Cooling Down

It's amazing how much the weather can impact my attitude. It's finally been cooling down, and the skies are bright and clear after what felt like a summer full of rain. As the weather has improved I've found myself feeling so much more cheerful, and positive about Tokyo. When it's miserable outside and everywhere inside is crowded I can get quite down about living here. But then thankfully the weather changes, and my outlook with it.

I've been going on walks lately, and enjoying being outside again. Not much else is new, but here's a quick glimpse of some day to day highlights. 

Lunch with little friends

And dessert with bigger friends

Watermelon softserve and frozen s'mores at Dominique Ansel - beautiful and legitimately yummy!

A recent protest against the TV station in my neighborhood

My kind of bicycle

Akasaka Palace

Last weekend John and I went for a walk and happened to wander by Akasaka Palace. From a distance we noticed that the gates were open, so we went closer to investigate. It turned out that they were open for tours, so we jumped at the chance. Through 2015 Akasaka Palace was open to visitors for only a few days each year, but starting last year they have increased the number of days they're open to the public.

Akasaka Palace was built in 1909 in neo-Baroque style. It was quite surreal to walk through the building as it felt so thoroughly European. Sadly, no pictures are allowed inside, but it's stunningly beautiful. Today the palace is used as a guest house for visitors of state.

If you're on vacation this is definitely not a must-see. But if you're in Tokyo for a while it's a really interesting departure from other sites. We probably wouldn't have made plans to tour the palace, but really enjoyed the opportunity when it fell into our lap. I'd definitely recommend it. Their fall schedule is available here.

Akasaka Palace
Hours: See Schedule
Admission: Gardens - free, Main Building - 1000 yen
Map