Thursday, December 3, 2009

We Climb Mountains, Yes We Do!

Pictures shown: Himeji castle, fall foliage at Himeji castle, fall sakura at Himeji castle, Heian Jingu, twilight view from the top of Mt. Hiei, a child at Nagaoka-Tenmangu, tori (shrine gate) at Nagaoka-Tenmangu, a roof shingle at the Gosho (Imperial Palace in Kyoto), a screen painting of a crane at Gosho, Julia Becky and myself at Gosho, night view from Mt. Hiei.


























Well goodness gracious me! I’ve just looked at my last post only to find that the last time I posted was before climbing Mt. Hiei. If that’s the case then I am most certainly lackluster about new posts and this time more so than usual! Once one settles into a routine, it seems, it becomes easy to forget to update ones blog. Alas. Luckily I’ve got plenty of pictures to remind me exactly what I’ve been up to for the past three weeks or so…a month? More? I’m bad.

Before ascending Hiei, a few friends of mine and I took advantage of the Imperial Palace across from Doshisha being open to the public. While being foreigners gives us the advantage of being able to waltz in nearly unannounced whenever we please, it was nevertheless enjoyable to crush ourselves into the throng of Kyoto-ites and other such tourists itching to view what lies beyond the somewhat foreboding walls of the Gosho. Once we made it past the somewhat lax bag check, we clamored on in to view the extensive grounds, which seem so much more spacious than what the walls surrounding it suggest. Of course, as it can take a good twenty minutes to walk around them, it is perhaps no wonder.

The interior is well kept, especially for the big event. The pillars are painted a stark red and many scrolls and items of import such as armor or musical instruments were displayed about. Interior screens depicting a number of art styles could also be seen. Simple black lines on white paper suggested cranes and other paintings were similar to those of Nijo Castle, elaborate paint and gold stark against cool colored woods. The gardens are also quite neat, small bridges offset by large, old trees, arching forward over the calm, clear pond waters. Even in the crowd, the entire palace held a certain amount of austerity and quiet. After a little over an hour of wandering about, we had grown tired of the periodic rain and vowed to return on another day to view the extensive gardens we were unable to make time for.

A few days later, on our day off, we made our ascent of Mt. Hiei. Emperor Kammu chose Kyoto as a location for the capital in 795 because of its protective mountains. Not only a perfect Zen capital in the days of Heian-Kyo, the mountains served to protect the prosperous court. Mt. Hiei is one such mountain along with Kurama, which we climbed a post ago! It takes a great amount of time to reach the peak, especially when taking ones time. There has also been a history of marathon monks, who climb the mountain day and night, with only a few hours of sleep in between, for years. Just one climb was certainly enough for me for a while. After starting out on rough terrain for quite some time, one makes it to a series of stairs, which prove even more difficult to climb. It is by far not the most difficult mountain to climb, but perhaps next time better shoes than Converse are in order! Once reaching the top, we enjoyed our lunch outside, freezing our poor little noses off, as it was absolutely glacial, and then heading into the café for some tea and soup. It was, admittedly, a little strange to find a lovely flower garden and café at the top of a mountain, which we had been climbing with vivacity and vigor and dirt and mud for the past few hours, but a little civilization was also a relief.

The view offered from Hiei was absolutely spectacular. To one side is Lake Biwa and to the other one can see Osaka far in the distance. The nice warm watchtower located at the top improves the view. We ended up taking the cable car down, as it was getting dark after we had visited the temples located on the far side of the mountain from Kyoto. In these temples can be found the Zoroastrian eternal flame and very, very cold floors on your sock clad feet! They were quite beautiful—alas no pictures were permitted—and there was a huge bell patrons may ring.

A week or so later a few friends and I then headed to Nagaoka-Tenmangu, another temple located in Nagaoka-Kyo by my house. This temple in particular is known for its relationship to education, and if someone desperately wishes to pass an exam or do well in school, they come to pray at Nagaoka-Tenmangu. As far as size, it is not the most impressive temple in Kyoto I have been to, but its location is absolutely stunning. Set against the mountains and near the Nagaoka-Tenjin stop on the Hankyu, to get to the temple from the avenue, one must traverse a large bridge spanning a clear reservoir-like lake. Passing under a large stone tori-gate, one enters the temple complex. We had gone on a day where parents take their three or five year old children to shrines or temples, dressed to the nines, and pray. Thus there were children everywhere, the girls in flashy furisode and the boys taking cool stances as samurai. They were absolutely adorable!

