Baika Plum Festival Kitano Kita no Tenmangu Shrine

梅花祭北野天満宮

In continuing with yesterday's theme - plum trees in Kyoto - the Baika-sai Plum Blossom Viewing Festival will be held at Kita no Tenmangu Shrine on February 25.

It is essentially a large outdoor tea ceremony that begins at 10 am. It is performed by the geiko and maiko from nearby Kamishichiken.

For 1,500 yen you are served green matcha green tea and a sweet - and a close look at the lovely ladies in full kimono.


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Plum Blossoms in Bloom at Kita no Tenmangu Shrine Kyoto

膨らむ、春の予感　北野天満宮で梅苑公開

Winter has been harsh this year.

Repeated cold fronts from continental Asia have swept through much of Honshu, keeping temperatures lower than normal.

As a result, the annual harbinger of spring - the blossoming of the plum trees - has been a bit late in coming.

However, the famed plum grove in Kita no Tenmangu Shrine is now in bloom.

That is the first sign that old man winter is now past its peak. In another month or so, the cherry trees will be in bloom - and we cannot wait.


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Mother and Child Cycling in Kyoto

母子自転車で京都を動き回る

In a typical Kyoto cycling scene, a mother is riding along Imadegawa Dori in front of Kitano Tenmangu Shrine with her infant child strapped to her back.

She is pedaling a mama chari all-purpose bike as she goes about her errands.

The babe is blissfully unaware of the traffic around him (?).

And mama rides.


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Noodle Bar Kyoto

そば屋京都

The exterior of this noodle place is to die for.

It looks like it was once a kura, or a traditional storehouse.

It was renovated and reborn as a noodle restaurant across the street from Kita no Tenmangu Shrine.

In homage to its neighbor, which has a grove of plum trees, the owner had a plum painted onto the white wall above the entrance.

Prices are a tad bit higher than a less elegant restaurant would be, but the setting is well worth it.

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Kitano Tenmangu Bicycle Shop

北野天満宮自転車屋

Across the street from the rear of the east side of Kitano Tenmangu Shrine is an old mom-and-pop bike shop.

It is a small and messy shop, and the owner rarely comes out.

The nearby shrine dominates the streetscape.

However, the shrine is not the only reason tourists visit.

Just down the block from the shop is one of Kyoto's four geisha districts.

The smallest and oldest of the four, Kamishichiken is basically one long block of tea houses, restaurants, and boutiques with traditional goods.

We like to imagine the owner is a regular (jorensan, in Kyoto dialect) - not, god forbid, unknown (ichigensan) to the establishment and therefore denied entry - at one or more of the tea houses, and spends his evenings carousing with the maiko and geisha until the wee hours.

Then, the next day, he dons his workman's smock and is back fixing flat tires.

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Video of Bike Ride Near Kitano Tenmangu Shrine

自転車で北野天満宮周辺の録画

On a cold January weekend, we rode past Kitano Tenmangu Shrine.

From there, the ride took us past the eastern side of the shrine.

At that point, we cut down into Kamishichiken.

This is an area of tea houses and geisha.

The end of the ride takes us down a narrow street hard by a temple.




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