Another Autumn At Showa Kinen Park

It's been 2 years since I last went to Showa Memorial Park and coincidentally, it was another Autumn day. This time I went with a different set of friends, and went to another part of the park.

Got my ticket from the machine just outside the park. It's 450 yen for a full day access to the park. You can scan the QR code in the ticket gate to enter. Now, you could get in without this ticket. Just scan your IC card on the gate and it will automatically credit 450 yen for the entrance fee. So cool!

@appleeatingapple and Kevin were already in the park when I arrived before 3PM and because they were biking around the park, I went to the gingko promenade by myself which was the highlight of my post back then. I told them we could meet later when they return the bicycle before 4PM. Besides, we're here for the illumination which would start at 4:30PM, located on the northern area of the park.

On the way, I was able to find paths with fewer people so I was able to enjoy a little bit of walking.

And well, I couldn't escape the crowd. There were lots of people that weekend especially the areas where the autumn colors were so visible. The Gingko Promenade was one of them. The area where the trees were still full of yellowish leaves were so packed with people.

I went to the other side which had less people but also less leaves.

I was able to find a seat and enjoy the beauty of the leaves while waiting for my companions. The Gingko trees were beautiful but I just couldn't stand their smell. I think I took in all that smell while I was sitting there for a little while. 😂

Later, another friend with her husband arrived so I went to meet with them in the fountain. I jokingly told them that fountain is called "fountain of youth". 😅 I don't know if this is the only fountain of the park but I think so.

We started walking towards our destination - but stopped midway because Apple and Kevin were now looking for us. We met at the Cherry Blossoms area where the leaves were nonexistent for this season.

While waiting for them, a train passed by! I wished I knew about the train sooner so we could have taken it to our destination.

We're now complete! It was a long walk to our destination, and the sun was about to set. Perfect time for a pictorial?! 😅

The lake was so lively and full of swan boats and small boats. There were also birds - or were they ducks? I am not so knowledgeable of these animals, but at least I knew koi. I was actually surprised they were in this lake, I just knew about it yesterday when my friend said to clap and the koi fishes began to come expecting food from us. We didn't have food so the koi fishes knew they were tricked so they left.

I wasn't kidding when I said it was a long walk to the north area. One of our friends was our guide, taking us to shortcuts. It was amazing, we thought he had worked there. He told us they kept coming back to the park every season that's why he knew the roads.

The farther we were from the entrance and the Gingko Promenade, the lesser the crowds which I super like. I'm not so allergic to big crowds but it would be nice to enjoy the park with fewer people. Don't you agree with me? I love to just sit pretty and while taking in all that wonderful nature, I look back on my choices in life and wonder what lies ahead based on what I had and have been doing now.

Alas, we reached our destination - the Japanese garden in Showa Kinen Park. It's a paid area, separate from the entrance fee. We arrived just in time for the illumination which I'll be sharing in another post.

After the illumination, it was already so dark we thought it was past 8PM but actually it was not yet 6PM. Because of all that walking, we figured the special night bus would help us cool down from all the walking we did but we mistakenly queued on the wrong area thinking it was for the bus fare. It was for the Japanese garden and of course, we don't need another round. LOL

The next bus was scheduled to depart 20 minutes from now, and we didn't want to wait that long, we started to walk back to the entrance of the park. It was really a very long walk, and even with my foot supporter, I still could feel the pain. I shouldn't have worn boots? Ha, fashion versus comfort. 😂

When we reached the Nishi Tachikawa gate, we took the train to Tachikawa station and indulged ourselves with a Japanese buffet. When I arrived home, salonpas was all over my lower leg. 😂 I really wonder if salonpas works.

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Don't forget to checkout the #WednesdayWalk initiative by @tattoodjay.

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Thanks for reading!
See you around! じゃあ、またね！

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^{All photos are taken using my phone unless stated otherwise.}