With a bit of shame I admit that far too many days went by before I took advantage of living in a city like Kyoto. At the beginning of fall break, I headed out with a few friends to see Heian-Jingu. Unfortunately we took too much time in getting there and they were half an hour away from closing when we did indeed arrive, but after a short while there, we decided that it was perhaps a little more kitschy than we were accustomed to. Thus we headed off in the direction of Kodaiji for a temple light up. Light ups are really big in Kyoto during the fall season, the powerful lights meant to accentuate the beauty of both the temple structures and their juxtaposition with the fall foliage. As a result of their popularity, the lines to enter temples during these times are incredibly long, some requiring hours of waiting. Of course, my host mom provided me with four tickets to a temple light up, allowing us to skip past the line! As far as experiences go, it was most certainly an interesting one. While I am prone to taking hoardes of photos at every place I go, taking photos in the dark is particularly difficult, even with powerful lights highlighting the trees and the flash on my camera. And thus I was contented to put my camera away and simply enjoy the beauty of the temple and the amazing flow of people. The most notable moment was when we turned the corner to find the trees standing over a wonderfully clear pond, every detail of the night as clear as a mirror on the pond’s surface. Afterwards we went and shamelessly feasted on Italian food!

Later that week is when the real adventure portion of the vacation begins…but I’m exhausted and this post is getting long! Thus I will write the next three events over the weekend and post more on Monday! Coming up: Vacationing in sunny Shirahama, getting spirited away at Fushimi Inari, and visiting monks in Mibu! There are pandas involved.

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Japan is Backwards Land and the Land of What?

Photos: Path at Mt Kurama, view of mountains, climbing the walls at Nijo Castle, Nijo Castle, Nara Period princess, Heian Princesses, demon child, success! climbing Daimonji, The Golden Pavilion.


































Everything in Japan seems to be backwards from America. You get on the back of the bus and exit the front. Everyone drives on the left side of the road. Escalators are never going in the direction you’ve naturally grown to expect them to. They read books from right to left! Anyway, there’s my bit of wisdom for the day. Since I wrote, I’ve fallen madly in love with meat buns from Family Mart. This is a Bad Thing because they’re Very Fattening. Ah, well.

So on Monday afternoon two weeks ago Julia C and I headed out from the Doshisha campus, determined to enjoy a thoroughly sunny and warm day. We decided to explore the Golden Pavilion, figuring that it wouldn’t be too full on a week day. Boy were we wrong! I’m assuming that as it’s such a beautiful and famous location, it’s constantly chock-full of tourists. That didn’t stop us from getting the same glorious picture everyone and their mom has managed to snap, free of people in colorful Hawaiian shirts and sun block clad noses. The entire complex is gorgeous to say the least, and does not simply consist of the aptly named Golden Pavilion, which I suppose is really just a very big tea house. It’s been renovated since it was originally built by Yoshimitsu in the Ashikaga period of Japan. The complex originally boasted a great series of buildings, but only the Golden Pavilion stands today. Additionally, it was partially burned down at some point, but has of course been renovated back to its original beauty.

Afterwards we hopped on a bus to Nijo Castle, where many a shogun spent his days in the Edo period. Alas pictures cannot be taken within the breathtaking building that is the castle itself, made up of meeting rooms, libraries, arms rooms—though all now cleared. Every room has elaborately painted shoji screens and sprawling tatami floors. Surrounding every room is the famous nightingale floor, which squeaks when walked upon. Unfortunately it’s seen so many tourists and groups of middle schoolers that it no longer has what I’m sure was the amazing effect of catching the footfall of every passerby. That was, indeed, the reason the floor was built, so that the shogun might hear assassins.

On Tuesday afternoon I began kimono wearing lessons. I originally had wanted to take kimono sewing lessons, but as that went right out, I opted for the next best thing. I find it’s sort of a kitschy thing for a foreigner in Japan to be doing, but I suppose it’ll prove to be a handy skill perhaps at least once in my life. I am taking the lessons from Mamiko’s host mother, who is a good teacher…though she keeps inadvertently calling me fat and tall…neither of which I happen to be in America! I’ve taken two lessons and can now successfully get everything on except the obi, which she claims is faster than most Japanese people, however I don’t think I believe her!

