Today Kyoto
Friday, April 1st

Nijjo Castle (Nijo-jo)

This is one of my favorite castles. I like it because there are still tatami on the floors and scenes of romping leopards and tigers on the screen doors and walls. Of course, there were no such animals in Japan and the artists had to rely on imported hides to depict these exotic animals. Yes, some of the paintings seem to have been done in a hurry (like on the ceilings ? they sure don?t look original). The shoji (paper doors look very old) and the woodcarvings between some of the rooms are outstanding. My favorite is a 3-D wall carving that has two different scenes on either side of it. The scene is totally different when viewed from adjacent rooms. The nightingale floors still squeak when you walk on them and ladies in waiting are still bowing in full silk and satin garb in front of the Shogun in life size dioramas set up in the rooms.

The castle was originally built in 1603 to be the official Kyoto residence of the first Tokugawa Shogun, Ieyasu. It was completed in 1626 by the third Shogun, Iemitsu.. It was lavishly decorated and is representative of the Momoyama style of architecture. In its day, it served as a symbol of the power and authority of the Tokugawa military government. When Yoshinobu, the fifteenth Tokugawa Shogun, returned sovereignty to the Emperor in 1867 the Castle was given to the Imperial family. In 1884 it was renamed Nijo Detached Palace and in 1939 donated to the city of Kyoto and renamed Nijo Castle (Nijo-jo).

The gardens connected with the castle are lovely. Ninomaru Garden is a traditional Japanese design with a large central pond and contains stones in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. In the center of the pond are three islands; Horai-jima (Island of Eternal Happiness), Tsuru-jima (Crane Island), and Kame-jima (Turtle Island).

The Emperor's Palace too today, whew.
more later

Japanese Funeral & Wedding Gift trivia
Mood:  surprised
Thursday, March 31st
Himeji Castle (Himeji-jo)

We've been at Himeji Castle all day and Sylvia, Didik and i viewed the first tiny cherry blossoms popping out ever so slowly. Warmer weather today helped. Can't wait for the full blown blooming.

Himeji castle also called the ?White Heron Castle? for its white walls and gracefully imposing demeanor overlooks the plain below and is one of only four castles in Japan designated as a National Treasure. The first fort was built here in 1333. Over the years the fort changed possession numerous times and was eventually taken over, rebuilt, and enlarged by Hideyoshi Toyotomi in 1580. Considered one of the finest examples of Japanese castle architecture, Himeji-jo was enlarged and finally remodeled to its final state by Terumasa Ikeda. European castles dating from approximately this same period include Chenonceau and Chambord in France. All such castles, including Himeji, were actually lived in by lords. But where European castles were built of stone, Japanese castles were predominately wooden structures.

A total of 360 tons of wood and 75,000 tiles weighing 3,000 tons were used in the construction of Himeji-jo making it the largest extent castle in Japan.

The narrow wooden staircase is quite different from Osaka-jo?s modern elevator. There are signs everywhere to ?Mind your head? from low overhead beams. Once you reach the top the six flights of stairs are worth the view of the entire city. I am mostly drawn to the moats around the castle walls. The koi are so colorful and big. If you clap your hands they will all come running ? so to speak.

Just outside the castle is Himeji Koko-en. It actually consists of 9 separate gardens each enclosed by its own stonewall. Different styles are displayed in each. Some have running water, ponds, a teahouse and a dry garden. I think they are well worth seeing.

Nara
Mood:  caffeinated
Wednesday, March 30th
Nara

Nara was the capital of Japan from 710 to 784. It was considered the cradle of Japanese culture, arts, and crafts. Buddhism first flourished here under the strong patronage of successive emperors and empresses. Many sights here are now registered on the UNESCO?s World Heritage List as an irreplaceable part of the cultural heritage of all humanity.

The city is not large but packs in quite a few temples and shrines within a comfortable walking distance. One of the most memorable scenes on postcards of this area is the cute little tama deer. They have full reign of the park and can be seen peaking out behind tombstones or just lounging on the grass. There are many stands where tourists can buy biscuits to feed the deer, and some of these critters have become quite the beggars. Many Japanese children are traumatized every year by their insistent behavior. We saw a few little kids in tears. Most of the deer are very well behaved though.

