Ryoushin no Ryokou Part 4: The White Heron

I realize it's been painfully long since my parents' visit in November and my last writings of the account. Rest assured though that I will make it into the 3rd, and hopefully the 4th day this week as I'm in a really good mood and Thursday is a national holiday - i.e. no school. My house has been thoroughly cleaned, and my laundry caught up. Hopefully things will continue going at a good pace, now that I'm on top of things. I've also started using google calendar and a task list to help me keep on top time management in hopes that I'll be able to better adhere to my New Years resolution of getting my act together and staying on top of things.

So far, not too bad, I've finished yet another book from my Japanese History library, and I've upped my Japanese language study in preparation for a proficiency test in July. I've also started looking at graduate schools a little more. (I'll have to start applying in August, yikes!) A quick update on other recent events, last weekend Martin and I ventured to Matsue for an Australia Day party, hosted by the local Aussie JETs. It was a blast, especially the food. Who knew 'roo meat was so tasty? Next weekend is the annual AJET Charity Ball, and, while I had contemplated going down for that and a game of poker with some friends, I decided instead to stay in the islands and save my time off for more important things, like my upcoming driving test(s), and a hopeful trip to Hong Kong or Okinawa. That's about all that's been going on since my return from Hiroshima in January. The weather's been awfully dreary - cold and gray with spurts of snow - almost every day, but this week is supposed to bring out the sun and warm up into the high 40s. Anyways, back to November.

So without further adieu: Ryoushin no Ryokou Part 4

Dad, myself and Mom at the entrance to Himeji-jo.

Our first day of sightseeing a success, I decided that we'd hop yet another train on day two; this time venturing out to what many consider to be the finest example of a medieval Japanese castle still in existence, the fabled keep of Himeji.

We started the day with a pretty hearty breakfast at the hotel. Unlike the previous day, I wasn't in much of a hurry this morning as we were really only going to one sight for the whole day. The weather was bright and sunny as we walked down to the train station. It took us a few minutes to get the ticket situation figured out, but we eventually boarded a bullet train for the hour ride to the town of Himeji, in neighboring Hyogo Prefecture. The city itself was big but quiet and made for a pleasant fifteen minute walk in the late Sunday Morning. The top of the castle came into view after only 10 minutes or so, and the massive park surrounding it soon followed.

First Stop: Himeji-jo

It was a beautiful autumn day, and the park was full of Japanese maples, famed for their small, but beautiful red leaves of fall. As you can see to the right, the koyo (red leaves) were in fine form this day. After walking uphill and meandering through maple trees, we began our tour of the outer castle.

The castle, sometimes called shirasagi, or "white heron," because of its majestic and expansive white-plastered walls, is a real site to behold. Dad would probably like me to point out that several scenes from the James Bond movie "You Only Live Twice," were filmed here. A fortification of some sort has sat at this location since Akamatsu Norimura first built a small fort in 1333. The first castle was built in the 16th century under the rule of the Kuroda family. The current castle was built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1580, and expanded some 30 years later by Ikeda Terumasa, who was awarded the castle by the Tokugawa shogun for his role in defeating the last remnants of the Toyotomi forces. In addition to the 5 story main keep, the castle also has 3 smaller ones, connected by over 1000 meters of long, fortified walls and hallways. The castle was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992

We began our tour in the west bailey, home to the "Vanity Tower," where Princess Sen, eldest daughter of the second Tokugawa Shogun, resided in the 17th century. The princess and other women of the castle were kept under lock and guard every night. Inside the fortified walls, we were able to catch mannequined glimpses of castle life in various rooms. From here, we walked toward the back of the castle, circling our way through the second bailey and the waist quarter, past the suicide quarter, and up toward the main keep. The second bailey held even more maple trees, while the waist quarter takes its name for being the waist, or tightest and weakest point of the castle. The suicide quarter may have been intended as a place for ritual suicide when it was built, but it was probably used only for its water supply.


