My far off (but close to my heart) friend
Jeff L., has decided to publish my Japan trip narrative for
posterity. I suppose some of you expats have so little to
do that you are taking up your valuable drinking/lesson-planning
time to read my off-the-cuff description of the trip I
took to Japan immediately upon finishing my contract in Korea.
It was my time to leave but I shall return someday (but
not as an English teacher). Please excuse any typos
or grammar errors (or even poor writing). If you would
like to comment on my narrative, or question me about any aspect
of my trip (or psyche) feel free to write me at:
[email protected] May you all be well and happy!
PEACE!-BJ
Subject: My Japan trip (first
installment) Date: Wed, 27 Aug 1997 22:31:19 PDT
To my friends and family!
I arrived in Tokyo Tuesday afternoon and
made it to the south gate of Shinjuku Station by 7pm, in time to
meet my friend Kunimi Masashi(all Japanese will be written
surname first). I had met him in Pusan when he visited the "Internet
Cafe" where, as you may know, I spent all my time. He had
translated a letter for me to my Japanese host family (whom I
stayed with 5 years ago), and we had gone drinking. After dinner we
went to his house at Musashi-sakai which is close to my host
family's house( coincidence? I think not! ). He and I used his
computer and his father sat with us and talked a while. The
Kunimi family had lived in Australia for 4? years about 20 years
ago. Masashi's father's sister had in Seattle since 1955 until
she died 4 years ago. On that occasion her brother visited Seattle
and even toured Microsoft. Masashi's sister studied for a few
years at the UW(Univ. of WA). His brother is studying now in
Maryland. Masashi works for Canon. The house was luxurious but
had the right Japanese touches, the separate toilet, deep bathtub,
and tatami mat room. Earlier that day they made a "Western bed"
out of chairs and pillows for me, so I slept on it even though I
have been sleeping on the floor for the past 4 years or so. His
mother made me a great Western breakfast and we talked for a
while, despite her English being the worst in her family. My
Japanese is gradually coming back. We made a hitchhiking sign(
in Japanese and Chinese characters)and then I started out at 9:45.
At about 10:30 or 11am I finally found the correct onramp for
the intercity highway. On that day I almost always waited 15
mins.-1/2 hr.for rides. Not too bad I suppose, but it always
made me wonder why people passed me by. Of the eight rides I had
that day, only 3 were interesting. The first was with Ito
Mariko, an outdoor lighting saleswoman, the only young
woman[married] to pick me up so far), a van full of fun-loving
people my age, and a student who was my ride into Kyoto, and took me
straight to "Tani House". He spoke the best English of any of
the drivers. Tani House is a budget traveler's dream house.
Tani-sensei(Mrs. Tani) took it over after her husband died and
since she doesn't really follow the old posted rules, she is
very relaxed and accommodating. She and I struck it off right
away. I was so happy to arrive in Kyoto. I have been studying
Japanese culture( or at least Asian culture) for about seven years
now, so I am excited to finally be in the city I have read so
much about. Last night I took I quick shower after I set down my
bag(about 9:30), and went to a nearby drinking place/restaurant.
I had forgotten how to order what I wanted and they had no menus.
With the help of the other customers, body language, and
kindness of the couple that owned the place I had a great meal.
After dinner I made it back to the dormitory and wrote a little
before going to bed. Unfortunately I couldn't sleep very well and
got up quite early, but that put me in a meditative mood for a
day full of temple gazing.
This morning I toured the temple
buildings of Daitokuji( one of the main temples of Zen Buddhism, and
right next door to Tani). I took notes on the signs and happened
upon the monthly celebration of Sen-no Rikyu's death. He was a
famous teamaster, in fact THE teamaster of Japan. This day is
celebrated by his family and students who dress in formal
kimonos and gather at a few of the smaller temples in the
complex to serve or drink tea. I wish I could have participated!
