After Tokyo, Takayama and Shirakawago we arrive in Kanazawa and return to modern civilization, a medium-sized city where all points of interest are within walking distance or a few bus stops.

Here there is no metro, but a fantastic bus service, where two in particular, yellow loop and green loop, are dedicated to tourists and touch all the points of interest one in one direction and the other in the other, in a circular tour from which you can go up and down for 200 yen at a time! The line ones have different prices based on where you go up and where you go down, you have to take a note from a machine at the entrance and compare the number with that of the panel placed at the exit where you pay by putting the corresponding coins in the appropriate box next to the driver. It's more complicated to describe it than to do it! The first time we went up we were a bit perplexed, but it's really simple if you really don't understand the language of gestures comes in handy…. Just show the driver the note and the money and he will take what it takes!!!!

With such efficient public transport and a nice walk, on a full day you can see a lot of beautiful places!

Kanazawa has interesting historic districts to visit and a wonderful garden (Kenroku-en) with corners dedicated to plums and cherry trees that this season give moments of contemplation not only to the Japanese and enjoying scents.

Next to the wonderful Kenroku-en garden is kanazawa castle and its garden of which the same cannot be said! You could also leave out the visit to the castle as it was recently rebuilt, unless you are interested in ancient construction techniques, here in fact it is explained step by step how this palace was rebuilt with the same joint construction techniques of its origins.

For a quick lunch in Kanazawa you can count on the market of Omi-cho where there is always fish at will!! I recommend a portion of fatty tuna (to the eye it would seem salmon, but it is not and it is exquisite) you need energy to face the afternoon and walks in the neighborhoods.

The Historic Geisha and Samurai Districts in Kanazawa

The geisha district(Higashi Chaya)and the smaller one of the samurai(Naga-Machi)are the ancient neighborhoods still preserved with their respective typical houses very different from each other. Although of the ancient tea rooms of Higashi Chaya there are few left and in their place today there are shops and some house museum (such as Shima and Kaikaro both ancient houses of gheisce) the visit of this labyrinthine neighborhood remains incredibly fascinating, despite the flow of numerous tourists especially Japanese who, unlike what you may think, loving to dress in traditional costume help to give an idea of what the image of the streets of the nineteenth century should look like at the time when the geishas lived there and entertained the rich merchants there.

The samurai district Naga – machi is less touristy it is a small group of typical houses that are still homes, but walking within the fence walls of these "fortress" houses in these narrow streets is an emotion, few tourists some bicycle that passes and seems to go back in time …

Where to dine in Kanazawa

For dinner in this city famous for fish you just have to choose a nice place and taste some fish to eat strictly with chopsticks, we tasted a few nice things in Iwashgumi,we must have remained nice to the owners / cooks because they gave us their specialty in a jar to take home!!!