This morning we toured the inside of the Kanazawa Castle which is partially renovated as it was built 400 years ago and used up until WWII.

In case there is a tsunami, we know where to go while we are in Kanazawa.

Right next to the castle was the Kenrokuen Gardens which is one of three large national gardens in Japan.

It is a pleasant stroll after a morning coffee although the Australian elites in our tour let us know that the Japanese coffee does not meet the minimum espresso strength standards set by the UN for western travelers. We even found the mythical prince of war that was erected after the Samurai war period.

From there we walked across the river to go explore the “entertainment” (Geisha) district in Kanazawa which is still very popular and a thriving business in Japan.

The specific area we walked through is officially known as the Asanogawa Romantic District.

We were actually interviewed by a local newspaper journalist who was writing a story about tourists who were talking to a local policeman for directions.

On a small minor side stop, we learned that Kanazawa is the source of 99% of all gold leaf produced in the world.

We stopped by one of the famous shops on the way back from lunch and paid homage to the local good luck idol.

After a nice lunch, we took a walk to visit Kurando Terashima‘s home http://www.kanazawa-tourism.com/eng/guide/guide1_3.php?no=4 who was a middle class samurai warrior that fought the oppressive government against high taxes and then later became a known artist. His home is one of the rare samurai homes that are actually open to the public.

Here are some of the other places we visited in Japan on this trip:

• https://davidcrosstravels.com/2014/04/24/arrived-in-japan/
• Kyoto
• Kyoto Part II
• Geisha and Samurais
• Running in Japan
• Hakone
• Tokyo