On the grounds is Daisen-in which is famous for a rock garden
that imitates water in its course from the mountains as a
metaphor for life, and especially a spiritual life. It was very
well done, and the monk gave a quick tour that he had memorized
in English. On the grounds I also watched a memorial ceremony, and
meditated in the room afterwards, looking out at another
beautiful rock garden. I forgot to mention that at Daisen-in I also
had a cup of (whipped) green tea prepared in much the same way
as Sen-no Rikyu would have done. This afternoon I will go to another
famous temple, though which one I have yet to decide. I plan to
be here for at least six days. The dormitory is quite
cheap(1700\), but I will also try to stay at one of the temples.
I'll write again in a few days. Hope you had a good
August.
Love-BJ
Hello Again!
(cont.) After sending you my
last letter I walked down the street to
Higashi-Honganji.
[By the way this "Internet Cafe" is
essentially "free". For 2 hrs. you required to buy
one drink, minimum of \350($3-4). A great price, even
in Japan!]
Higashi-Honganji and Nishi-Honganji are
the two headquarters of Jodo Shin-shu, the "Pure-Land"
sect of Buddhism founded by Shinran Shonin.
Unfortunately I arrived just as they were closing the inside
altar doors,. so I wasn't able to see the statues.
It was only 3:50!
Everything in Kyoto starts closing at
4pm( temples, museums, etc...). My next stop was the
National Museum which stops accepting visitors at 4pm(
Aack!). Across the street the Sanjugendo closed at 5pm and
looked huge. It cost \500 to enter at 4:20.
They closed the entrance at 4:30.I tried just giving a
little over \400 , but the ladies wouldn't budge( it was
the rest of my change). So Kyoto may not be such a
paradise, but I am making the most of it.
After taking the subway back to Tani, I bathed and found a
reasonable sushi place. I ordered only my favorites(
though they didn't have any "flying-fish eggs[tobiko]")
and then went around the corner to add draft beer to my
stomach. After that, which cost me less than my first
night's meal, I returned to the dormitory.
That night I hung out with some of the other
guests. They were two Japanese guys and a
Korean. They were all in Kyoto for a kind of study
vacation( like me!). We talked in
Japanese, Korean, and a little English. The Korean and
I taught one of the Japanese fellows, Yoichi, Korean. We
also tried to work out how to say, "Shut the fuck up!" in
many languages. The following are the rudest terms
we came up with, with the help of the multi-nationalities
at Tani(use at your own risk!):
Korean: Ip dak Chul! French:
Ferme la bouche! Russian: Muo(long vowels) Chat(ch)
German: Heinst moll(long vowel) Japanese: Da ma
rei!
The next morning(yesterday) I finally
made it to Ryoanji. Ryoanji is famous for its rock
garden, one of the biggest, subtlest, and beautiful in the
world. It is believed to be the quintessential rock garden in
a country full of them. I arrived at about 8:45( it
opens at 8:30) well before the crowds. The ladies at
the ticket booth were so impressed by my clothes( I have
been wearing my devote layperson clothes for my temple
visits, a kind of pilgrimage) that they let me in for free.
I told them I wasn't a monk( a lot of Japanese confuse me
for one. I took a ridiculous number of
pictures of the garden and the pond nearby. Really
incredible. I even meditated a little beside the
garden. I suspect some people took my picture but that may
just be my ego creeping in. It was everything it is
supposed to be, and more. A visitor to Kyoto can't help
but notice the commercialism surrounding the
temples. There are fees for everything. I even check
ed into the arranged temple stays and they were quite
overpriced. Especially compared to Korea where you
can stay for one night at any temple(just about) for
nothing. As a woman at the tourist office put it "They
are businesses. The monks are businessmen."