On Wednesday we went to Sanjusangen-do, where I’ve been before to see the 1001 statues of the god Kwannon Buddha. After that we went climbing up Daimonji, the mountain with the kanji for “big” written on it. They set it on fire every August because Japan is crazy like that. Though not a particularly arduous hike, I found myself out of breath after about thirty minutes…guess I need to go running more often! It really was worth it, climbing to the top of the mountain just as the sun was setting. We stayed at the top for about an hour, enjoying the sight of Kyoto at night. It was absolutely breathtaking…both literally and figuratively! Despite the exhaustion the next day, I was absolutely thrilled to have gone, especially after having scared the ever loving you-know-what out of most of the group by hiding behind trees in the dark and screaming at them!

Lets see…that brings us to Thursday! Thursday was a particularly exciting day, having both the Jidai Matsuri—the festival of eras, and the fire festival on Mt. Kurama. I had originally intended attend both, but was too sleepy for Kurama. Thus Jenna and I headed off to the Jidai Matsuri during lunch, snapping as many photos as humanly possible. The Jidai Matsuri consists of a huge parade, which begins at Gosho—the Imperial Palace grounds across from Doshisha—and walks all the way to Heian Jingu, a Heian period shrine also in Kyoto. The parade begins with the Edo period, people riding horses in full costume, all the way back to the Nara period!

Then I suppose the next order of business is less than a week from then, when our class headed up Mt. Kurama. There’s a lovely story about Mt. Kurama and Mt. Hiei and how the two mountains love each other but are separated by the Kamogawa River…but I’ll save that for after I climb Hiei on Tuesday! Anyway the path up is longer than Daimonji, but not nearly as hard. The weather was perfect and the trees were beautiful, as in that area of Kyoto, they are finally feeling the effects of fall. The day was cool, with patches of warm sun. The view from the top boasted rolling mountains, one after the other. The main shrine at the top is where Yoshitsune supposedly learned to fight from the tengu. In the main temple complex I lit an incense stick for my cousin who is being adopted from Congo. Then I prayed to Yoshitsune higher in the mountains in a place that is supposedly cursed. Anyway the most notable thing about the brochure for Kurama is the second paragraph which reads as follows:

“More than six million years ago, Mao (the great king of the conquerors of evil and the spirit of the earth) descended upon Mr. Kurama from Venus, with the great mission of the salvation of mankind. Since then, Mao-son’s powerful spirit governing the development and the evolution not only of mankind but of all living things on Earth has been emanating from Mt. Kurama, and a priest named Gantei received the spiritual transmission.”

What?

Clearly this Buddhist god is Sailor Venus.

Friday was not actually Halloween, but that's when we celebrated it! We went to an all you can eat, all you can drink pizza place. On Halloween I ended up just watching some movies with some friends and eating even more disgusting amounts of pizza.

Anyway, this week I played it pretty easy other than the trek up Kurama. Had a few playdates and a sleepover…so mostly just relaxing, which a girl needs once in a while, even if she lives in Japan! Tuesday is a national holiday so our class voted to climb Mt. Hiei that particular day…because we clearly hate ourselves and would rather go mountain climbing than sleep in. Hey, I’m up for it! Friday is shopping at Uniqlo and Teramachi…so culturally important, I know :3

Ti-eye-double-guh-err and ta-ta for now!

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Tokyo and a Genki Sort of Matsuri

Pictures shown: Flower in Nishi-Muko, Mikoshi in Fushimi, Host Mom singing Chinese poetry, Enterprise toy from Akihabara,crossing in Harajuku, bunny sundae from Madi Cafe in Akihabara, Mt. Fuji from Kamakura, Jenna and Nellie jumping at the Daibutsu in Kamakura, Daibutsu at Kamakura, Bay in Kamakura after the typhoon, Jenna Nellie and Julia on the Shinkansen.

























Failtastic at updating my blog as usual. Last week AKP as a group headed off for our fall field trip. It was touch and go as far as actually going to Tokyo due to a large and rather forceful typhoon that clung heartily to Japan from Kyushuu all the way up to Hokkaido. The night before we were to leave, the typhoon hit Kyoto. Even with the metal storm blinds covering up my windows, I could hear the wind howling and the house shook! It really was quite an impressive show. The next morning I awoke bright and early in order to make it to the shinkansen (bullet train). However, my host family was as pessimistic as they had been the night before, telling me that the trains would most likely not be running and we’d never make it to Tokyo. HA! I showed them. Prepared to brave the crazy winds we felt at the Kyoto Disaster Prevention Center, I lugged my suitcase out the door to discover that the typhoon was all bark and no bite!