Nara Park was created in 1880 and contains many of the sites designated by UNESCO including Kofukuji Temple (which includes a colorful 5 story pagoda), Kasuga Grand Shrine, and Todaiji Temple (the largest wooden building in the world). Todaiji contains one of the great Daibutsu (statues of Buddha). Most of the principal statues in big temples are 4.8 meters tall, and are called Jorokubutsu. All Buddha statues taller than Jorokubutsu are called Daibutsu [ Great Buddha ].

More about NARA

Tuesday, March 29th
Takarazuka Review
This was better than Las Vegas except we couldn't understand a word.
This dance company has been in existence over 90 years.You really need to see pictures of this phenomenon. It's an all women dance revue.
Check it out: Takarazuka Home Page


Sunday, March 27th
Koyasan (Mount Koya)

Koyasan is one large seminary of Shingon Buddhism that has kept its lanterns burning since its founding in 816. At 3,200 feet elevation it is in snow during the winter, and we still saw traces in the shade. Kobodiashi sailed to China at the age of 31 in 804. He studied Tantric Buddhism there and returned in 806 to Japan. He taught Shingon ? True word- sect Buddhism till he founded his retreat at Koyasan. Legend has it that he entered Okunoin cave at age 62 to begin ?eternal meditation. Some believe that he is still meditating there today. hm. Traditions are still carried on by 117 sub-temples including 53 shukubo, temples that provide lodging and dining to tourists and pilgrims. Sylvia was game to try staying at one of these. I was so excited because this was one of the things i really wanted to do before i left Japan. We stayed at Rengejoin because it has a couple of priests who speak a bit of English. Our temple featured ancient looking wall paintings and traditional shoji, paper doors. They had an enclosed Japanese garden that will look even better in a few weeks when things start sprouting and blooming. We slept on futon on tatami. Our dinner was a special Buddhist vegetarian cuisine called shojinryori and was surprisingly delicious. It is skillfully cooked without any use of meat, fish, onions, or garlic. Some of the delicacies are tempura, aghe, Koya tofu, Goma (sesame)-tofu, Miso soup, sweet and sour seaweeds in vinegar, and wild potatoes. We did a 40-minute meditation before dinner. At 6:30am, for those who were interested, there was chanting and a lecture in Japanese and English. This was very popular with standing room only on the morning we attended. The lecture was really far-out. The priest presented these ?scientific photos? of ice crystals formed from drops of water that had been either positively or negatively meditated on in some way. Of course the ?good karma? water had gorgeous crystals and the ?bad vibe? water had really ugly unnatural crystals. His conclusion was that since the human body is mostly water that we should send out ?positive vibes? to all. Well, duh.

Considering this is the off-season we were surprised to see at least 30 or 40 people staying at just this one temple on a Sunday evening. We ate dinner and breakfast with an interesting couple from Singapore. She was Chinese and he was Italian. There was a group from Israel and a Japanese group as well. This experience isn?t cheap, but i think it was worth every penny. Lodging and two meals was about $100, actually very reasonable in Japan.

This was the second visit for me to Koyasan but i still didn?t get to explore it all. The first time because we ran out of time after hiking with the Kansai Ramblers all day to get there. This time the weather was cold and rainy and just wasn?t conducive to strolling under cedars viewing centuries old tombs. We did get some cool pictures but retreated quickly to a warm restaurant for some okonomiyaki.

Welcome to KOYASAN

Whirlwind tour
Mood:  smelly
whew, i'm tired.
Sylvia and Jane are going to get dressed in kimono today. I'm going to take a nap

Friday, Closing Ceremony and Arima Onsen
Thursday, Open Air Farm House Museum and Osaka Castle in the cold, cold rain.
Wed. I taught all day.
Tues. Sylvia went to school with me and we taught the first graders some American Folk Dance fun!
Monday, toured Kyoto - Kiyomizu Temple....

Zzzzzzz more later.

