For 11 months of every year, Nezu Shrine doesn't attract all that much attention from the outside world. Then spring rolls around, and its remarkable crop of azaleas burst into bloom. The shrine precincts are home to some 3,000 azalea plants – roughly 100 varieties in total, including rare breeds such as the black karafune flower – and has to find space for at least as many flower aficionados during the month-long Bunkyo Tsutsuji Matsuri.
Another highlight of Nezu Shrine is its red torii gate tunnel, similar to the ones at Kyoto's Fushimi Inari Shrine but in a much smaller scale.