We entered the main keep through the basement. As we ascended, we walked through an absolutely wonderful museum of various artifacts from bygone samurai days, as is the norm for Japanese castle interiors. This one was well stocked on each floor with assorted weapons, including some impressive spears, guns, and swords, which were ready at a moments notice, in case the castle was ever attacked. It also sported various pieces of artwork associated with various feudal lords, as well as several large models depicting the castle and outlying areas over the centuries. All in all, I was more impressed with the museum in Matsue's tiny keep, but it was still fun to view. The real treat was at the top of the castle. We almost didn't go, as all the hiking from the previous day and walking around barefoot inside the castle had done a real number on Ma's feet. But she held in there and we climbed up the steep narrow steps to the top of the castle which was shoulder-to-shoulder standing room only. Aside from the dozens of people, the top of the keep also had a small shrine. The Osakabe Shrine had originally stood at the site of the main tower, but was moved during construction. After the castle's completion, an onset of nature's fury convinced the locals to relocate the shrine to its original location, and they set inside the main keep. Supposedly, it's haunted by the spirit of a murdered samurai, Miyamoto Musashi.

The real treat though, which made the endless climbing and crowd maneuvering all the more worth it, was the spectacular view of the colorful park and surrounding city:










Second Stop: Koko-en Gardens

After circling around the top of the keep, we made our way down the stairs and back through the courtyard on to the park. There were still a few hours of daylight left though, so I suggested walking over to the nearby Koko-en park. The area consists of 9 beautiful Meiji-era gardens, which made for a wonderful afternoon stroll. There was also a tea house, but it had closed by time we reached it. You can see all my photos of Himeji at my facebook album - here.

As dusk approached and we headed back to the train station, our stomachs started to rumble. Luckily, my birthday being the next day, I had planned for an eventful evening at a wonderful restaurant.

Final Stop: Kobe

Kobe Harbor at night. On the left is the Kobe Port Tower, and to the right is the Maritime Museum.

I had visited Kobe in the past with a friend of mine from Kansai Gaidai, and I'd read about it in my travel guides. It's long been a center of western culture and ex-pats, but I feel it's somewhat lacking in traditional Japanese culture. That said, it might possibly be the most beautiful city in all Japan, and the harbor at night, as you can see above, makes a spectacular view. I took my parents to a harbor-side shopping center reminiscent of Broadway at the Beach, but much nicer. It took me a while to peruse the Japanese floor plans, but eventually we found a wonderful Brazilian restaurant, where we enjoyed my birthday dinner. If you've never been to a Brazilian-style restaurant before, it's an amazing experience. You take your plate to the salad and side bar and then come back to your table. While you eat, various waiters walk around the room with huge skewers of assorted meat. I don't think they had any of Kobe's famed beef, but that was ok, since Oki's beef is better anyway. These guys walked around and, unless you set up a red peg at the end of your table, they'd just slice off meat onto your plate until you said stop. My favorite was what the waiter jokingly referred to as "Dinosaur." These restaurants can be found stateside, I highly suggest looking one up sometime.

Ryoushin no Ryokou Part 3: Ancients

We last left at the end of a guided tour of the ancient capital of Nara. Our kind tour guide showed us some very famous, very beautiful temples and shrines, each with centuries of cultural and historical significance. The day was still young though, at least by a 23 year old's standards, so, after we scarfed down some nice hot bowls of ramen, I took it upon myself to keep the sightseeing going with some late afternoon stops on the outside of town.

Before establishing a permanent capital at Nara, the capital city of the imperial clan was often moved following the death of an emperor, in part because of Shinto beliefs concerning ritual purity and death. Most of the new capitals were simply relocated to the vicinity of next emperor's living quarters though, so many of these ancient places are within a short train ride of downtown Nara, and therefore very accessible to the curious tourist. One such ancient city was just north of modern Nara. It was to the ancient temples of this forgotten capital that I decided to end our first day of sight-seeing.

