Japanese Foot Fashion

I had lots of fun watching the footwear fashions all over Japan. It was hard to photograph moving images but here are a few---with many more walking around not captured but made me smile.

Sayonara Kyoto, Hello Hiroshima

Off we go to a new destination, leaving lovely Kyoto and traveling by bullet train to Hiroshima. We are old hands at navigating the train station and know how to enter boarding gates and stand in the proper line.

We arrive in Hiroshima at noon so have lunch in the train station. You guessed it---bento box, except it was a basket! Off by taxi to the hotel where we leave luggage and immediately set out on the streetcar for Peace Memorial Park.

The next 3 1/2 hours were emotional and moving, heart wrenching and difficult. Saeko gave us a brief overview of the huge park located exactly where the atomic bomb was dropped on August 6, 1945. 140,000 people perished, thousands more were injured or later died from "radiation sickness". The city was basically leveled with just a few buildings still standing, one being the now named Atomic Bomb Dome, our first stop. Haunting, yet majestic, it stands as a symbol of what was.

We wander along the river and see numerous memorials for many different groups and people. As we cross the Peace Bridge I stop and sign a petition for banning all nuclear weapons. We then approach the Children's Peace Monument, inspired by the friends of Sadako and dedicated to all the children of the world to live without war. There are tears as I give my 100 paper cranes and fill out the donation form so they can keep track of how many people all over the world are hoping and praying for peace. My simple strand, with names, joins thousands and thousands hanging in special covered areas surrounding the simple but moving monument with a girl holding a crane. I am so touched I was able to visit this important place.

We continue to see other memorials as we approach the Flame of Peace and finally get to the Museum. It is busy buying tickets but we have no idea how crowded the museum is as we enter a crush of people. Total chaos and no way to see or experience anything. Plus, the majority of the exhibits are too disturbing for me. I see the tiny cranes Sadako made and head for the exit. There is a nice display of President Obama's two cranes and his wish for Peace, his visit to Hiroshima the first of any US president. Out I go to enjoy the slightly warmer weather and explore this marvelous and moving memorial.

Later, the group gathers at the National Peace Memorial Hall to hear the memories of Reiko, an atomic bomb survivor. She tells her sad and devastating story as a 10 year old school girl who, with her mother and older brother, manage to survive but not without both physical and mental scars. It is an emotional hour with Reiko ending her story giving each of us a small crane---we are reduced to tears. No one wants to see any more of the Peace Park so we quietly walk to the streetcar.

Thank goodness Saeko knows how to lighten the mood. She takes us to one of her very favorite food joints to eat the famous Hiroshima fast food called okonomiyaki! It isn't very fast but it is very delicious! It is cooked in front of you and you won't believe all the ingredients---noodles, cabbage, sprouts, bacon, egg, a special crepe-like pancake, oil, vinegar, spices and BBQ sauce. Somehow this all ends up in a big round pile, sizzling in front of you, eaten with a small spatula! It is called a Hiroshima pancake and our chef has been making them for 20 years. We clap in praise of a wonderful meal!

Streetcar back to the hotel and only a little blog work before going to bed. This has not been a restful trip but certainly educational. Off to the islands tomorrow.

Bamboo, Flea Market and Good-byes

Seems odd but we head out to the same place we visited yesterday only this time we take the subway and streetcar to the other side of Arashiyama. Entering the small but lovely Tenryuji Buddhist Temple, famous for its beautiful gardens, our first sight is a "sea" of white stones raked in "waves". A Buddhist garden has meaning everywhere with each stone, tree, waterway and path creating harmony, tranquility and serenity. We slowly wander and take in budding trees, mossy rocks, a few flowering azaleas. There is a tiny pond with un-Buddhist like frog statues where coins are thrown to bring you safe travels to return. I toss a penny and wonder if I will really be back.

Just above this garden is another very different garden , accessed by walking through a forest of enormous bamboo! Makes my backyard bamboo look rather feeble in comparison. There are crowds of people and then, when we pay to enter the next garden we are magically alone. I ask Saeko and she says the garden we have entered is very expensive so few people pay---ah, peace and quiet! 

The Okochi Garden was the creation of Denjiro Okochi, a famous Japanese silent screen star. He bought 5 acres in the 1930's and proceeded to build a house, guest house, meditation hut, a moon viewing platform and surrounded it all with beautiful plants, trees, wandering paths and quiet spaces. The property climbs to a vista of the Oi River and we are able to see the Temple building we visited yesterday. The view must be spectacular in the fall when all the maples turn colors! 

