Hasedera

After admiring the Diabutsu for a period of time, we pulled out the map our youth hostel had provided.  When we had identified the closest recommended temple for sightseeing, we mounted our rented bicycles and were on our way.   

Hasedera stands out in my mind as one of the more beautiful temple complexes I have visited in Japan thus far.  Nestled on the side of a hill, you must climb several flights of stairs to reach the temple itself.  On the way to the main temple, there are many other lovely things to catch your eye. 

We thoroughly explored the whole complex.  The last area we saw were the underground tunnels.  Hunched over, we made our way through the dimly lit tunnels, admiring the plethora of little Buddha images.  When we emerged from the caves, it had started to rain. 

Hoping the weather would change it’s mind and stop raining, we checked the map again and continued on to our next destination. 

Kamakura Diabutsu

Japan is a small country, it’s true.  Despite this, the land of the rising sun offers a seemingly unlimited amount of interesting things to capture the attention of visitors.  Living so close to Tokyo, we can always find something to spark our interest and prompt us to explore. 

One of the places we had been meaning to get too for a while was Kamakura.  Just south of Tokyo, it only takes about two hours to get there from west Saitama.  It is a popular day trip outside of Tokyo for visitors to Japan.

The most famous attraction of Kamakura is the enormous Buddha statue-the Daibutsa (big Buddha).  It was built around nearly 800 years ago and has withstood multiple natural and human made disasters including a tsunami (which swept away it’s original building enclosure), earth quakes, and a many wars.

The Buddha sits on its reconstructed plinth, raising it several feet off the ground.  The impressive size is emphasized through the solemn meditative expression of the Diabutsu.  It is truly a magnificent image to behold.    

For a very small fee, we were able to go up inside the Buddha.  This offered a fascinating glimpse into how it was constructed. 

 More on Kamakura coming soon!

Holidays in Japan

The flurry of the holidays has simmered back down into the regular routine of life.  Our third year being away from home from the holidays.  We always miss our families and friends during this time even more acutely than usual. 

Our first year away we stayed in Japan for the holidays.  It was Karl’s and my first Christmas as a married couple.  We made lots of cookies, sat under our kotatsu, and watched all the Christmas classics. 

Our second year away, we celebrated the holiday season in India.  That was an incredible experience I will not soon forget. 

Our third year away, we had company.  And not just any company-one of my younger sisters made the journey to Japan to visit us during our holiday vacation.  We were delighted to share our Japanese life with her.  

Also-I got a really cute holiday manicure.  Just for fun.  

Sumo

If you ever find yourself in Japan, I have one piece of advice for you (well, several, actually…but I’ll address those later):

Go to see a sumo tournament live.

A few months ago I had to plead total ignorance regarding sumo.  Big fat guys who “wrestle”…right?

Well, I still don’t know too much about it, but I know more now than I did then.  A few times a year, sumo tournaments are held.  We were fortunate enough to be able to attend the September tournament last year in Tokyo. 

It was fascinating.  

Processing in for the beginning ceremony.

 Two wrestles face each other in the ring.  There are two ways to win a round:  Push your opponent outside of the ring, or knock your opponent down. 

A close call...

The judges discussing the decision.

A round begins when the two wrestles throw salt in the ring to protect themselves from injury.  They squat, opposite each other.  A referee stands between the wrestles, just inside the ring.  When both wrestles are ready, they lean forward and put their fists to the ground.  This can take a long while to lead up too-most wrestlers use the entire four minute limit allowed.  From what I could gather, the suspense leading up to the actual wrestling was just as important and the wrestling itself.  

If you are really interested in sumo, check out this website.  

Catching Up

The holidays are always a whirlwind of activities.  As soon as November came last fall, we seemed to be busy every waking moment.  Now that we’ve turned the corner into the new year, I have finally found my way back to blogging. 

Before sharing my holiday activities, I need to catch up on the rest of rest summer.  (Yikes-it really has been awhile!)

One of our final weekends last August studying Japanese in Okazaki was busy exploring some special shrines, hiking some mountain trials, and exploring an old castle. 

We began with the shrines. 

Fertility is a celebrated aspect of life here in Japan.  In addition to the special shrines, there are also annual festivals held to specifically celebrate fertility.  During our visits to these two shrines-one dedicated to each sex-we witnessed several families with new born babies, likely giving thanks for the birth of their healthy child. (I am afraid I do not recall either of the temples names we visited.)

The shrine dedicated to male fertility.

Shrine dedicated to female fertility. 

Pregnant women are supposed to crawl through.  If they make it, they will have an easy birth.

The castle we toured-Inuyama Castle-we discovered is the oldest standing castle in Japan.  It was built in 1537 (reconstructed in the 1960’s). 

After refreshing ourselves with some ice cream, we were ready for a hike.  On our way to the trailhead, we stopped to view some lovely waterfalls.  The two waterfalls are said to be a couple-one male, one female.  One of the waterfalls in quite loud while the other is quite quiet.  It’s up to you to decide which is which. 

