The backseat role

The trees in our courtyard are getting green in recent weeks.
Their colors are deepening day by day.
It's very beautiful.

The stream in the courtyard needs to clean 3 or 4 times a month.

First, brush away the fallen leaves and mud. 

After the bottom surface become clean, put stones back carefully by hand.

This ordinary work is continued all year round by our maintenace staff.
They are going to be more busy for the new season in order to attract our guests by the lovely view.

Christmas Tree

Christmas tree has already appeared in Hotel Niwa Tokyo 's lobby.

The tree is decorated by flower artist Mr. Hiroki Maeno. We look forward to see Maeno-san's Christmas tree every year.
Maeno-san says this year's decoration theme is "Happy Bloom Tree", which expresses happiness bloomig like a flower in every one's heart.

The tree will be displayed at the lobby until December 25th, Christmas Day.

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Let's prepare for a New Year travel to Tokyo!

It's time to think about how to spend your Xmas and New Year holiday.
If you come to Hotel niwa Tokyo, you can experience traditional Japanese culture specializing in this time.

Many Japanese eat "Toshikoshi" soba noodle, for long life, on New Year's eve. There are many famous soba noodle restaurants around our hotel.

When you wake up the next morning, Hotel Niwa Tokyo will celebrate New Year' Day by traditional style "Mochi-tsuki" , a rice-cake pounding at the lobby. This is our annual event.

Anyone can experience rice pounding! After pounding is finished, we serve soft and hot rice-cake to the guests who enjoyed celebrating new year with us.

On New Year's Day,  we Japanese usually visit shrine or temple to pray for health and happiness of the year. It is called "Hatsumode", "hatsu" means first and "mode" means visit.

There are many famous shrines which are good for "Hatsumode" near Hotel Niwa Tokyo.

One of them is Kanda-Myojin Shrine. This shrine is very famous for praying success in business. 

This is Misaki-Inari Shrine, our local community shrine which is a guardian god of the Hotel Niwa Tokyo.
It is said that Tokugawa Shoguns and  feudal lords from Japan visited this shrine to pray for safety of their trips upon departure from Edo, presently Tokyo.
Since Edo era, the shrine is said to be a god of trip/journey.

At last, this is Tokyo Daijingu Shrine, which is very famous shrine for Japanese girls who is finging a romance. Most of the visitors are girls, there are boys but they are very few. They visit the shrine to pray for fulfillment in love.
There are "Omikuji", a scared lot, written in English for foreign tourists.

Hotel Niwa Tokyo offer you a wonderful time during year-end and New Year's holiday!

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"International Flavored" Star Festival Display

The Star Festival Bamboo Tree has appeared in the lobby of Hotel Niwa Tokyo.

Please read this Post for description of the Star Festival.

The wishes written on the a strip of paper which is called a "Tanzaku" is very international that you can see many kinds of languages besides Japanese.

This Star Festival Bamboo Tree will be displayed until July 7th.
Please feel free to write your wishes and hang them when you visit the Hotel.

Hope your wishes will come true !

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Spring courtyard

Hotel Niwa Tokyo's courtyard is now in full bloom of Rhododendron, or Japanese Azalea.

Walking toward the approach to Japanese Cuisine YUKURI, you can see them right beside the window of Grill & Bar LIEU.

The big flower is very beautiful !

In the new green season not only the Rhododendron, you can also see other flowers such as Japanese Rose and Hall Crabapple in full bloom in the courtyard.

This is a Japanese Roses in full bloom.

Japanese Roses at the entrance are now it's best time too.

Today, a very small guests came to the Hotel, enjoy bathing at the entrance basin.

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Happy New Year !

May the New Year bring many good things to you and we'd like to take this opportunity of thanking our guests and friends for their continued confidence and support.


We had a mochi-pounding with our guests at the lobby on January 1st morning.
Fresh sticky mochi is very delicious!

There was a custom in Japan that all the relatives gather in one house to pound mochi and celebrate New Year. But now mochi-pounding is very rare in ordinary house so not only foreign guests but also many Japanese guests were beginner pounder.

We had a very fun time with our guests.
Thank you very much!


There is a New Year's flower display in the lobby by flower artist Mr.Hiroki Maeno.
The theme is "Pray".

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Nip of Fall

At the entrance of our hotel, there are some trees which are called “Japanese Rowan”, they bear a lot of fruits this year as well.

Now the fruits are slightly orange and they will change to red day by day till winter.

We call the tree “Nana Kamado” in Japanese, “Nana” means seven and “Kamado” means kiln.

The name came from the strength of tree. It is said that the tree remains the shape itself even if it was burned seven times. What a tough and round tree it is!!

It bloom many small white flowers at the beginning of summer and bear red charming fruits in fall to winter. I think the gap is interesting.


The picture taken on April 26, 2011.



I heard that the red fruit is good ingredient for jam and fruit wine. I privately wish we can serve you the homemade Rowan jam and Rowan wine some day.


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Summer Scene at Hotel Niwa Tokyo

There are many typical summer scene in Japan and I'd like to introduce this summer's feature at Hotel Niwa Tokyo.

We sprinkle water around the  hotel entrance so that the guests could feel more cool and comfortable during hot season.
Sprinkling water is called "Uchimizu" in Japan, it serves to cool the area and keep down dusts.
If you see the Kimono staff sprinkling water, please feel free to ask them to try it!

The mosquito coil in a piggy shaped pottery is very familiar in Japan's summer. You can see it at the entrance of Japanese Cuisine "YUKURI".

A wind chime hanging out side "YUKURI" rings when it catches the summer breeze.

Japanese lanterns and Morning glories has been set up at hotel entrance and YUKURI, also at smoking deck and refresh lounge. (The picture is Japanese lantern.)

                    

This summer again, front desk staff will welcome you in Yukata with fresh smile!