Have you ever been to a Junkissa?

It’s a classic café with the atmosphere of the Meiji-Showa era. In the Meiji era opening the country to the world, Japan began to accept cultures from overseas and be rapidly civilized and westernized. We didn’t have any café before the era but it came to be a place for the intellectuals to gather and communicate. Now this word “Junkissa” is used not as a western style café but as a western Japanese style café.

Let me introduce my favorite place that has Junkissasas. It’s Jinboucho. This town has so many book stores on the streets that people call here a book town and we can buy books, go to a café and read what we got here. There are a lot of café and Junkissa in Jinbocho and it going to be easy to find a place to read books or have some breaks or chitchat with your friends, but if you visit here alone and have books you mean to read or want to enjoy the peace of silence I highly recommend you to knock on the door of Junkissa, because it’s a place for you. Here people are unwinding over a coffee, reading books alone in nine cases out of ten. You can hear music like classic, chanson or old Japanese songs that make you feel relaxed to spend time at a Junkissa. Also, the atmosphere is not like in crowded Tokyo but somewhere I know well, because I feel like I am always welcomed by the place, lovely sweets and tea or coffee and people belonging here. If you are interested in this town or Junkissa, search on the web and visit!

Do you know koyou(紅葉)?

This is koyou. Green leaves gradually turn into red in autumn. It looks so beautiful that people trip somewhere to get and see the leaves changing colors.

 

In Japan Kyoto is one of the famous koyou spots.

This picture is a window at a temple maned genkoan（源光庵）in Kyoto. The window cut a beautiful part from scenery and how it looks changes depending on where you sit. Actually, there is a window shaped square next to it and both are great and photogenic.

 

 

I took this picture at eikanji(永観寺) in Kyoto. Here is especially beautiful at night because they light up the vivid colorful leaves and it makes this place amazing in darkness of the night sky. We can also have a matcha(抹茶) or oshiruko(お汁粉) which is sweet red bean soup at the temple, enjoying stunning koyou.

 

The season of koyou is colder than I expect, so if you visit Kyoto or other koyou spots in Japan, don’t forget your coat and scarf for extra warmth!