Old Farm Houses
Mood:  bright

Open Air Museum of Old Japanese Farm Houses

This was an outstanding chance to see 11 original old farmhouses brought from different rural parts of Japan and reconstructed in a natural outdoor park setting in Hatori-Ryokuchi Park in Osaka. These houses were all built in the Edo period, 1603-1867. They represent the styles and folk customs of their distinct geographical areas. Furniture and tools were on display in some of the homes giving us a tiny peak into what it must have been like back then. Didik, Sylvia and i sat around a fire on tatami talking in our limited Japanese about what it was like back then. Our hostess showed us how the charcoal was placed in containers to be positioned close to people to keep them warm. We got a taste of the smoky environment that most primitive peoples lived/do live in. We saw silk looms and a silk cocoon. The caterpillars were raised on the second floor of the building we were in. The ?gassho? type house was named because of its steep roof that looks like two hands pressed together in an attitude of prayer and obviously comes from a very snowy region of Japan. One L-shaped house with the style Chumon-zukuri also came from deep snow country and featured thickly thatched walls, pillars set directly on the ground and earthen floors covered with straw mats. BRRRR. One house from a more rainy part of the country was thatched with cryptomeria bark. It also had wooden boards, called Uchioroshi under the eaves to prevent heavy wind and rain from coming into the house. Because the village was situated in a valley this house was very narrow and long.

Too bad that we were a bit early for the cherry blossoms but the ume, plums, were just as pretty in my opinion. Well, maybe not.

Osaka-jo or Osaka Castle Museum

This is appropriately named. It is a museum and not an original structure but it sure is gorgeous on a sunny day.

In the autumn of 1496, the priest Rennyo of the Jodo-shinshu Buddhist sect built monks? quarters near the site of present day Osaka Castle. The monks? quarters grew into a big temple called Osaka Hongan-ji. This temple exerted great influence throughout the country during its period of civil wars. In 1580, however, Osaka Hongan-ji Temple fell to Nobunaga Oda, who was then rising in power. But just two years later, after coming under attack by his retainer, Nobunaga committed suicide at Honnoji Temple in Kyoto. Hideyoshi Toyotomi then succeeded Nobunaga in the campaign to unite the entire country, and seized control of Osaka. In 1583, Hideyoshi began building a large-scale castle at the site of Hongan-ji and the result was the magnificent Osaka Castle, unprecedented in its excellence. However, during the Summer War of 1615, some 17 years after Hideyoshi?s death, Osaka Castle was completely destroyed by fire.

It has gone through two major reconstructions and some large-scale repairs. There is criticism for its modern interior with 3-D computer dioramas, but i thought that they were cool. There is also an elevator so that even wheel chair bound folks can get a glimpse from the top. This is a fantastic view on a clear day. The down side of all this modernization is that you don?t get a feel of what it was like back then. That?s why a trip to Himeji-jo or another more authentic castle is highly recommended by this tourista.



Tuesday, March 22nd
Breaking the English Code

It?s really cold today and so i slip into the warming room on the train platform to wait for my train. There is a family in there already and as i enter their 4-year-old boy beams a big smile at me. After a nudge from Dad he proudly proceeds to introduce himself. He?s rather happy with his statement and prances off, but i can see that he?s still thinking. He gives Dad a nudge trying to get Dad to introduce himself. Dad won?t budge so the boy points at Dad and says: ?My name is _____.? I correct him and have him say ?My Dad?s name is______.? You can see a light come on, and he runs to Mom next. There?s a questioning look at me begging for the next prompt. After i tell him ?My Mom?s name is_____.? He introduces Mom. Then it?s off to grandma and his little two-year-old brother. By the time he has introduced his whole family to me there are quite a few onlookers. He is bubbling with excitement and does a bit of a victory dance amusing all of us immensely. How easy it is to teach English!

O Higan
Now Playing: Spring Equinox
Monday, March 21st
is a Japan holiday - the spring Equinox and we're off to Kyoto.