First Stop: Yakushi-ji

After disembarking at one of the smallest train stations I've ever set foot, I led my parents down the street a mere two blocks to the Yakushi-ji, yet another UNESCO World Heritage Site. Originally constructed under Empress Jito in 697 in Asuka, to the south of modern Nara, the whole temple complex was moved to its current location in 718, following yet another relocation of the capital city. The complex has seen its fair share of fires and war, especially during the sen-koku or "warring states," period of the mid 16th century. Age and neglect continued to take its toll on the Yakushi-ji, well into the 20th century, all the way up to the 1970s, when temple monks began a fund-raising drive to restore the temple. Millions of men and women from across Japan bought meticulously hand-copied editions of the Heart Sutra, and the resulting funds allowed for the complete restoration of the temple.

You can't help but notice the newness of it all when you walk through the entryway, well everything that is except for one of the two pagodas in the inner courtyard. The East Pagoda is in fact totally original, dating back to 730 AD, and is the oldest pagoda in Japan, and the only remaining feat of architecture from the Hakusho Period. Unfortunately, like many of the places we visited on our travels, the Pagoda was under restoration at the time. Fortunately for me, I was able to see it during my previous visit, and have included a photo from that trip here. The temple also had several impressive works of art, including a national treasure, the Bussoku-seki, a stone with the imprints of the Buddha's feet, which dates from the 8th century Tempyo Period, as well as a bronze statue of Kannon, dating from the 7th century Hakusho Period. The temple actually had another section across the street, but we didn't realize this until we were on our way back to the station and the temple was closing its gates to visitors.

Final Stop: Toshodaiji

The final stop for Day 1 was about a half a mile up the road from Yakushiji. Founded by the Chinese high priest Ganjin in 759, this temple has an amazing history and a wealth of beautiful Buddhist artifacts. Ganjin answered a personal request from Emperor Shomu to come to Japan and spread the teachings of the Buddha. It took him twelve years, with five unsuccessful attempts at crossing the ocean as well as the total loss of his eyesight before he safely arrived in Nara in 754. The temple was the first in Japan to be devoted to one of the Chinese sects of Buddhism, in this case the Nanzan sect, and today is the head of japan's Risu-shu denomination of Nanzan Buddhism.

Several of the buildings on the temple grounds date back to the 8th century, including the large Kondo, or "Golden hall," which is considered by many as the greatest Tempyo Era structure remaining in Japan. In the serene and very peaceful wooded grove behind the temple buildings, rests the burial mound and grave of abbot Ganjin. For a temple to have a grave of a founder, or even for the gravesite to be known is a rarity in this country. The main attractions though, are the 17 national treasures and more than 200 Important Cultural Properties that either reside within the temple's two small treasure houses or are on display in the temple halls. These include some of the finest works of Buddhist art from the last twelve centuries, including my own personal favorite, the Senju Kannon. The statue depicts a venerated boddhisattva, Kannon, who is often associated with love and compassion, and said to have been granted 1000 hands with which she might help humanity escape the cycle of reincarnation. Due to the sheer complexity of creating a statue with 1000 arms, most depictions of Kannon limit her to around 40 arms, but this wooden statue actually has 1000 individually carved arms extending from the sides of the body. Well it had 1000 arms anyway, today on 911 remain, but it's still impressive, if not for spiritual reasons then certainly for its craftsmanship. You won't find pictures of these statues in any of our photo albums though. Dad was too worn out to go inside and look at the artwork with me, and then, once Mom and I made it in, we were told to put our cameras away. I did however, purchase a book with photographs and detailed English explanations about all of the major works of art. Next time you see me, ask me about it, and I'll show you!

Ryoushin no Ryokou Part 2: Towers, Giants, and Lanterns

So, we last left off half way through my first day of sightseeing with my family. Having navigated the tunnels of tori at Fushimi-Inari, we hopped the next train to the ancient city of Nara. The city rose to prominence as Japan's first capital over a millennium ago, and has a rich history, including eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites as a result. Nara turns 1300 this year, so there was a lot of last minute construction and restoration work going on in preparation. They were even retrofitting the interior of the train station with wooden panels and columns to give it more of an old temple feel.