The Shinkansen eventually left—only ten minutes late, actually—and we were off not only towards Tokyo, but towards a weekend of impeccable weather, which I hear generally follows a typhoon. As soon as we left Kyoto we were privy to gorgeous fluffy clouds, clear blue skies, and a whole lot of sunshine. Exiting the shinkansen, we got on a group bus and headed—very slowly—to Kamakura to see the daibutsu, the third largest statue of Buddha in Japan (the largest is in Nara). Afterwards we headed off on our bus to Yokohama for dinner in Chinatown before finally getting to our hotel in Ikebukuro, which is right by a very large and convenient train station in Tokyo. The station also boasts the two largest department stores in the world.

The first night there mirrored our very first night in Kyoto. We arrived in the evening and were to go find dinner for ourselves, however this time we all knew each other and were, somehow, much more ready for bed than when we arrived in Kyoto after nearly twenty hours of travel! Tokyo feels very much like New York. It’s crammed full of people who all know where they need to be in the next ten minutes but have thirty minutes left to get there. It’s much dirtier than Kyoto and the fashions are most notably different. It was also, interestingly enough, much more difficult to find a Family Mart or Lawson convenience store!

So to tell the truth, I spent the entirety of my time in Tokyo shopping! While many people went off to see the historical sites such as shrines, temples, and museums, I opted for the modernity Tokyo offers and had a great time! The first day I went off to a small department store in Shinjuku with an entire floor devoted to Gothic Lolita style. There I purchase a beautiful pair of pink combat boots from a famous designer label Baby, The Stars Shine Bright.

The second day Elspeth, Kyle, and I headed off to Akihabara to be a little creepy. We first went into Yodobashi Camera, a somewhat famous nerd emporium. This store has almost anything you can think of. Cameras, dishwashers, computers, everything. This includes an entire floor devoted to things of the nerdy persuasion. After emptying our purses of coins at the gashapon (small capsule toys) machines, we went off in search of a maid. They stand on the streets and hand out advertisements for the cafes they work at. So yes, Elspeth, Kyle, and myself, went to a maid café. For me at least it was a little creepy, but when we entered the café and found that it wasn’t chock full of gross old men there to be pervy at the super adorable maids, I got a bit more comfortable. It’s hard to exactly describe what a maid café is other than it’s a café…with cute maids! They take care of your every need and pay close attention to your likes and dislikes. The maid that lead us to the café had been talking to Elspeth about Evangelion and thus played the theme song from the show as soon as we sat down! At first a large group of friends were a little wary of we foreigners, but warmed up to us the moment they realized the song was for us. Anyway so I ordered a coffee and a bunny sundae. When the coffee came, our maid poured in the milk and sugar and had us sing a song to make it delicious! They do this with everything you order.

Afterwards we went to Shibuya for some quick shopping before having to hop back on the subway to make it in time for the Shinkansen back to Kyoto. We only had a day and a half to explore Tokyo so I’m hoping to get a chance to head back there and actually historical. I had a chance to go up in the Tokyo tower, but the elevator freaked me out, haha.

Anyway so the next day, despite my exhaustion, I went to see my host mother sing Chinese poetry. She’s incredibly good and looked so pretty in her kimono! The event was a neighborhood event for people to show off what they’ve been practicing, but she’ll be in a competition next month, which I’m looking forward to. As I emailed my friend during the event, our old people in sit around playing bingo and in Japan, they sing poetry! Ok, so that’s not true of everyone. In fact, my old people (hi grandpaaaa) are pretty BA and travel the world. But, hey.

After her event, I hurried to the train and met Julia, Mamiko, and Kyle for a matsuri (festival) in Fushimi. It’s the first night festival I’ve been to and I absolutely loved it! We walked around a bunch, purchasing random foods. First I had half a corn, slathered in butter and grilled to perfection. Next up were candied strawberries. Then a chocolate strawberry crepe and some takoyaki! It’s a wonder I’ve lost 5 lbs. We then headed off to see the mikoshi. A mikoshi is a large wooden structure which houses kami-sama (god). Every festival, lots of genki (energetic) men work to carry the mikoshi, which weighs a ton—literally—from on place to the other, chanting the whole way. The mikoshi is a huge procession of those switching off carrying it, those chanting and dancing, and those watching. All walk towards the temple, where they then replace kami-sama until the next festival! The mikoshi is covered in bells so when they walk and jostle it, it makes a wonderful loud rhythm to chant to. The energy of the crowd is absolutely electrifying and most definitely contagious. We then went for dinner at Julia’s house, which was delicious!

