae station. If you get off there, your destination is right in front of you!

This park covers 73,000 m2 and there are over 600 cherry trees planted in the park. cherry trees were first planted around 1720, and “Hanami” to appreciate cherry blossoms in spring has been enjoyed since then.
(Hanami = to have a drink or a meal while watching cherry blossoms bloom in spring)

In addition, there are always large trees as well as cherry blossoms planted on this property.
We do not know the age of the trees or other details, but we are sure that these were there at that time or have been there for a long time. Part of the park also has playground equipment and other facilities for children, but there are huge trees.

■Enoki
Celtics sinensis
Chinese hackberry
It is wild in Japan except Hokkaido and Okinawa.

■Kusunoki
Celtics camphora
Japanese cinnamon (Cinnamomum japonicum)

Camphor trees are commonly seen throughout Japan, and some giant trees are designated as national natural monuments. In Japan, the camphor tree has been used as a tool in Buddhism, and it seems to have been familiar to people since ancient times. (I looked it up).
This tree can grow to a height of 50 meters or more,
The tree in the park is also large, but it may be even larger.

You can see the surrounding scenery well.
You can see the Shinkansen, trains, skyscrapers, downtown, and many other things.

a typical view of Tokyo with nothing to comment on, but if you continue on this road, you will arrive at Ikebukuro. If you continue on this road, you will reach Ikebukuro, and if you continue on, you will reach Shinjuku and Shibuya. It is called Meiji-dori.

Another attraction of the park is its history,
Although it may not be familiar to people from overseas, the site of Eiichi Shibusawa’s residence and a memorial museum are also located on the site.

If I start talking about Eiichi Shibusawa, it would take up an entire blog by itself, so let me give you a rough introduction: he was the founder of as many as 500 companies in Japan, including the first bank in Japan. It seems that he would like to work mainly here in Asukayama (Kita-ku, Tokyo).
Unfortunately, most of the buildings that were there at that time seem to have been lost in the war, but some of them remain and are open to the public.
I would like to introduce the Shibusawa Memorial Museum’s website.
https://www.shibusawa.or.jp/english/index.html

The design of the 10,000 yen bill in Japan is going to be changed, and the new design will have Shibusawa Eiichi’s face printed on it. So this Asukayama Park may attract more attention from now on.

This Asukayama Park is a place where children play, neighbors go jogging, and people can learn history. It may not be a place that I would recommend preferentially to overseas visitors, but I would be happy if the readers of this blog could feel the atmosphere of such a local place.

Also, as I write this text, it occurs to me that Asukayama Park is rather close to the Sugamo area. There are some big hotels in Sugamo, such as APA Hotel, and I often see tourists staying there. If you are staying or sightseeing in that area, this may be a good place to stay. If you have a chance, please stop by.

Thank you for reading to the end!
Kimura

Translated by deepL