I had been to the city once before, when I did my study abroad, and felt pretty competent in my tour guide abilities. But as we left the station, we were approached by a professional tour guide by the name of Mayumi, who was offering basically the same plan I had, but with the added insight of being a local and certified tour guide. We decided to pay her 2000 yen a piece for her services, and I must say it was a great deal. The rain had stopped by this point in the day, so the walk, although long, was rather pleasant.

First Stop: Kofukuji Temple
This sprawling temple complex is the closest one to the JR station, and thus was the first stop for the day. The temple, constructed in Kyoto in 669, was transferred to the new capital in 710, to serve as the main temple for the prominent Fujiwara family, who dominated imperial politics for several centuries through a complicated network of marriage alliances. While the entire complex looks fairly large to the Western eye, only a handful of the original 175 buildings remain, thanks in large part to the scourge of ancient Japan, fires. An enormous pagoda dominates the temple facility, and, having burned down no less than five times over the centuries, still dates from 1426. Other notable buildings include a traditional octagonal memorial hall, another, smaller pagoda, and a treasure hall. Sadly the treasure hall had quite a long line, and cost extra, so we decided to skip it and move on to our next world heritage site.






Second Stop: Todaiji
The Todai-ji temple complex is the main attraction in Nara, mostly for the Daibutsu-den, or Great Buddha Hall, and the massive Buddha statue housed inside. The Daibutsu-den, completed in 752 under the orders of Emperor Shomo, was a massive undertaking, even by today's standards. The current building is the largest wooden structure in the world, but it is only two thirds the size of the original! The present structure was built in 1709, after the first two burned down. Inside resides the Daibutsu, or Great Buddha. Also called the Vairocana Buddha, this bronze statue is the largest of its kind in the world, standing nearly fifty feet in height and weighing in at 500 tons. More the 2.6 million men labored over eight years to complete the great Buddha and its hall, nearly bankrupting the imperial treasury in the process.

As you approach the Todaiji complex, you first encounter the great Nandai-mon, an enormous gate with two fierce Nio Guardians whose pictures flank the top of this blog entry. Guardians of this type are found within the gates of all Buddhist temples, but these were particularly magnificent. Mayumi actually pointed out to me that the statues, carved from wood in the 13th century, actually represent a religious concept that Buddhism shares with Christianity. One guardian's mouth is open, giving the impression that he is speaking the character あ, the first in the Japanese phonetic alphabet. The other keeps his mouth closed, so that he can correctly pronounce the last phonetic character, ん. In this way, they signify that they protect all that is, from beginning to end, much like the Christian notion of the Alpha and the Omega.

Just past the gates, we encountered our first group of Nara deer. As I mentioned in my New Years post, deer are sacred in the Shinto religion, as they are believed to be messengers of the gods. As such, they are allowed to roam freely across Nara, though the males do have their antlers sawed off, for safety reasons. The lazy ones spend their days lounging around the main tourist sites, mooching off of the passersby who purchase special deer cookies to feed them. But if you go a littler farther afield, as I did during my first trip to the city, you can find some deer who are a bit more wild, and even some who still have their antlers. Dad thought they were the coolest thing, and got a ton of pictures made with them. (Go check out his facebook page for them.) After posing with the deer for a few minutes, we made our way into the aforementioned Daibutsu-den, to view the Great Buddha, as well as several other large statues of bodhisatvas and heavenly generals.

Third Stop: Nigatsu-do
After we exited the Daibutsu-den, Mayumi led us past the Todaiji's massive bell, which, like other temple bells across the world, is only wrung on New Years Day, 108 times, to symbolize the 108 sins and temptations that entrap us within this world. Afterward, we meandered up a walled pathway along the slopes of Mt. Wakakusa, to the Todaiji's Nigatsu-do, literally February Hall. We rested here for several minutes, talking to Mayumi, and taking in the breathtaking of Nara, before we made our way to the final stop of the tour...