On Wednesday we went off on our usual weekly field trip to a few temples and a gravesite which I have of course forgotten the names or significances of…One was a shrine of the Hata Clan which has a possible Christian relation due to the three Tori connected in a triangle. At that shrine I prayed to Inari and not two minutes later found a pretty little bracelet on the ground. My host mother says it’s a gift from Inari and whether or not that’s the case, I’ve been wearing it every day!

The rest of this week I’ve been trying to get in some relaxation and I’m still sleeping quite a bit, recovering from Tokyo adventures! Yesterday was lazily spent getting a haircut and then watching movies with Mamiko. Getting a haircut was certainly a harrowing experience. I hardly speak hairdresser in the United States, let alone in Japan! The hairdresser is only four houses down from here and it’s so homey that despite walking by it every day, I had no idea it was there! It is run by a older couple who, after considerably mental stress, I decided know what they’re doing, even though Western hair seems to have perplexed them! The woman was absolutely lovely and really knew how to handle a customer. She didn’t even blink an eye at me when I entered with my host mother. Her husband on the other hand was somewhat taken aback by seeing a foreigner in his shop, which I can totally understand. How many foreigners can they possibly get in a small shop like that? After chatting with the husband about Japanese food in the US and how I had been to the Onshukai, he disappeared into the back before appearing once more with an absolutely gorgeous red lacquered fan in hand, which he then offered to me as a gift! Every so often I find myself getting annoyed with the somewhat awkward treatment of foreigners in Japan and then someone will do something so surprising… Not to say that gifts are necessary to make amends, but I suppose the gesture was the same as chatting with the couple at Daikakuji a week or so ago.

This week we’re supposed to be climbing Daimonji AFTER our usual field trip around Kyoto, so there are sure to be some adventures to write about next weekend! Plans for next weekend are tentatively: Nijo Castle, Nara, The Tale of Genji museum in Uji, Fushimi Inari.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Longest Entry Yet pt.2

Pictures: first dance (maiko), screen in the theater close-up, 1/3 of the screen.

This event is, for the maiko and geiko is an advertisement for customers, and as a result, pay to be in the event, not the other way around. Every maiko and geiko in Gion is taught under the tutelage of one teacher and one style of dance, which allows them to dance in the same event, despite being from different houses. The patrons are also greatly varied. With tiered pricing, we poor college students were in the back, where ten patrons squish into small cushioned platforms. The section before that is reserved seating on the second floor. Then there are the orchestra seats and balcony seating. Though it may at times be difficult to see from the very top, it was a great experience to not only view those dancing, but also those watching. Some patrons brought geiko and maiko as their guests. One man even brought three maiko and one geiko with him. Lizzy suggested that this practice is simply to show off wealth, and I’m quite inclined to agree. Once in a while I would glance over at the women to see if they acted any differently when they thought no one was looking, and once in a while I thought I’d caught them, but to no avail! It was adorable, though, to see them drinking little juice boxes when the lights were out!

The first act was all maiko and I’m pretty sure served the purpose of simply showing off the dancers’ beauty and skill in simple graceful movements. They all wore the most formal of maiko dress, black kimono (furisode to be exact—long sleeves) with varying golden patterns at the hem of the garments as well as beautiful flowing gold patterned obi. I managed to snag two pictures of this act before the man next to me started yelling at me to stop in Japanese, haha!

The second act was (I think) made up of geiko. They were dressed as fisher women in blue kimono with red kimono underneath. This was a very aggressive dance and probably was my favorite. Never before have I seen color, motion, sound, and music match up in quite this fashion in Japanese theater. The women stomped their geta (wooden sandals) in time with the music and waved long white cloth strips. All the music in this production was played or sung by geiko, by the by.

