the yanaka and its surprising flowers

it was in one of those nights when i was walking in the city when i saw this quirky little road under the train lines. yes it was dark and yes it was new to me but curiosity got to me. google maps said that there was a road there.

and yes there really was a pathway. it was a small and dark road over the train lines, but it was enough for me to cross. it was an unusual feeling to be honest, i only see paths with fences like this in the movies. but here we are now leading to the destination.

Yanaka Cemetery (谷中霊園)

it was empty and very quiet in this area of the cemetery. but it was not my first time to be here, i have walked through these small pathways inside the cemetery a couple of times already. and if you ask me how i felt, it was scary to be honest. i wasn't scared of the spirits or what, i was more scared that if some human was there and hurt me in some way, it was so isolated that no one would discover me for a long time. it really was isolated in some parts.

here was the exit towards the ueno park and museum area. and i was just glad to see some cyclist pass, i wasn't alone in here.

it was after the meiji restoration, a series of modernization reforms which took place in the second half of the 19th century, when the government implemented policies to separate buddhism from shintoism. back then, many cemeteries were owned by buddhist temples making it difficult to have a burial site. it was in 1874 when the government took part of the nearby tennoji temple grounds and opened the yanaka cemetery as a public cemetery.

the history of the cemetery was so long, about 7 thousand graves were known to be buried along with many famous people. the tokugawas for one had clan members buried in here. most cemeteries usually had walls enclosing the area, but this one was different. no walls, no barriers, you would never know that you have entered the cemetery grounds until you found yourself in the middle of tombs. and specially now in spring, the main road within the place is lined with sakura, it just looks like a normal park.

a sakura lined park, until you see the tombs. @ohlnwwlknat once pointed out how empty this picture was, and i jokingly asked him how come he could not see the hordes of people in this picture. of course, i was just scaring him a little.

the area had a great flower lined road that tourists have considered this place as a must see destination for sakura watching. it must be a bit weird having having your hanami inside a cemetery, but if you just ignore the location these flowers are really splendid and seemed untouched in this area.

i honestly don't know if those people i met were real humans or if they were just spirits. who knows? but i finally went out after taking as many pictures as i could. this stairs led down to the nippori station. it was very accessible to the public.

at the very far end near one of the station entrance, i took a picture of this bent sakura tree as a parting shot. this road over here leads straight to yanaka ginza, a popular shopping alley.

as i have mentioned, this cemetery has become a popular place to witness some great sakura views. now if it were you, would you mind visiting the place knowing that it was a cemetery?

as always, AMPING KANUNAY!