Fourth Stop: Kasuga Taisha
Our final stop of the afternoon was the Kasuga Grand Shrine. Established in 768 by the Fujiwara, the Grand Shrine is one of three in Japan regularly visited by the Imperial Family. The building complex is not particularly large, nor is it really any more impressive than other mid to large sized shrines. What makes Kasuga Taisha standout though, is over 3000 stone and hanging bronze lanterns that dot the premises. They make for a very impressive site. Mom however, was more enchanted by the dozens of small children in kimono. That weekend happened to coincide with Shichi-Go-San, a coming of age festival for 3, 5, and 7 year old children. She actually got Mayumi-san to ask a couple of families if she could take pictures with their children! Anyways, here's a picture of some lanterns, you can see the rest of my pictures from Nara here . I have one more post to go for this city, hopefully I'll have it up in the next couple of days!

Enter the Tiger - New Years 2010

So, I realize that it's been while, more than two months actually, since I've posted on this blog. My bad, I've been busy, and it takes me a while to get my routine set up. My parents' visit kinda threw everything out of whack. I still haven't gotten everything back in order yet, my house is still a mess, and my laundry piled on the floor, but I'm slowly making progress. My new years resolution was to just get my act together and set in routine, so part of that requires regular blog updates. It also requires I wake up and go to bed at decent hours, and I get in exercise every day.

Anyway, about the blog updates, I plan on filling you all in on my travels with ma and pa every couple days or so, I still don't have all the photos (nearly 1000 in all) sorted out, but I'm working on it. In the mean time, enjoy my stories of Christmas and New Years.

As some of you know, I had to work Christmas Day, but it was ok, because Christmas night was my school's bonenkai, literally "forget the year party." It was fun, we had some amazing food then went out to karaoke, then a handful of us went back to another teacher's house for more celebrations and a little bit of Nintendo Wii. I got back home around 2:30 in the mornin, but was up by 8:00 so I could catch the first ferry back to the mainland. Then I met up with Martin, from Oki Dogo, and we took a two and a half hour train ride down to Tsuwano, to meet up with our friend Leonard. We spent a few days in his town of Tsuwano, which the locals call Little Kyoto. It's a quaint little town with some nice sites and history. The main street looks like something out of the feudal era, with it's sake breweries, samurai houses, and edo-period shops. Oh, and an intricate waterway meanders through ditches alongside the road. They're stuffed with enormous carp, and no matter where you are, you hear the sound of running water. It was pretty cool.




The only thing standing out of place is the local Catholic Church. A small chapel started by the Urakami Christians who were exiled there from Nagasaki in the late 19th century. The church is still active and has a small congregation, we however weren't there in time for mass or services. A little farther up the way, hidden in the nearby forest is the Chapel of St. Maria, which was erected in the 1950s in honor of the Christians who were exiled and the many who were martyred while the Meiji government tried to get them to renounce their faith. I bought a small storybook that told their struggles, including being locked naked in a 3'x3'x'3' cage in the winter snow, and being dunked repeatedly into an icy pond.

On the other side of the hill, prominently overlooking the town, is a large Inari Shrine. The path to the main complex, lined with over a hundred orange tori, was cut out off the steep side of the mountain, and took a while to walk, as Martin was recovering from a broken ankle. The view from the top though was amazing, and inside the shrine, four maidens were performing some sort of dance. I would've taken photos but it would have been disrespectful.

Even farther up, at the top of the mountain, are the ruins of Tsuwano Castle. At one time it was a very prominent and intimidating feature of the area, but it fell into ruin during the end of the Meiji era. Now all that remains are a few stone walls. Unfortunately, it's quite a hike, and the chairlift isn't operational in the winter, so I wasn't able to see it up close.