Our hike was beautiful.  It left me longing for more time in the mountains. 

Living with a Host Family

I mentioned in my last post some common stereotypes and what my previous (ignorant) perception of Japan was a few years ago.  I also mentioned that living abroad has been one of the most enriching and educational experiences of my life thus far. 

The first year of living here in Japan was-by far-one of the most intimidating things I have ever undertaken.  Moving to a country I knew next to nothing about, and of which I could not speak, read, or write the language. 

Moving to Japan was one of the best things I have done.  My world-the way I perceive much of life-has changed a significant amount.  It has been extremely difficult.  Most of my time in Japan I have been outside of my comfort zone.  I feel this is the single biggest reason for my growth as a person.  I have had no choice. 

One of the greatest growing experiences in Japan has been Karl’s and my decision to live with a host family during our time studying Japanese.  This was true immersion.  The family with whom we stayed knew almost no English, but that, of course, was the point.  We were there to learn Japanese. 

And learn we did. 

We were forced to express ourselves using the best Japanese we could.  Dictionaries were our constant companions.  But we learned more than just the language.  We experienced a typical Japanese lifestyle.  The thing I loved most about this was mealtimes. 

Everyday our host family provided breakfast and lunch for us.  We always helped and consequently learned about cooking some Japanese food.  I also had the opportunity to teach my host mother how to make bagels.  It was a good challenge and a new way in which to use Japanese.

Okonomiyaki made by our host mother.  I usually don't care for it, but this was delicious!

Also, because we had a host family, we were able to experience more of Japan:  We climbed Mount Fuji with them.  

Our host father was a great fisherman.  Fresh, delicious sushi!

Because we kept commenting on how lovely their pottery was, they took us to Tokoname-a nearby place famous throughout Japan for pottery.

Our host sister was taking lessons on the traditional Japanese tea ceremony.  We accompanied her to her lesson one Saturday.

If you are ever presented with the option of staying with a host family, I recommend you do.

Fushimi Inari Jinja

Sometimes I ashamedly reflect back onto what little I knew of Japan before moving here two years ago.  At that time my knowledge of Japan was something like this:

Sushi-Raw fish.  Totally un-appealing. (Now I love it.)

Geisha-Cans of pineapple…?  Fancy ladies with white faces?  (Just read this book-fantastic.)

Sumo-Really, really fat wrestlers. (Recently went to the Tokyo tournament-amazing!)

Ninjas-Stealthy dudes all dressed in black. (Still don't know much about them...)

Godzilla-Huge green lizard that terrorizes Tokyo. 

Anime-Really strange cartoons. (I LOVE studio Ghibli films!)

And so on. 

Fortunately, I have now learned a tremendous amount about Japan.  (In fact, I strongly believe now that living abroad is one of the best things one can do.  There are few experiences in life that are as challenging and rewarding.)

Some of the only images in my mind of Japan and its culture came from the movies.  Most recently, The Memoirs of a Geisha. 

During our time studying at Yamasa this past August, we took a few trips to Kyoto during the weekend.  One of the most iconic images of Japan-that I knew of because of The Memoirs of a Geisha-is located at the Fushimi Inari Jinja (a “Jinja” is a Japanese Shinto Shrine).  

The iconic image associated with this film happens when the main character (as a child) runs through the forest of torii to the reach the shrine where she makes an offering and prays.  This now famous scene was shot on location in Kyoto at the Fushimi Inari Jinja. 

I had been hoping to visit this shrine for some time and was delighted when the trip was scheduled.   

Lantern and gateway at the entrance of the shrine.

The main shrine building

The Shinto Inari god (Kami in Japanese) is the deity of good fortune and rice.  At every shrine dedicated to the Inari god, you will find images of foxes.  The fox-the messenger of this god-plays a significant role in the stories surrounding the Inari god. 

A fox at the entrance of the shrine.

Wooden foxes people can purchase, draw on a face, write a petition and leave at the shrine.

It is believed by those who practice Shintoism that making offerings to the Inari shrines is important to their success in business.  The number of torii at Fushimi Inari Jinja is directly related to this.  The large torii are purchased-usually by companies-as an offering and petition for continuous good fortune.  The big torii are extremely expensive. 

A map of the whole complex.

A sign depicting the prices of the torii.  The most expensive one, with the current exchange rate, is over $16,000.00 USD.

Regular folk can buy their own (much smaller) torii for their petitions.  

Unfortunately, we did not have time to make the entire walk through the torii forest.  This turned out to be a good thing… As we were walking back through the torii, thunder began to rumble in the distance.  Just as we reached the parking lot, it began to pour.

The thunder rolling in...

Visiting Fushimi Inari Jinja was one of the highlights of my summer.  If you ever visit Kyoto, it should be on the top of your list.