That is certainly true to an extent. Still the
temples are spiritually inspiring and you can feel "good
energy" there. Of course most of the temples still house
practicing monks, and there are always areas that are
"off-limits". In fact those areas are much bigger
than at the temples in Korea. But also the Korean
temples are much smaller. Before I left
Ryoanji I ate a small meal at a restaurant with a private
garden( rock and flora et al) bordering the pond of the
temple. It was a little expensive but had great
ambiance. Next I walked down through
Myoshinji to one of its smaller sub-temples called
Taisho-in. It has a beautiful garden that reminds me
of Ome Gardens in Washington state( waterfall and
everything). Then I took a local train to Nijo
Castle. It used to be the Shogun's residence (other
than Tokyo). Sadly the main castle tower had burned down
in 1750 and was replaced with part of an imperial estate after
the castle was given to the imperial family following the
Meiji Restoration in 1893. Nonetheless the receiving
rooms of Nijo were kept the same as when the Shogun used
them. The wall and screen paintings are valued
treasures and the sheer opulence of the successful Shoguns's
lives were impressive. He had one room were in
between meetings he would hang-out with maids and
ladies-in-waiting. In fact only women were allowed in
the room. Also intriguing was the mastery of the power and
respect the Shoguns maintained. Whenever they met
with the feudal lords, for example, the Shogun sat on a
raised platform with only a page, who held his sword and
relayed letters. To the Shogun's left were usually two
huge doors with large red tassels on them. Behind these
waited a pack of samurai bodyguards ready to jump in and
protect their master. Thi s must have really
frustrated any lord who became angry at the Shogun. He
looked unprotected, but in actuality he might as well have
been surrounded by guards.
That evening I went by the sushi
take-out/delivery place and ordered a huge platter of
sushi for about $40. Kind of opulent, but I was hoping
someone else would help pay for it. I ended up eating two
thirds of it. I had never filled myself up on sushi, but
there is a first time for everything. I drank beer
with ti too, and used a frightening amount of wasabi(
Japanese horseradish).
I have just gone on too long here.
I will have to continue in the next installment.
As a preview let me say that today(Saturday) I went to
Kingakuji(the gold temple), and Tofukuji. Will write
more Monday. PEACE! and thanks for all the responses to my
first installment.
Love-BJ
Subject: My Japan Trip (third
installment) Date: Mon, 01 Sep 1997 01:45:21 PDT
(CORRECTION: Mr. Tani of Tani House is
not dead but very ill. I believe he had a stroke, for he is weakened
considerably and his family has insisted on taking care of him
at home though he was at the hospital for a while.)
I shall continue my trip narrative, but
now let's take a moment of silence for Princess Diana.)
-I was quite surprised to hear of her
death. Is it only me or doesn't the circumstances of their death
appear a bit suspect? If Diana didn't have any children I would
strongly suspect the whole thing was staged to get the press's
attention off of them. (Think about it.)
I have been writing the first parts of my
trip narrative before coming to the internet cafe. As I continue the
chronicle of my travels I am sitting in the Yasaka Kaikan, next
to "Gion Corner", waiting for another performance of traditional
Japanese theater to begin. I am in the very back of the theater
tucked snugly in a seat that is not made for my "big hip" as my
students used to call it. There are about ten minute breaks between
performances, which are free.
Friday night I hung out with the same
people as the night before and some Germans. I shared my sushi and
beer with some of them. A later addition to the group was a
beautiful woman from Seoul. She had come back the Korean guy
from Osaka. She was very nice and I think all of us were a bit
smitten with her. Unfortunately she left the next day.
Saturday morning I took the two German
guys to Kinkakuji, the "temple of the Gold Pavilion". It was their
first temple to go inside as they have a severely tight budget.
I think they were impressed. We arrived just as the gates
opened(9:00). There was already a line and I imagine there was a
solid flow of visitors all day. Kinkakuji is said to be the "most
visited" temple in Kyoto. The gold leaf covers the walls of the
top two floors of the pavilion five times thicker than it was
originally. The layers result in a deep color capable of dense
reflection. As it is surrounded on three sides by a large pond,
it has a lot to reflect. I stayed a while after the Germans left to
get their bags and continue their vacation. I sat near where
everyone has their picture taken , and took a few pictures of them.
