Quick Takes - June 8th, 2019 | Travel Japan Like a Local

Welcome to this week’s Quick Takes! Art in Hakone, tea ceremony demonstrations, flower watching in the night, and more.

Art show in Hakone: Hakone might not be as much a place that is known for art (e.g. Naoshima in Shikoku). Yet, Pola Museum of Art had been actively promoting art, specialising in French Impressionism and School of Paris. Currently they had an exhibition on Impressionism, and one on their Western paintings collection (until July 28th). Afterwards, a new exhibition called “Syncopation” on modern art starting on August 10th to December 1st. This one is the first modern art exhibition Pola Museum held. If you are going to Hakone in next months and are into art, Pola Museum is definitely worth a visit.

Miyajima Torii gate repairs from June 17th: One of the most famous landmarks in the Hiroshima-Miyajima area is the in-the-sea torii gate at Miyajima Shrine. Due to wear-and-tear from the elements, as well as lots of tourists visiting (and touching the gate), it requires major restoration. And it’s going to start from June 17th, a little more than one week from now. The restoration will last until August 2020. So if you are in the area, make sure to visit, as it would be under wraps until next year.

Tea Ceremony demonstration in train stations: This one is interesting: Keio Electric Railway will team up with students from Showa Women’s University in holding tea ceremony demonstrations in Keio’s train stations. The intended participants would be children with no previous experiences, as well as foreigners. The first one will be on next Saturday (June 15th), from 11 am to 3 pm, at Keio Eifukucho Station in Tokyo. A second session is currently planned for July 30th, details to be confirmed.

That’s it for this week. Not trying to toot my horn too much, yet our trip planning service is now online and available! Check out the feature page here for more details!