 We rest for a bit and have some green tea in the garden, then back through the bamboo, the shops and eateries and on the streetcar. We go directly to the monthly flea market at the Kitano Shrine. Seems like I have temporarily returned to the USA as it really is a typical flea market. There are artists, antiques, tools, dishes, junk, knick knacks, food and much more. The only thing different is they sell lots of new and used kimonos and the food is different (I did recognize corn on the cob!). Bought some small souvenirs and a traditional paper cutting from the artist. Fun to see the sights and smells of a typical Japanese Saturday outing.

Back at the hotel I get a snack at the grocery store and wander the neighborhood observing and photographing. Seems like a typical urban lifestyle with high rise apartments, small homes with non existent yards, one car and a few bicycles but close to bus and train, grocery, restaurants and other essential shops. My one observation about restaurants is don't eat Italian---the food looks like Japanese noodles with red sauce!

Final dinner in Kyoto is a small place overlooking the Kamo River as the sun sets---lovely. Bento box with the usual, a nice glass of wine and, what else, ice cream for dessert. We take a pleasant walk around this upscale and delightful neighborhood, window shopping and people watching. There are more "white" tourists here then most of the places we have been. Wonder why---nicer area? Taxi back to the hotel and say goodbye to 7 of our group who are not continuing to Hiroshima. Packing, writing and ready to head to our final destination tomorrow.

Images From a Kyoto Flea Market

 

 

Shoe removal record!

Glad I didn't wear my tied shoes today!

Haven't mentioned breakfast lately but it is still salad with something else different each day. Life is interesting when traveling.

So, off to Arashiyama, an upscale part of Kyoto. It is very cold and windy and we are not happy to get in a small boat on the Oi River. Plus, we have to take off our shoes! Fortunately, the Buddhist priest riding with us must have some special powers as when we start poling up river the wind dies down and we actually enjoy the scenery.

We arrive at the beach area for the Senkoji Temple and follow the priest up to the small tea room/meditation room/altar and, of course, take off our shoes. When I say "up" I mean 330 feet up a treacherous and steep path but the view is worth it! There has been no real Temple here for 100 years as the 400 year old complex has fallen into ruin. The priest is trying very hard to revive the complex and is making slow but steady progress. (Someone made a donation to install a Western toilet---a big plus!) The morning has been planned with great care beginning with questions to the priest about Buddhism. Saeko is quite challenged with all the translation of some very complicated conversations! We proceed with a very formal tea ceremony, learning the various do's and don't's for proper drinking. We chant a sutra using phonetics, quite powerful. Finally, we do two separate meditations, very calming and restful. A wonderful and beautiful experience. Down the hill we go and walk, with shoes on, back to the bus.

From quiet and reflective to fun and challenging, we arrive at the Samurai House, in suburban Kameoka, for sushi making class. The home is over 100 years old and maintained for visitors and special occasions (shoe removal necessary). It has many beautiful, original painted shoji screens, lovely antique furnishings and a real Samurai suit of armor! Interesting but not nearly as entertaining as the next hour. Hands washed, aprons on, seated at the table we are introduced to Yoko, the funniest chef since Julia Child! We try to follow directions but are constantly laughing and need to be reminded what to do next. Our attempts are passable so we are presented with a "Master" sushi making certificate, smiles all around. Lunch is delicious, even the sushi, and we get to have some fun conversations with all the kitchen ladies. 

More entertainment awaits on the bus ride home as Saeko shows a DVD of sumo wrestling, explaining the rules and participants. A piece of Japanese culture?

A short rest before more Japanese culture, this time music. We arrive at the home of two professional musicians, leaving our shoes downstairs, and enter a tea room/music room. Mako and her husband, wearing traditional clothing, play the koto, the shamisen and the bamboo flute. We ask many questions, hear wonderful music and a few try their hand at making some sound that isn't just noise. It is a delightful 90 minutes with new appreciation for traditional Japanese music.

Our final cultural experience is going to dinner in the Gion district. This is the entertainment area of Kyoto and, in the past, had a reputation as a "red light" district. Now it is a bit upscale with hundreds of small restaurants, some shops and numerous clubs and bars. We actually glimpse a real geisha in full makeup, kimono and wooden shoes---wow! Dinner is at a family run place so small we take every seat. The food is typical, delicious and, what else, we have to remove our shoes. After the meal we wander down some of the narrow alleys and streets, finding them all clean and tidy, like the rest of Japan. There must be an entire night workforce that keeps this country in such meticulous order!