The third act used a similar set, but suggested a different season by the addition of sakura trees. What surprised me the most was that one of the geiko was dressed as a man! Her motions were incredible, mirroring those of a man in a Kabuki setting, but also including the grace of a woman, suggesting the actual gender of the dancer. The plot was something along the lines of a fisherwoman with her boat sees a couple coming along. They talk and pray to Buddha (Pure Land Buddhism) and the sky begins to rumble and darken, a demon is coming. Eventually a kitsune (fox) comes along and impersonates the female of the couple, confusing the fisherwoman, the man, and of course the young woman. The couple is overcome with grief as the man cannot figure out who the real woman is. He finally figures it out and as they try to leave, the fox keeps them apart. At this point the fisherwoman brings out a scroll with…a picture of a fish on it. I have no clue why there was a fish on it, but I’m guessing she invoked Amida, which repelled the fox. In an amazingly quick costume change on stage, the woman’s hair goes wild, and her red kimono underneath is revealed. After she is quelled the first time, the fox returns in yet another amazing costume change, this time off stage and incredibly speedy. She returns and is again quelled by the power of Amida.

The fourth act took quite a different turn. Whereas the second and third acts were reminiscent of Kabuki, this act was decidedly Noh. The set mirrored that of a Noh stage, a beautiful multicolored silk curtain billowing up and down with every entrance and exit; two smaller pine trees leading up to a large, beautifully painted pine tree on the wall suggesting the spirit world. This time there were two geiko playing men. I thought at first that it was a play called Izutsu, but now I’m sure it’s not…I’ll have to do some quick research on that. I know I’ve read the play they did before, I just can’t remember what it’s called! Anyway the costumes were very reminiscent of Noh and the womens’ costumes were almost identical to those of the actual Noh play. The props were minimal, a stool for the priest character and a large frame to represent a well, which was brought out and then taken away by a single geiko. The most interesting part for me was to see the difference between a Noh master performing the proper way to walk and someone attempting to do it without the necessary years of training. I finally got to see and also appreciate the subtlety of motion in Noh. The faces were also a wonderful part. Every maiko had her face painted like a Noh mask and they kept their faces so still that I forgot they weren’t wearing masks a few times!

The fifth act was most definitely not my favorite. This could’ve been because my knees had begun to hurt or sitting through Noh, even if they play is sped up by about three hours, is tough. Anyway it was a solo, and the maiko was so nervous her hand was shaking! She did very well despite the nervousness, though. She was in a very simple set, rice paper doors behind her and a spotlight on her suggesting the moon. She read from a scroll and her motions all indicated her sadness, most likely at losing her lover.

The sixth and final act was entirely of women in men’s costumes. If you can’t tell, I had a serious field day with that. In all my (fairly limited) experience with Japanese theater, the closest I’d found was Takarazuka, all female cast revues. This dance took place towards the end of the Edo period and concerned the Shinsengumi. Though the costumes were more feminine interpretations of the classic blue coat of a Shinsengumi member, the dye color and red lanterns they held upon entering immediately brought the image to mind. The dance was very detailed, involving an impressive number of props including the red lanterns, dragons, cloths, and fans.

With the exception of the solo and Noh segments, I noticed a lot of opposing motion. Alternately in a row, some women would stand while others crouched and they would quickly switch off. When utilizing their more flowing cloth props, they would wave them in opposite directions.

Longest Entry Yet pt. 1

Pictures: Moon from Daikakuji, Screen inside temple, traditional women's Heian dress, temple at Daikakuji, train stapler!, maiko>geiko fans in cafe in Gion, crossing the Kamogawa!























So the past few weeks since writing my last blog entry (which are roughly a week longer than I’m willing to admit!) have been somewhat dull, and blissfully so. Due to rain on both Wednesday and Friday, we were unable to make our weekly field trip in The History of Kyoto and instead watched an…interesting movie (re: glorified slash fan fiction) on the Shinsengumi, the police force of the Bakufu during the Edo period. Interestingly enough, they were actually stationed at Komyouji temple, where Jenna, Kyle and I went not a few weeks ago! It was completely unbeknownst to us—this is not a fact the temple likes to promote—and so we fully intend to return in the spring and take appropriate photos! Interestingly enough, the steps we walked on were actually in the film. The three of us were excited to say the least.

Friday held the usual lazy festivities. We went to a restaurant called Donguri, which has mostly okonomiyaki (Japanese “pizza”) but I ended up having sukiyaki, which was equally delicious! I suggest this restaurant to anyone going to Japan simply for tourism, especially if you don’t really speak Japanese. Though Kyoto is a tourist city, not every restaurant is English friendly (obviously, and why would we expect them to be?). Anyway, their staff doesn’t speak English, but they have an English menu!