Next I went to the net cafe again and took care of business.
E-mail sure is an excellent way to keep in touch during a vacation.
After sending off the second installment I visited Tofukuji(for
worshipping tofu?). I saw some great gardens there and watched some
more monks working. I haven't seen many monks in Kyoto as they
stay behind closed doors for the most part. I saw more around Pomosa
on any given day. That evening I spent drinking gin and juice
with an East Indian physicist, who was the only other guest in
the dormitory. We had a good intellectual chat. Sunday morning I
slept in for the first time since my trip began. I got up a
little before noon and made my way to Otowasan Kiyomizudera( which
means,"Clear Water Temple on Sound-of-Feathers Mountain).
Kiyomizu was founded in 778 a.d. by Enchin. It is one of the stops
for devout followers of Avalokitesvara on pilgrimage. It is in
perched high on the sides of the mountain supported by many pillars
of Zelkova trees. It has a great view and I brought a charm
their for travelers. The water from which it gets its name was
indeed delicious, and I sat at a teashop near the waterfall and
had a cup brewed from the sacred water. A Swedish professor sat
with me and I showed her my pictures from Pomosa. Then I made my
way down to Gion, the still thriving entertainment, and shopping
district of Kyoto. Many of the original wood buildings( or
well-crafted replicas) still stand along narrow winding alleys.
The district around the theater where I started writing this still
houses exclusive restaurants and teahouses. I walked the narrow
alleyways hoping to catch a glimpse of a geisha, but I was
disappointed. They are said to still exist, but I'll believe it
when I see one( and it would only be by accident cause I couldn't
even begin to afford one). I returned to Tani to an empty
dormitory, and essentially finally had a room to myself. Today I
made it to Nanzenji. It is another of the important temples here
and was perhaps the best presented of any I have seen so far. It is
a number of buildings all joined by covered walkways. The rock
gardens are beautiful and the paintings still on the walls
inside were impressive( though pictures of them were forbidden
due to the effect of flashes). After that was Nanzenin, with its
beautiful wet rock garden( meaning that it actually has water). Then
I walked along "Philosopher's Path" which is dedicated to a
professor from Kyoto University who spent his life attempting to
combine Eastern and Western philosophies. Of the temples along
it I also visited Honenin( nice and quiet with hard-working
gardeners) and Ginkakuji which is the temple of the grandson of
the samurai who built Kinkakuji. Though named the "Temple of the
Silver Pavilion" the grandson decided not to show up his
grandfather and resisted covering his building in leaf. The garden
is bigger and has more levels than the others I have seen and
instead of gravel heavy gray sand( ground granite I assume) is
used as a base. This makes it even more difficult to rake, and
more fragile. This adds to the impermanence of the garden in
accordance with Buddhist philosophy. I was pleased to meet some
pretty college students from Tokyo there but hesitated in taking
their picture. Then back here. I leave tomorrow after a quick visit
to a small temple near Tani House. See you in Tokyo! Love-BJ (
if I have sent you this, or the last for the first time, let me know
if you want the other installments. If you don't want to receive
this, please let me know, and I promise not to be offended :o)
)
Subject: My Japan Trip ( fourth
installment) Date: Wed, 03 Sep 1997 21:13:57 PDT
Here I am on Thursday the 4th in Tokyo.
In Shinjuku, to be exact. Actually I am first writing this while
sitting in "Espresso Americano, Seattle Style Coffee Shop". I
ordered a Cafe Mocha with lots of chocolate and a little mint. He
did okay. I would have preferred a double-tall decaf mocha, with
mint, which would have come topped with steamed milk and whipped
cream, not to mention sprinkles (in a tall glass) if it was really
"Seattle Style". Instead I have a single caffeinated with
steamed milk, in a small coffee cup. I imagine a great number of
people come in here and just say, "coffee".