How many times did we remove our shoes today? New record is set with 5!

Taxi ride back and I fall into bed exhausted but very satisfied with learning so much and having the luxury of taking such a wonderful trip.

Fushimi Inari Shinto Torii Gates

Walking with many other visitors through the hundreds of torii gates at this unusual Shinto shrine. 

Nara Deer and a Really Big Buddha

Hard getting going this morning but on the bus for a new adventure. Japan has high and low tourist seasons and we are just at the beginning of the Spring peak. There are many foreign visitors but lots and lots of Japanese tourists. It is school break and family's are visiting shrines and gardens making some places very crowded. This is true at the Fushimi Inari Shrine, our first stop.

We arrive early, the shops are just opening, and the place is swarming with people. At first it looks like any other shrine, orange torii gate, second covered gate and the main shrine. 

However, the gates are guarded by two foxes instead of the usual lions and the fox theme is repeated throughout this large, mountainous complex. What makes this shrine worth visiting is behind the main buildings. There are thousands (no definite number listed) of torii gates, all orange, all carved, creating a tunnel of purification. Some are large, many small and all donated by various families who wanted a favor from Inari. A wonderful experience. On the way out I am tempted by all the food and souvenirs so break down and buy some candy. Each of the shrines/temples we have visited have this kind of gauntlet of shops lining the route to a busy tourist destination---can't say the Japanese aren't good capitalists!

The bus ride to Nara, about an hour from Kyoto, has Saeko trying to teach us Japanese characters. We are laughing at our feeble attempts to guess their meaning. She also gives us some interesting facts and figures(Kyoto is the first city to have electricity)and we have a discussion about the health care system. The countryside becomes more suburban with malls, big box stores and lots of bamboo covering the hills. 

Arrival in Nara has us using the first bathroom facilities without heated toilet seats---we are disappointed! Lunch is in a small traditional noodle shop down a couple alleys and we all wonder how they find these delicious restaurants? Wandering after eating I stumble on the 100 year old Naramachi House open to the public. It is beautiful and I start talking to a mother and daughter visiting from China. They are trying on the kimonos available to anyone who has the ability to put them all together. Laughing, they convince me to "dress up"! It is so much fun with limited English, complicated tying and adjusting of the kimono, but we manage to get me dressed and photographed. Of course, I then have to undo the obi, the second tie, the kimono and rush to put on my shoes and get back to the bus on time! What a fun memory.

The famous Nara deer are roaming the town as we drive to Todaiji Temple. The deer are tame and relatively harmless and the vendors make a fortune selling "deer cookies". As soon as you buy a pack you are surrounded by deer who will butt you, bite your clothes and generally become a nuisance until the cookies are gone. Then on to the next unsuspecting visitor! I have too much fun watching others and photographing the scene to bother buying my own. As we dodge deer we can see an enormous wooden gate ahead, truly an amazing building feat. But the actual Temple comes into view and the gate seems small by comparison. The Temple was burned three times so this one was only completed in the late 1700's. It is still the largest wooden structure in the world---187' wide, 166' deep, 160' tall. Inside is a gold covered bronze Vairocana Buddha, 60' tall and truly jaw-dropping! I could go on and on but, suffice it to say, I was awed. The grounds are surrounded by a Buddhist University and a lovely park as well as the ever present shops and food stalls, with deer wandering everywhere. I have to say this Temple will not be forgotten. 

Last shrine of the day is Kasuga Shinto shrine, famous for its hundreds of stone lanterns. Much more peaceful and quiet, it sits on the hillside with paths lined with old, moss covered lanterns. A lovely ending to this visit to Nara.

Dinner on my own and, I have to admit, I buy a Subway sandwich and stop at the grocery store for fruit and cookies. I do go into the very busy bookstore and have a fun time browsing. It seems that most Japanese still buy real books and anime is the most popular section. There are no books in English but, in the children's section, I recognize quite a few well known authors. Enjoyable for the "book lady"!

The evening is spent repacking, reorganizing and stringing the cranes. I have bought too much already and hope I can get it all in my suitcase. To bed for a good nights rest.