Senpukan

Senpukan is a historic, the oldest Western-style building in Osaka, and stands　facing O-kawa River. It used to  be a guest house for the Japanese Mint Bureau. The Meiji Emperor stayed here during his visit to Osaka in 1872. The building was constructed according to the Colonial Veranda style with the granite outer pillars, designed by Thomas Waters, an Irish architect.





After three years renovation, Senpukan temporarily opens in public for only three days. When I arrived at a little past 10:00, many visitors have already been standing in line waiting for their turns. I had to wait for more than a hour.




Comments

  1. Just visitingMar 31, 2013, 4:36:00 AM

    I love the tiled floors there.

    ReplyDelete
  2. F HiroshiMar 31, 2013, 10:14:00 AM

    Thank you.
    Japanese didn't have the skill of making tiles back then, so this floor is not geuine tiles but painted on the floor board. It's fun, isn't it?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dawkins Scale

Image
I dare not to mention this book but a spectrum. In this book, Richard Dawkins presented 7 milestones from 100% theist to 100% atheist. It's known as ' Dawkins Scale '. 1. Strong theist. 100 per cent probability of God. In the words of C.G. Jung: "I do not believe, I know." 2. De facto theist. Very high probability but short of 100 per cent. "I don't know for certain, but I strongly believe in God and live my life on the assumption that he is there." 3. Leaning towards theism. Higher than 50 per cent but not very high. "I am very uncertain, but I am inclined to believe in God." 4. Completely impartial. Exactly 50 per cent. "God's existence and non-existence are exactly equiprobable." 5. Leaning towards atheism. Lower than 50 per cent but not very low. "I do not know whether God exists but I'm inclined to be skeptical." 6. De facto atheist. Very low probability, but short of zero. "
Read more

Flowers at Dusk

Image
They say, in Japan, that cherry blossoms, the sakura, is the symbol of the joyful moment and the transience, which is associated with Buddhistic influence. The flowers in full bloom come suddenly and fall soon. It is epitomized as " mono no aware ". Cherry blossoms also can be the symbol of sadness. Ichiyo Higuchi depicted the saddest scene with falling flowers in her first novella, 'Flowers at Dusk' . Flowers at Dusk (Yamizakura) by Ichiyo Higuchi, 1892. Ryonosuke is 22 years old and Chiyo is 16 years old. They grew up together as childhood friends. At dusk on the Day of the Martial Guardian in February, they go out to enjoy browsing at community events. Chiyo clings to Ryonosuke's arm as they stroll along. And then her girlfriends see them and tease, "You two certainly look friendly! What are you up to?" Since this happened, Chiyo has become aware of yearning for him. However, Ryonosuke hasn't noticed her love. Chiyo gets sick. She s
Read more

Totoro Trail and the flying carp

Image
Totoro trail reminds us of 'My Neighbor Totoro', and is very popular among many hikers and cyclists. You can enjoy viewing the flying carp, or koinobori,  in the Ishikawa River and the Yamato River until 5th May. in the Ishikawa River in the Ishikawa River route map the Totoro Trail the Totoro Trail the flying carp in the Ishikawa River the flying carp in the Yamato River
Read more