Afterwards, our group headed off to Lipton, a tea and cake restaurant somewhat further down Karasuma, but Becky, Patrick and I went to the Kamogawa River and sat on tarps (it had rained considerably that day) until we got tired and went home! Nice and relaxing.

Saturday was incredibly busy once more! Sometimes I wonder if I’m doing too much, but I always feel fine after a relaxing Sunday afternoon at home. Anyway, first stop was the Cosmopolitan Club, a club run by Doshisha students who want to make international friends. Unfortunately for their international friends who want to make Japanese friends, there are far more international students than Japanese students. The club proves to be fun anyway!

Before adventuring, we all got lunch at the convenience store by the Kamogawa River near the Keihan railway and hopped across the river stones to the middle for some tasty food! I was wearing tights but stood for a while with my feet in the river. It was an absolutely gorgeous day and the water felt wonderful!

Anyway, so the Cosmo-Club explores cool places in Kyoto and yesterday we went to Sanjusangen-do, a temple which houses one thousand and one statues of Kannon Buddha. On paper it sounds impressive, sure, but not nearly as impressive as actually being in their awe-inspiring presence! They stand in an equally impressive temple, which is nearly as old as they are. The original collection was built in the 1100s, during the decline of Buddha. Buddhism has three stages and the decline happened in the Kamakura period of Japan (this is after the Heian period and before the Ashikaga Muromachi period). Kyoto especially felt the wrath of this decline, experiencing earthquakes and devastating fires throughout the period. In one such fire, the majority of the collection was either damaged or fully burned away and was rebuilt or restored in the 1200s along with the temple. The temple, too, is impressive. Built like any other temple or pagoda in Japan, the slats of the roof are built to slide and rock with the motion of an earthquake, thus protecting the national treasures within.

But what is most fascinating yet is that I did not learn any of this from the pamphlets or plaques, but from an ojii-san (old man) who called us over while we were walking through the temple! He has been studying English for five years and he told us all about the temple, it’s reconstruction, the Kannon Buddha’s, etc. Firstly he urged us to remember, if anything, two facts. The first is that the name of the god is Kannon Buddha. The second is that the oldest of the collection—the ones which survived the fire—are eight hundred and fifty years old. They are made out of Japanese cypress and were constructed separately. He told us that because some of them are hollow, more than a few carry sutras, hidden away inside their stomachs. I am constantly amazed at what you can learn if you really pay attention!

I had to jet out not forty minutes after arriving, however, because I was to meet up with Lizzy, a friend of mine from Smith who is studying at Nanzan University in Nagoya—about an hour by bullet train from Kyoto—to attend the Onshukai in Gion. This event is held once a year, each year with a different theme, and mirrors the Maiko Odori in the Spring. Maiko and Geiko perform a number of dances or plays. Unfortunately English separates the two and so it can be difficult to imagine, but in Japanese theater, the two are very closely related. If you know anything about Noh, Kabuki, Bunraku, Kyogen, Bon Odori, or a combination of any of these, you know that there is at least a little bit of dancing, if not dance movement in them, as well as elements of plays and ancient stories.

Part Two--details of the Onshukai-- can be found here:http://agingerinwonderland.blogspot.com/2009/10/longest-entry-yet-pt2.html

After attending this performance there’s no way I can’t at least try to get tickets for the Maiko Odori in spring! There are seriously juicy tidbits regarding the invention of that particular event, so I suppose…look forward to it?

Anyway, since doing only two cultural things in one day is clearly not enough, Lizzy and I met up with Carolyn and Julia and headed off to Daikakuji Temple near Arashiyama for the Tsukimi Matsuri (moon viewing festival). The temple has a large lake on which they have boats with little red lanterns for moon viewing. Very Heian period. Anyway the line for the boat was way too long so we instead explored the temple. First we grabbed some takoyaki (octopus inside a dough ball…mmm), yakisoba (pan fried soba noodles with meat), and dango (sweet chewy dough balls). All were absolutely delicious!! After that we explored the temple complex, which is absolutely gorgeous and dates back to 876AD. It was the palace of Emperor Saga and he eventually designated it as a temple for the Kobo Dashi sect of Buddhism. The building itself has actually been moved to its current location. The complex is absolutely gorgeous at night, especially lit up at night during a special festival!

