Final weeks in Japan

Here in Kyoto, I’m watching the election returns preparing to celebrate with my friends Diane and Hikaru, and Diane’s nephew Kyle from Seattle. I’ll be flying to Bangkok tomorrow, so I want to bring you up to date on the last weeks of my visit to Japan.

Thanks to Diane and Hikaru, I have spent about half of my 8 weeks in Japan, in Kyoto as a recipient of their warm hospitality. Truly they have welcomed me as a member of their family and given me full access to their comfortable home along with a bicycle and 24 hour computer access. I’ve been able to enjoy the wonders of Kyoto and the warmth of family far from home.

Picking up from the end of the last blog entry, I’ll share with you my travelogue of where I’ve been in the last few weeks. Before leaving Shikoku, I toured Matsuyama Castle and took a bath at Dogo Onsen, the oldest hot spring spa in Japan, and visited a very old shrine and temple there. Coming home from Shikoku after another visit with Hitomi and her family in Mishima, I again stopped in Okayama to visit Miyuki and receive another lymph treatment. Not quite so painful this time thankfully. On the way back to Kyoto, I stopped to see the famous Himeji Castle and Kokoen Garden in Himeji. I have made a couple of other side trips of great interest. First I went to Koyasan, a hilltop monastery of the Shingon school of Buddhism. I stayed in a temple, was served delicious vegetarian food in my room by the young priests, and attended an early morning prayer service. In spite of the pouring rain (hey, I’m from Seattle),
I ventured out to stroll through the amazing 1000 year old cemetery in awe of the beauty, the dedication, the antiquity, and the enormity of the ancient trees. I also, quite by chance, wandered in to a Buddhist service held in a small temple lit by only 2 candles, with chanting and a 15-minute address by a priest who was completely in the dark. Even though it was entirely in Japanese, I could tell that what he was saying was profound and moving to all present. When I left Koyasan on a very very steep funicular, a magical mist hovered below summing up my emotions on visiting this very special place.

From Koyasan I headed north to the ancient Japanese capital of Nara. I stayed in a B&B in Oji about 15 minutes by train outside of Nara. From Oji, I bicycled to Horyuji, a massive temple complex containing the oldest wooden buildings in the world. Some of these temple buildings date back 1300 years, yet they are so well maintained and still in use that they don’t appear so old. October is the month for Japanese school children to take field trips to important historical sites, and I found them everywhere I went, including many groups in Horyuji. Unfortunately, vying for space with these hordes of boisterous school children detracted from my ability to sense the awe, grandeur and spirituality of most of the temples and shrines I visited.

The next day I went into Nara, an ideal tourist city for me. A large area of the city was reclaimed from wasteland many years ago and made into a vast city park. Many of the important historic sites are located in this park heavily populated by the ever-present Nara deer. Some of these deer act like deer, wandering around, grazing, sleeping, while others are totally obnoxious, pandering for handouts from the tourists. While I was trying to eat a pear, one particularly persistent deer even tried to take a bite out of my leg! By far the most impressive thing I saw was Todaiji, the largest wooden building in the world. It’s so big because it houses an enormous Buddah and supporting figures. Again there were thousands of school children following their teachers around. They were most excited to worm their way through a hole in one of the massive pillars said to be the size of one of the giant Buddah’s nostrils. See the hilarious photo of one kid who got stuck and was pulled from one end and pushed from the other by his teachers.

After another week in Kyoto obsessing about planning my futures steps, I headed out to visit the Konohana Family, an intentional spiritual farming community and eco-village living at the foot of Mt. Fuji. This is a utopian family of about 55 members whose aim is to promote oneness among all people. They operate a thriving organic farm on 60 different nearby parcels of land all given to them by neighbors who no longer are farming that land. They also raise chickens for eggs and goats for milk.

The food was all super delicious and knowing it was totally organic made it all the more enjoyable. I helped out during the two afternoons I was there by harvesting adzuki beans in what would have been the shadow of Mt. Fuji if the sun had been shining, which it wasn’t until the day I left.

I went from this small farming community via one bus and three trains to the mega-metropolis of Tokyo. I had dreaded going there for fear of being trampled to death by the crowds or freaking out in the packed subways. Au contraire, I found Tokyo to be a delightful, highly energetic city teeming with all sorts of life. As with all the cities in Japan that I visited, I found both huge modern wide boulevards and small quaint back streets. I had to go to Tokyo to pick up my visa for Thailand, and I’m so glad I did. The innovative modern architecture of Omotesando, the high fashion on the streets, the bustling activity in Shibuya, the ease of getting around on the trains and subways, walking the small side streets all fascinated me. But after an evening performance of Traditional Japanese Performing Arts, the mountains were beckoning.

The next morning I boarded a Shinkansen bullet train for Nagano, and then a smaller train for Matsumoto at the entrance to the Japanese Alps. I stayed in a traditional ryokan, ate soba noodles at a restaurant where they are made, and afterwards walked to see the famous Matsumoto castle lit up at night and reflected in the ancient moat. Very impressive. I really liked what I saw of Matsumoto, but the mountains were still beckoning, so the next morning I boarded a train and then a bus to get to Norikura Highlands high in the Japanese Alps. There I found an amazingly wonderful couple who welcomed me into their inn, fed me some of the most delicious food I ate in all of Japan, and introduced me to their other guests who ended up taking me, the following day, to the entrance of the tunnel leading to the astonishingly beautiful mountain valley of Kamikochi. I was very lucky to get there when I did, because I believe now the entire village has closed down for the winter. I hiked from one end of the valley to the other snapping photos and admiring the views.

Okay, now I have to tell you about the bus trip between Kamikochi and Norikura Kogen. I took it both ways, and marveled at the skill of the bus drivers on what is the most terrifying mountain road I have ever seen, and I’ve seen quite a few. Not only was this road very steep and very windy but also incredibly narrow. What appeared to be a one-lane road miraculously allowed two giant busses to pass each other with only inches to spare! There was evidence of landslides all over the place, and the drop offs on the side of the road plummeted many hundreds of meters! OOOOOhhhhhhhh, it was scary. See the photo if you doubt my description!

After this terrifying bus ride, I bid the mountains good-bye and boarded another bus to Takayama and then a train to Furukawa. Both towns feature excellent examples of craftsmanship in their canal-side houses. In Furukawa, I also visited a candle shop where a sixth generation candle maker fashioned candles in the traditional way as had his ancestors. I also bought local apples and persimmons, some Japanese sweets, and some sake at a sake brewery to bring back to Diane and Hikaru. On the train back to Kyoto that afternoon, we passed through the height of the fall colors along the winding Kisogawa River.

Now I’ve wept with joy at the confirmation of what I knew was going to happen – a landslide victory for Obama and Biden and big gains for the Democrats in the House and Senate. Yippee!!! I’m so thrilled and relieved, knowing that hope is revived not just for the U.S., but for the whole world! Tonight we’re going out to a super neighborhood restaurant to celebrate this joyous victory.