週末、横浜・東京へ出かけた。毎年数回は出掛けていた東京も（羽田空港の乗り継ぎを除けば）実に3年ぶりとなる。初日は横浜三渓園で約3時間を過ごした後、遅めのランチを取った。約10年ぶりに訪れたレストラン。遅かった事もあり、私たちを含めゲストはまばら。このレストランは「海を見ていた午後」という名曲が荒井由実によって作られた場所で、今もユーミンファンにとって聖地となっている。当時は工場の煙突が多くなかったというが、今も詩の情景がそのまま窓越しに広がっている。私のようなユーミンファンでない人間にとっても、ここは贅沢な時間を過ごすことのできる空間だ。
I went to Yokohama and Tokyo this week. having been several times each year before the COVID-19, it was the first time to Tokyo in three years except a layover at Haneda Airport. On the first day, we, me and my friend, spent about three hours at Sankeien Garden in Yokohama and then had a lunch at a restaurant I hadn't visited in about 10 years. It was late and less crowded. This restaurant is where the famous song written by Japanese Diva Yumi Arai, and it remains a sacred place for Yuming fans. Although it says there were not many factory chimneys back then, the image of the scene in the song still spreads out through the window. Even for a non-Yumig fun like me, this restaurant is where we can spend a quality time.
【東京2日目刀剣博物館 Day2 At the Sword Museum】
今展示会で最も目を惹いたのが「丁子乱れ」の波紋が特徴の(重文)福岡一文字。沸（にえ）と匂いに映る光の反射がまるで雲の間に浮かぶおぼろ月。ただ、今展示で最も美しい姿は間違いなく(国宝)国行だ。
The "Fukuoka Ichimonji" sword, with its characteristic ginkgo leave pattern on blade, caught my attention at this exhibition. The reflections of light on the “Nie” and “Nioi” , design pattern faintly visible on the surface of the blade, is like a dim moon floating among the clouds. However, the most beautiful proportion called "Sugata" in the exhibition is definitely the National Treasure Kuniyuki.
夜は全国の日本酒を飲み比べることのできるお洒落なお店へ。周囲は欧米人だらけで、私たち以外は英語が飛び交っていた。個人の訪日客を案内するなら、絶対に抑えておきたいお店だ。
ただ残念だったのは、青森県を代表する「田酒(でんしゅ)」が店内に無かった事である。田酒は80年代に日本酒の専門誌で「最も美味しい日本酒」に選ばれ、地酒ブームの火付け役となった酒だ。今年、欧米人を青森県内で案内した際にこの酒を勧めたところ誰もが絶賛してたが、実は90年代半ば、三越デパート日本橋店で開催された青森県物産展において、田酒が100本限定で売り出されたことがある。しかし、実際に50本しか一般に売られなかった。なぜなら、半分は社員によって売約済みだったからだ。既に時効だが、今なら問題になっていた事だろう。今なお、田酒より美味しい酒はないと思っている。
In the evening, we went to a stylish bar where we could compare sake from all over Japan. Since we were surrounded by Westerners, all conversations in the bar were spoken in English besides us. If I'll guide individual tourists to Japan, this is definitely a place I need to keep in mind. Unfortunately, the restaurant did not have Aomori Prefecture's representative sake, "Denshu," which was voted "the best sake" by a sake specialize-magazine in the 1980s. When I recommended this sake in the tours in Aomori this year, all guests raved this every time I did. In fact, in the 1990s, when an Aomori Prefecture product exhibition was held at the high-end department store in Tokyo, 100 bottles of "Denshu" were offered for sale. However, only 50 bottles were actually sold to the public. This was because half of the bottles had already been sold by the department store employees. Now that would have been a problem. Even today, I still believe that there is no better sake than "Denshu."
【東京3日目 Day3】
美術館、そして私の趣味の世界を巡り。夜 食事のあと、丸の内のホテルへ帰る途中、東京の夜景の美しさに思わず息をのんだ。当たり前の様に見ていた光景が・・・。3年ぶりに訪れたからこそ気付かされたのかもしれない。
We visited some museums and immersed in the world of my hobbies. On my way back to the hotel after supper, the beauty of Tokyo nightscape took my breath away. I had taken this view for granted before, but it was still a sight to behold. Perhaps it was because I had not been to Tokyo in three years.