During our stay, we were treated to some excellent food both at local restaurants and in the house of a kind lady who had been wanting to meet Leonard, the local ALT. I've no idea who she was, and even Leo had only met her once or twice. But she served us nabe (think stew) with crab legs and fugu, commonly known in the west as blow fish. Absolutely hands down the best meal I've had since coming to Japan. We also met up with Leonard's friend Hack, the resident drinking buddy for generations of JETs in the area. He was an interesting character to say the least, but his English was excellent. Martin and I have been invited to return in the fall to enjoy a local blue grass festival. After two days in Tsuwano, we caught a two and a half hour bus into Hiroshima, where we would spend New Years.


Hiroshima is a beautiful city. Like Nagasaki, the entire area is accessible by street car. Also like Nagasaki, the legacy of the atomic bomb still lingers in the area. Our first stop after checking into our hostel, was the A-bomb Dome. The building, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, was once the Industrial Promotion Hall of Hiroshima. It was one of the few structures to survive the bombing of August 6, 1945.

Across the river is Peace Memorial Park. Statues and monuments to victims and survivors alike dot the area. Most notably are Peace Bell, which I felt obligated to ring as a small personal call for world peace and nuclear disarmament, especially considering that the pilot of the Enola Gay was from my native Hendersonville. Another popular monument is the Children's Peace Monument, inspired by the story of Sadako Sasaki, a hibakusha, or atomic bomb survivor. At the age of ten, she was diagnosed with leukaemia. Following an ancient custom, she decided to fold 1000 paper cranes, believing that when her task was complete, she would be granted a wish. The crane is a symbol of longevity and happiness in Japan. Sadly Sadako was unable to achieve either as she passed away before she could reach her goal. Her classmates folded the rest though, and later petitioned for a monument to be erected in honor of the children victims of the bomb. Thousands of paper cranes are sent to the monument every year in Sadako's memory.

Farther down the park are more monuments, including the cenotaph, an archway inscribed with the names of all the bomb victims of Hiroshima. The archway frames the A-bomb dome and an eternal flame which burns at the other side of a reflecting pool. The Flame of Peace will only be extinguished once the last nuclear weapon on earth is dismantled. Behind the cenotaph is the Peace Memorial Museum, which, unfortunately, was closed for the New Year.

The next day, we got a late morning start for Miyajima, a nearby island famed for the Itsukushima Shrine and it's large Tori. The Shrine and Tori are both built on a muddy beach, but when the tide is in, the entire complex appears to float on the water, and the Tori is large enough to sail a small boat through. The island is fairly large and actually dotted with temples and shrines. We only visited the main one and a few that were immediately adjacent though, as it was a very rainy day, and, as I mentioned earlier, Martin had a bum ankle. Speaking of my Irish friend, the island was also full of deer, believed to be messengers of the gods. They were quite tame and would walk right up to you. One came up to Martin and took a big bite out of his map!

After Miyajima, our site seeing was all but finished. Even though there were numerous more places to visit, Japan simply shuts down for New Years. Even the conbinis had limited hours, and we were hard pressed to find an operational ATM to help our financial struggles which were brought about by excessive New Year celebrations. It was a fun time though, we found an incredible American Bar with a display of autographed sports memorabilia that would have been impressive, even by American standards, and that was just in one room. The other was decked out in old west paraphernalia like six-shooters, cowboy hats, and even a rebel flag! To top it off, they had a wonderful beer selection including one of Martin's favorites, which until now, he thought only available in northern Spain. For New Years, we met up with some more friends at the local Irish bar, Molly Malone's. It impressed Martin with its authenticity and the availability of an Irish whiskey that he even had trouble acquiring back in Ireland. Later we went clubbing and karaoke singing, finally turning in around 7:30 in the morning. We were pretty broke for the next two days, and everything was still closed, so we just stayed at the hostel watching Monty Python clips on Leonard's computer.

Hopefully I'll have updates from my November trips later this week. In the meantime, enjoy my full Tsuwano and Hiroshima photo albums.