Due to a possible airline strike, Grandpa Kammerer and his brother Robert took a train to their next destination rather than flying. Per his notes, the train station in Osaka was “busier than Grand Central.” And as quite the ferroequinologist, I suspect he was pleased with the change in travel plans.
They arrived in Osaka on April 29th, the Emperor’s birthday. Grandpa noted that the day was a national holiday—and it still is, although it now falls on a different date to reflect the current Emperor’s date of birth. Apparently, the holiday falling on April 29th was changed to “Greenery Day” after Emperor Hirohito’s death, and later to “Shōwa Day,” in an effort to emphasize reflection on the tumultuous events of his reign rather than outright celebration.
Grandpa Kammerer’s first observation of Osaka was to write that it was the “Venice of Japan,” complete with canal:
After staying the night at a hotel in Osaka, they drove to Kobe—a short stopover before boarding the S.S. Murasaki Maru, en route to Takamatsu.
Upon arriving, they checked into Idoya-Bekkan Ryokan, a Japanese inn that Grandpa Kammerer noted was “built around a court garden.” He often sketched small drawings and diagrams of gardens and other spaces in his notebooks, and their room at this traditional inn was no exception:
Ever the train enthusiast, he noted that from their room they could hear the “chugging and puffing” of steam trains. He also wrote of a tea service presented upon their arrival in their room on the second floor overlooking the garden, and described more traditional Japanese fare for dinner, in contrast to the “continental” meals they’d had at previous hotels. Post dinner, grandpa and his brother turned in early on futons in their room—”our first experience…surprisingly comfortable.” He ends the day’s entry with a list of plants observed in the courtyard garden—Persimmons, Japanese Cherries, Live Oaks, Bamboo, Fatsia Japonica, Azaleas, ferns, and moss.
On their second day in Takamatsu, Grandpa awoke early to find the garden being tended. He noted that the potted plants were watered with “water dipped from a well.”
This day had another boat trip in store—from Takamatsu to Shōdoshima. After arriving, the first stop of the day was a private tour of the garden owned by a Mr. Yoshinoto, who was anxious to show off his “acclimatization garden,” focused on getting plants from differing climates to thrive in their new home, which he had established in 1926. Uncle Robert (who also kept a detailed journal, and in significantly easier to read handwriting, I might add) wrote that Mr. Yoshinoto’s garden was “very interesting, even to me.” He was a clinical psychologist, not a plant man in any way, but seemed more than happy to accompany his brother as he drank in the incredible horticultural opportunities of this trip.
Lowell is in 7th heaven—seeing all kinds of unusual plants native to this area…[and] pressing specimens.
As Uncle Robert indicated, seeing thriving native plants not often found in the States and extraordinarily old trees up close and in person must have been exhilarating for my grandfather. His notes on various species in Takamatsu and on Shōdoshima Island go on for multiple pages. He mentions a few specifically interesting specimens from Mr. Yoshinoto’s garden—Forsythia japonica “blooming, native only on this island,” Daimyo Oak (Quercus dentata), Ubame Oak (Quercus phillyraeoides), Iris susiana, Asiatic Jasmine (Trachelospermum asiaticum), and Red Buckeye (Aesculus pavia) “from Morton Arboretum - blooming (a surprise).”
Grandpa and his brother had much more to do while in Takamatsu—seeing the city, touring Ritsurin Park, and shopping for antiques, a mutual hobby, for personal interest as well as for sending back to the Arboretum. Next time, I’ll continue sharing their travel itinerary, and also explore the extensive lists of items my grandpa brought home for himself and family and shipped back for the Arboretum’s collections.
This next post in my series chronicling Grandpa Kammerer’s trip to Japan comes a bit late, but for an exciting reason: I’ve been working to digitize canisters of 8mm film on which my grandpa and his brother documented their trip to Asia. Depending on how long the process takes, the next few posts will incorporate videos alongside my grandpa’s slides and my writing. Personally, I’ve found the slides and travel journals fascinating in the insight they provide into the way my grandpa and his brother experienced their travel, and these films will hopefully add another unique layer to that perspective, seeing the cities and gardens they visited through their eyes!
I have exciting news to share: You can now read Bulletin of Remarkable Trees in the new Substack app for iPhone.
With the app, you’ll have a dedicated Inbox for my Substack and any others you subscribe to. New posts will never get lost in your email filters, or stuck in spam. Longer posts will never cut-off by your email app. Comments and rich media will all work seamlessly.
The Substack app is currently available for iOS. If you don’t have an Apple device, you can join the Android waitlist here.
And don’t worry, you can absolutely stick with getting my posts via email! But for those interested, check out this new way to read Bulletin of Remarkable Trees.
If you have topics you’re interested to hear more about or feedback for me, please feel free to let me know in the comments.
If you like what you’ve read so far, sharing Bulletin of Remarkable Trees with your friends would help a whole lot!