Last additions - Itsuura Kanko Hotel, Taikan & Buzan Residences 五浦観光別館大観荘・本館 |
One of the most elegant Japanese-style hotels I've ever seen. Precious artwork everywhere. It's like staying in an art museum.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Large and private corner guest room inside Kimura Buzan home. It costs about ¥18,000 per person per night to stay here.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Fancy corridor inside Kimura Buzan home.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Fancy corridor inside Kimura Buzan home.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Outdoor bathtub made of Shigaraki-yaki pottery (from Shigaraki, Shiga Prefecture). The hotel has excellent taste in bathtubs. 信楽焼Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Corridor with pebbled floor leading to the outdoor bath.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
A smaller guest room.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
The okami-san posing in another guest room of the Buzan residence. Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Corner room.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Tokonoma of another guest room. Many of the materials are quite rare and valuable today.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Relax here with a view.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Elegant transom with a pine tree carving.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
A large guest room. 武山邸客室Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Buzan's beautiful tea ceremony room. Very chic. Available for rent for tea ceremonies.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Buzan's beautiful tea ceremony room.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Entrance lobby of Kimura Buzan home. The wooden sign says "Buzan Residence." 武山邸Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Part of the Buzan residence.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Different parts of the residence are connected by enclosed corridors.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Courtyard garden of Buzan home.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Itsuura Kanko Hotel Honkan lobby.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Itsuura Kanko Hotel Honkan lobby.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Lobby with Hina Matsuri decorations.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Another part of the Itsuura Kanko Hotel is the main wing (本館) which is the former artist residence of Kimura Buzan (木村武山), another famous Nihonga painter who followed Tenshin to Izura.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Hotel gift shop had this noren curtain with Rokkakudo design.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Hotel gift shop.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
View of Rokkakudo from the hotel's modern tower.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
View from the hotel's modern tower.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Breakfast included natto fermented soybeans. Ibaraki is famous for natto.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Next morning, breakfast in a large banquet hall.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
We were super stuffed, but there's always room for dessert...Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Sushi. Tuna, shrimp, ika squid, hotate scallop.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Lobster in miso soup.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Hitachi Wagyu beef was just a small part of our dinner. We got really stuffed. 常陸牛Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Local Hitachi Wagyu beef. ("Hitachi" is an old name for Ibaraki Prefecture. The famous electronics company Hitachi is also from Ibaraki.) 常陸牛Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Hotel staff in kimono cooking my Hitachi Wagyu beef. 常陸牛Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Abalone steak.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Biwa lute-shaped dish.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Typical room in the hotel's modern tower. This is the living room.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Appetizers.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Appetizers for our full-course dinner.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
In the modern hotel tower, our banquet room for dinner.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Typical room in the hotel's modern tower. Mar 22, 2019
|
|
This is a typical room in the hotel's modern tower. Twin beds.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Taikan's residence is great for groups up to 22 people. It's a residence separate from the main hotel building so there's lots of privacy. Rates are very reasonable too. It was awesome to stay here.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Beautiful tokonoma and painting.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Another part of the Taikan house. Very aesthetic.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
The Taikan house also has a small outdoor hot spring bath.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Outside the living room, a moon-viewing deck.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Another room of the living room.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
This used to be part of Yokoyama Taikan's living room, now one of the rooms where you can stay. Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Main corridor inside Yokoyama Taikan Memorial Hall.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Yokoyama Taikan (1868–1958) is one of the most famous Nihonga painters. His former residence includes a showcase of his artifacts.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Statue of Yokoyama Taikan (横山大観), a very famous Japanese Nihonga painter. Taikan was born in Mito, the capital of Ibaraki. (横山大観)Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Entrance foyer of Yokoyama Taikan Memorial Hall where we stayed. Great private lodging for groups up to 22 people.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Itsuura Kanko Hotel is quite unique and historical because it renovated the artist residences of Nihonga painters Yokoyama Taikan and Kimura Buzan and uses them as part of the hotel where guests can stay. We actually stayed in the Yokoyama Taikan residence here. (横山大観記念館 特別室)Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Itsuura Kanko Hotel's okami-san or proprietress (女将) speaks English. The hotel also has English-speaking staff.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
My complimentary matcha tea and confections.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Near Rokkakudo Pavilion on the Izura coast is Itsuura Kanko Hotel (五浦観光ホテル), pictured here on the cliffs. This was our hotel for the night. It had prime views of the coast.The hotel was high enough on the cliff to escape the five-meter-high tsunami on March 11, 2011. The hotel suffered only minor damage from the earthquake. The ground is very solid here, so quake damage was minimal.
Note that the hotel's name is pronounced "Itsuura" while the coast is "Izura." (Kanji characters are the same.) izura.netMar 22, 2019
|
|
We arrived in the late afternoon in time for a tea ceremony in the hotel lobby. Conducted by the hotel's okami-san (proprietress 女将).Mar 22, 2019
|
|
Lovely flowers in the hotel lobby.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
In the hotel lobby, Hina Matsuri dolls displayed for Girl's Day in early March.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
In the hotel lobby: Kita-Ibaraki's official mascots, An-chan and Kou-chan. Together, they are "Ankou" which means "monkfish," or angler fish that is the city's most famous delicacy. An-chan is a fisherman, and Kou-chan is a monkfish.Mar 22, 2019
|
|
|
|