Traditional Japanese

In Ueno Park we found a traditional Japanese restaurant named Insho-tei (or Innsyoutei). we ate there this afternoon, after viewing the special exhibit of Kamakura Buddhist art and other exhibits at the National Tokyo Museum nearby. We enjoyed a variety of mysterious small bites of food, miso soup, rice with beans, and small cups of non-sweet custards, served in a woven basket in a tatami-mat room (meaning we sat on the floor to eat). Although we had no idea what most of them were, we liked them very much.

Also in the park: a shrine to the early Edo shogun.


From the museum's Asian collections: a 12th-13th century Ganesha statue from Cambodia.

We had dinner in a small Yakitori restaurant near the guest house on the University of Tokyo campus where we are staying. It was delicious!