Let's....after leaving the Kyoto internet
cafe I returned to Tani and had dinner with two exchange students
from Germany. The two attractive young women are here for just
six months. They are chemistry majors who will study on their
own except for lab work. After dinner I talked for quite a while
with a fellow native Californian. In the morning I took a
picture of the wonderful Mrs. Tani and set out to find the onramp (
called the "interchange", "inter", or "I.C." in Japanese) for
the intercity highway. Finding the I.C. is the most difficult part
of hitch-hiking in Japan. Public transportation never seems to
get you exactly there. I am always left searching for it for blocks
after getting off the bus. I was finally "thumbing-it" at about
11 o'clock. Perhaps I mentioned that I bought a travel charm at
Kiyomizudera. I also bought one at a shrine near the Imperial
Palace, in the shape of a boar( long story). These I had tied onto
my pack and hoped for the best. Well..Tuesday I received the
blessings of the charms. My first ride was from a Jodo Buddhist a
year younger than I with a collection of "Queen" cds. He was
going to Nagoya( a trip that had taken three rides a week
before). We got along very well, and he had even lived in a
temple. We parted at a service area outside Nagoya, after he
took our picture, which he vowed to send to my e-mail address.
After fifteen minutes of standing forlornly near the exit of the
service area, I bought an ice cream cone and sat near the main exit
of the snack shop, in the shade, and displayed my sign
prominently. As I licked I attempted to engage drivers in friendly
conversation. After a few minutes a gruff, older fellow said,
"You, Tokyo, let's go." I was a little stunned, but I guessed those
charms had worked their magic yet again. He turned out to be an
extremely friendly and gracious entrepreneur. He has six children(
one boy) and is on his second wife( a Phillipino). He does some
business in Japan and owns a motel, restaurant, and some other
businesses in the Philippines. We talked in Japanese and
English. His English was rather good if you completely throw out the
rules of grammar. His level of communication was good due to the
international nature of his business, though he had never been
to college or maybe even high-school. He definitely has the
hardworking spirit to help Japan's economy recover. A real
middle-class blue collar businessman. He dropped me off near the
"Chuo" railway line that goes out to my host family's home in
Hamura, after I convinced him Hamura was too far out of his way. My
host mother picked me up at the station and everything was much
as I had left it. Even the picture of us from five years ago was
sitting in the living room. This time my room would be the
tatami mat room, as they had moved their bedroom upstairs. I took a
bath and when I finished my host father, Ichiro-san, had
returned home from work( about 8 p.m.). We had a dinner like the
wonderful ones I remembered from five years ago. Nothing beats
Japanese home cooking when compared to the best Japanese
restaurants. Rice, miso, and a variety of dishes always satisfy. On
Wednesday I rested from Kyoto, and tonight Masashi will come for
dinner. Tomorrow I plan to visit the priest at Ippoin, a small Zen
sub-temple in Hamura. I had made friends with the priest when I
had lived here before. I hope he remembers me. This weekend my host
family and I will visit Nikko, a mountain resort. They said we
might even play some golf.
Love-BJ
Subject: My Japan Trip (fifth and final?
installment) Date: Sun, 07 Sep 1997 21:13:27 PDT
Hello All!
Here it is, perhaps my last installment.
I am just two days away from San Francisco. I will be staying with
my friend David (Calderon) Vale, who went to my high-school, and
visiting with Michael Kritscher, David "Mike" Hansen, and
perhaps others. Before I start let's have a moment of silence
for Mother Teresa....
I know she had been ill for quite a
while, but it is amazing that her death comes on the heels of
Princess Diana's. Particularly interesting when Di's charity
life is being so emphasized in the press. I guess they even knew
each other somewhat. It is sad that we are losing two such
compassionate people. It has been quite a year for deaths. Consider
Ginsberg, Burroughs, Sagan, and George Burns(this year?). I hope
we all live as productive lives as they did( or more).