It took us a while, but we eventually found the moon! It was a perfect night for moon viewing with somewhat mysterious clouds covering it up once in a while. The air was cool, but not brisk, and I managed to find some nice gifts for my host family, which they really seemed to like.

Overall it was a wonderful but absolutely exhausting day. I ended up sleeping until 11:45 the next day, today, that is. So far my current plan for the day has been holding fast: DO NOTHING. I’ve been sitting here writing my blog and soon I’ll get some studying in if I feel like it! Other than that, I’m going to be as much of a lump as I can.

Thursday we are heading off to Tokyo so there will most likely be another large post the following Monday if I’m not too exhausted to actually write it!

Also, still famous. A woman at the little café Lizzy and I went to in Gion recognized me from NHK. HAHA.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Five Day Weekend Fun! (Guess who sucks at updating in a timely fashion!)

Pictures: Bamboo masonry on street dating back to the Muromachi period, Sakura manhole cover, Miyazaki land, Miyazaki land field, crane, trees at Yasaka Shrine, view of Kiyomizu and Kyoto Tower, view of Kiyomizu Temple, Geiko in Gion, Matcha soft serve (nom!), Geiko in Gion.





























The weather being sunny and warm, we headed out on Wednesday afternoon with David, our History of Kyoto professor, to see the sights and learn about them historically. We first went to the Yasaka Shrine which is in Gion, the district of Kyoto most associated with Geisha, or as they call them in Kyoto, Geiko. We saw two girls who, at first, appeared to be maiko—lower ranking geisha—but their kimono and hair turned out to be incorrect. Thus we wandered away from Yasaka Shrine and trekked first up to Ryozen Kwannon, A Tribute to The Unknown Solider. It is a (somewhat kitschy) World War II memorial with a large Kwannon statue that looks like stone, but is actually metal and hollow. One can walk through it and view small statues of each of the animals of the Chinese zodiac. In another building is a collection of note cards written in Japanese and English of the names of American and Japanese soldiers as well as those who died in work camps during World War II. From there we walked to the Kiyomizu Temple, a large temple propped on the side of a mountain. The view is incredible to say the least. From there you can see both Toji Temple and Kyoto Tower as well as a large expanse of the city and the mountains on the other side. Kyoto is surrounded my mountains so it seems to me that a decent view is to be found as just about every corner.

After leaving Kiyomizu, Jenna, Kyle, and myself met up with Lizzy, a friend of mine from Smith who is currently attending Nanzen in Nagoya. With her we met the “usuals” who geisha hunt. Essentially these people come by after work or whatnot and snag pictures of geiko and maiko on their way to appointments. Some are more intense than others, such as the self-proclaimed geisha paparazzi, a man who gets closer than necessary to get the perfect shot. He apparently has a website somewhere. Anyway, some of the maiko and geisha are happy to have their photos taken, however, others are less than pleased to be followed by the cameras. I managed to get a few pictures, but once the sun began to set, getting a shot of quality becomes difficult; the flash cheapens the vibrant kimono colors.

Friday night everyone was feeling a little homesick and so we set out to find an Irish Pub. Kyoto certainly delivered and we found a pub with Guinness on tap, beef stew, and apple pie. This of course created our new phrase, “when we’re feeling homesick, we’ll come here…to Ireland!”

Saturday we headed to a shrine near Doshisha for a festival. It was somewhat small and because we had missed the opening ceremony, wasn't as hopping as we thought it might be. In addition the Kyogen theater wouldn’t be till the next day. Ah, well. We were treated to a practice round of the archery competition that would come later in the day.

Today we went to the Toji Temple market, which occurs once a month. Tons of vendors show up to sell fresh vegetables, delicious smelling octopus balls, handmade wares, old dolls, kimono, obi, and other such whatnots. While I went to find old dolls, I ended up only getting kimono! One is a gift so I won’t be posting a picture of it, but the other is above lookin’ sexy. I call it my Tim Burton kimono. It was cheap so I have no problems with turning it into a bustle! I also got two obi. One is red with a nice pattern and I intent to display it on my dorm room wall next year. The other is an obi that matches the Tim Burton Kimono in no way at all, but I’ll be wearing them together anyway. It is my David Bowie obi because the colors and fabric remind me of Ziggy Stardust. Hopefully there will be more dolls on display next month!

Weather permitting we’ll be heading off to Arashiyama for the day on Wednesday. This weekend we’ll hopefully make it to Nara to chill with the Daibutsu and the squeaky deer.