Here's a bit about one of the sights we visited today:
Otani Mausoleum
The Otani Honbyo, popularly known as Nishi Otani, is the Mausoleum dedicated to Shinran Shonin (1173-1263), the founder of the Shin Buddhist tradition (Jodo Shinshu) and one of the foremost figures in the history of Japanese religion.
Shinran was born at Hino, a hamlet southeast of Kyoto. At the age of 9, he took tonsure at Shoren-in Temple and became a monk in the Buddhist temple on Mount Hiei. After 20 years of study and practice there, however, he descended the mountain and embraced the Pure Land path, which is based on the compassionate activity of Amida Buddha, the Buddha of Infinite Life and Immeasurable Light. Thereafter, he devoted his life to teaching the nembutsu, the saying of the Name of Amida Buddha that arises from true entrusting of oneself to the Buddha?s wisdom and compassion. Today, the Shin Buddhist path that he founded forms one of the most widespread religious traditions in Japan, With over 10 million adherents.
After Shinran?s death in Kyoto at the age of 90, his descendants and disciples built a chapel dedicated to this memory at Otani, north of Maruyama Park in the eastern hills of Kyoto and gradually developed it into the Hongwanji temple. During the 15th century, the Hongwanji buildings were destroyed by monk-warriors from Mount Hiei, but in 1589, Toyotomi Hideyoshi provided for the preservation of the mausoleum at its original site, and in 1591 also donated a tract of land about 2 km west of here for the Hongwanji temple. In 1603, the mausoleum was moved south to its present location.
The Otani Mausoleum now occupies an area of nearly 20 acres including the cemetery behind. Walking up one passes over an arched stone bridge to reach the main gate (somon), a wooden structure with a large plaque. From here, the main hall (hondo or butsuden) dedicated to Amida Buddha can be seen slightly higher up the hill.
To the right are two buildings where Shin Buddhists visiting the mausoleum are received. To the left are two double-storied wooden structures, one for a drum and the other for a bell, which are used to announce services.
Behind the main hall, through the gate enshrining two guardian gods (ninten mon), is a wide, graveled terrace. Behind it is the Meicho-do, a hall built in 1661 to commemorate Shinran?s 400th memorial. Here, services are held before the remains of the founder (sodan).
At the right edge of the terrace stands a memorial hall dedicated to the victims of WWII. Beyond it are two large, modern buildings ? Muryoju-do I and II, which serve as a mausoleum for the ashes of Shin Buddhists from throughout the country and abroad. They house more than 20,000 small altars.
The area above the northern gate of the Otani Mausoleum is called Toribeyama, famous since ancient times as a cremation site and burial ground. It is covered with over 15,000 tombs. The path through the cemetery leads to the beautiful Kiyomizu temple.

And on the grounds of Kiyomizu

Jishu Shrine is located near Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto but is independent of the temple. For 1300 years, Japanese young people have looked up to and relied on it as the dwelling place of the god of love and matchmaking. It is one of my most favorite Shinto shrines because there is a lot of explanations in English and so many fun things to do with love and marriage. Here are just a few to give you a taste:

* In front of the main building, there are two stones set about ten yards apart. They are called ?love-fortune-telling? stones. If a person walks safely from one stone to the other with closed eyes, his or her love will be realized. I have watched many women verbally guiding their boyfriends between the two stones. This doesn?t seem to count as ?cheating!?

* After people are united in marriage, they call on the shrine to offer their thanks and their names are put up on a notice board in front of the shrine. There are many foreign names on this board surprisingly.

* There are many Good Luck Charms that can be purchased to help in a whole lot of areas of life from love, to good marriage, successful pregnancy, easy delivery of a child, health, wealth, passing an exam, safety in a car or motorcycle, and more. Amazing.

Sun. March 20th
10th Anniversary Hanshin/Awagi earthquake concert with Yosie and Miki.

Sat. March 19th
We toured Nishinomiya.
Sylvia got to try Chanko for dinner with Doug, Jane and their guests from the US. It's a dish cooked at the table that is popular with the sumo wretlers. There's lots of seafood, meats, veggies, mushrooms, tofu and more that we keep adding to a simmering pot of broth. Dig in and chanko! yum.

Sylvia's arrived
Mood:  happy
Sylvia flew in on Friday evening from Spokane.
Yippee, a travelling buddy.
What fun.

Words of Wisdom
A human being is a part of the whole called by us “the universe,” a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separate from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and affection of a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of understanding and compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.

ALBERT EINSTEIN

Progress in small increments
Mood:  cool
The PT raised my arm almost completely over my head without me screaming and crying too much today. I can touch my forehead with my left hand, yippee. There will be a big celebration when i can do my own ponytail.
Also discovered today that i can type with both hands. That's nice. The emails will be a lot easier to write now. I hated hunting and pecking with one finger. boring and slow!

Also, i get to go back to work on Wednesday. Sure do miss the kids. yahoo.

So Where is Spring?
Mood:  chillin'
Two days ago we were strolling under a warm sun enjoying the first hints of blossoms in our short sleeve t-shirts. Today, i am bundled in my woolies and knit cap and watching the snow drift down. The weather forecaster says that "winter" is taking one last fighting jab at "spring."
Go, spring, go.