Okay...when I left off Thursday I was
looking forward to Masashi coming to dinner at my host parent's
house. He did come and my host parents liked him, and he them.
We even took pictures with his digital camera, and hooked it up to
the TV. The technology is so incredible that we could watch
ourselves on TV to set up pictures. Masashi will be sending me
pictures by e-mail, or I might copy them from his homepage. I hope
to put them on MY homepage soon. One of my friends in Pusan,
Jeff Lebow, was kind enough to set me up with a starter homepage.
When I work it all out I'll give you all the address.
On Friday I visited the priest at Ippoin
Temple in Hamura. He was surprised to see me, and didn't recognize
me until he related me to the ink painting I had done for him of
Vimalakirti( a famous Buddhist layman/saint). We had a great chat
and he gave me some of his latest writings, including a huge
book written entirely in Chinese characters. He is more
confident in my work as a scholar than I am. He and I always
seem to connect in some way, and this time it was his heavy
study, and teaching about, Korean Buddhism. Unlike most temple
priests here he is an avid scholar. He is working towards his
doctorate in Buddhism. Later this month he is leading a study tour
of Korea and China. I gave him the names of my friends at Pomosa
Temple( where I lived for a year in Pusan). We exchanged addresses
this time, and took pictures of each other, so we should keep in
touch. I plan on writing( hopefully on computer) to friends in Korea
and Japan, including some monks. This will complement my study
of Asian culture and especially Buddhism.
On Saturday my host parents and I went to
Nikko. Nikko in in the mountainous area of central Japan. It is a
resort town, but most famous for the memorial shrine( Toshogu)
of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the grandest shogun of them all. Parts of
town look almost identical to any American resort/ski town.
There are numerous gift shops, inns, and bed & breakfasts(
ryokans). The buildings are often either log cabins or Victorian
style. Driving on the side roads reminded me of going on
self-guided historical homes tours with my parents. Before we
arrived in central Nikko we stopped at part of the famous
Cryptomeria( cedar) highway used by daimyo( feudal lord) processions
to Toshogu. It is bordered by cedars hundreds of years old. This
beautiful road was built by Matsudaira Masatsuna. The shrine itself,
the neighboring temple, Rinnoji, were our next stop. They wree
beautiful,yet completely extravagant. My host mother, Keiko-san,
bought me a wishing plaque and I wrote down my hopes for my
future on it. In front of Rinnoji there is a small sub-temple with a
beautiful pond and garden. If I have the chance I would like to
build a modest Japanese garden when I retire, that people could
visit and appreciate like the ones I have seen here. We stayed at
Japan Total Club, a small resort where my host father's company
is a member. That night and the next morning we had buffet meals. As
you probably know I ate more than the price of the meal, which
made me realize that I will be returning to Seattle slightly heavier
than when I left (ugh!).
Sunday started with Kegon Falls, named
after the Avatamsaka( Diamond) Sutra. The highest falls in Japan,
100m( 330 ft.), they are beautiful as they include a group of
smaller falls about two-thirds of the way down. Then we drove down
from the falls( elev. 800m) to Edo Mura, a tourist folk village.
We saw a ninja performance, as well as some more traditional
arts, and learned a bit about Japan's feudal history through some
great dioramas and recreated buildings. Unfortunately most
everything was in Japanese, as foreign tourists seldom visit. I
think foreigners are probably even more scarce at the "Western
Village" nearby. To top off the short trip we ate at Denny's when we
got back. The menu is of course different from back home, but I
could still order a good clubhouse sandwich.
Today and tomorrow I will visit tourist
sites around Tokyo which I may include in a later note.
see some of you soon-BJ
(by the way- If you have received only
some of the five installments and would like the ones you missed,
send me a note and I will send them to you :o) )
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