Grevillea Elegance グレヴィレアエレガンス

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I was walking in central Tokyo. It was raining and I was feeling sad and lonely and then I found these Grevillea 'Elegance' flowers. At first the bright pink caught my eye and then flowers, which look like spider lilies. I took out my camera from my backpack and started photographing them.    

Grevillea elegance　グレヴィレアエレガンス

Pink Knotweed (Persicaria Capitata) ヒメツルソバ（姫蔓蕎麦）

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I wrote about Chinese knotweed (Persicaria chinensis) yesterday and today's post is about pink knotweed (Persicaria capitata). Pink knotweed is called "princess Chinese knotweed" in Japanese because its flower and leaf shapes are similar to, but smaller than, those of Chinese knotweed. And pink knotweed flowers look like really princesses to me. 

Pink knotweed (Persicaria capitata)　ヒメツルソバ（姫蔓蕎麦）

Chinese Knotweed (Persicaria Chinensis) ツルソバ（蔓蕎麦）

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I've been googling the name of the plant for a week and finally found it. This is Chinese knotweed (Persicaria chinensis). The tiny flowers are so cute! Chinese knotweed is supposed to flower from May to November in Japan, which is why it took so long to find out its name. I see Chinese knotweed only there and have no idea where it came from. 

Chinese knotweed (Persicaria chinensis)　ツルソバ（蔓蕎麦）

Sunset 夕焼け

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I'm an early bird, so I see the sunrise almost everyday but rarely see such a beautiful sunset. I was just standing there smiling. 

Sunset　夕焼け

2024 is the Year of the Dragon! 今年は辰年だ！

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

These are stuffed dragons on zodiac trees at Tokyo International Forum. Every December and January, the facility displays trees of stuffed animals of the zodiac sign of the coming year. The trees this year have stuffed dragons because 2024 is the Year of the Dragon🐉.

The Japanese zodiac signs are the following 12 in this order and people born in the year of each sign are said to have the following personalities. (So, for example, if you were born in 2000, your zodiac sign is Dragon, so see 5 below!) 

1. 🐭 Rat - Be adaptable, resourceful, sociable, honest, calm, but nosy
2. 🐂 Ox - Be quiet, patient, at their own pace, but when angry, out of control 
3. 🐯 Tiger - Be romantic, brave, enjoy challenges, but stubborn and restless 
4. 🐇 Rabbit - Be graceful, quiet, sensitive, but moody and easily hurt
5. 🐉 Dragon - Be energetic and competitive, but short-tempered having high pride 
6. 🐍 Snake - Be considerate, funny, caring, but vindictive having high pride
7. 🐴 Horse - Be quick-witted, clever, speedy, clown-like, but self-centered  
8. 🐏 Sheep - Be thoughtful, compassionate, chic, but can't handle pressure well
9. 🐵 Monkey - Be street smart, popular, sensitive, likable, but restless and impatient  
10. 🐔 Rooster - Be intuitive, smart, methodical, but not tenacious and a quitter
11. 🐶 Dog - Be honest, clearheaded, have a strong sense of justice, but negative   
12. 🐗 Boar - Be conscientious, honest, caring, but short-tempered and rush recklessly

Dragon tree for 2024 辰ツリー

Japanese zodiac tree for 2024 干支ツリー

Venus and Crescent Moon 月と金星

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

Can you see them? If not, look at the second photo. They are the crescent moon and bright Venus.

Venus and the crescent moon

Namiyoke Shrine 波除神社

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

Happy New Year! This morning, I went to Namiyoke Shrine in Tsukiji, Tokyo to make my first visit to a shrine of the year. The name of the shrine literally means "protection from waves" and this is understandable because Tsukiji, where the shrine is located, was once lowland marshes along the Sumida River delta and reclaimed during the Edo period (1603-1867). You may have heard of Tsukiji as a fish market, which was established in 1935 and existed until 2018 when transferred to Toyosu.

The shrine has two wooden sculptures, both of which are taller than 2 meters. One is of the head of a female lion (1st photo). You can say it's female because the teeth are black, which is a Japanese tradition practiced mainly by married women before the mid-19th century. She has Benzaiten or goddess of eloquence enshrined within itself. And the other is of the head of a male lion (2nd photo). Namiyoke shrine is small and not that famous but I love the shrine for its coziness. 

Female lion　雌獅子

Male lion　雄獅子

Namiyoke shrine

Ornamental Kale/Cabbage ハボタン（葉牡丹）

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is an ornamental kale/cabbage. The ornamental kale is used for New Year decoration in Japan and because it's called "habotan," which means leaf peony in Japanese, I thought the kale was a type of peony in my childhood. Now I'm aware that this is a cabbage, but still intrigued by the gradient colors. 

Ornamental kale/cabbage　ハボタン（葉牡丹）

Moth Orchid (Phalaenopsis) コチョウラン（胡蝶蘭）

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I've realized that I love things protruding from the center of flowers and that's why the stamens and pistils of Christmas cactus and the callus of moth orchids caught my eye. Their shape is beautiful always intriguing me.   

The callus of a moth orchid　胡蝶蘭の突起

Christmas Cactus (Schlumbergera) シャコバサボテン

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is Christmas cactus (Schlumbergera). I didn't like cacti or cyclamens that much for no reason, but when a friend of mine showed me them, my perception of the cactus changed because of such beautifully protruding stamens and pistils!  

Christmas Cactus (Schlumbergera)　シャコバサボテン

Cyclamens シクラメン

Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I don't know why but I didn't like cyclamens that much. But they're so red and beautiful that I couldn't help but photograph them. Cyclamens are not good for hospital patients in Japan because the flower is called "sikuramen" in Japanese and "si" means death and "ku" suffer.