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My first stop in Japan was Kin, Okinawa, which was the hometown of my great-grandparents on my father's side. I thought I'd try to ask around to see if I could find any relations, but really didn't think I'd find much. Still, I went, thinking that at least spending the night in their hometown would be something. I could always head back to Naha, near the airport, and kick around 'til my flight to the main island. Luckily, I made it to the Kin Town office. I figured I'd at least see if they could book me a room somewhere and maybe find out where the cemetery was. I mentioned in passing that my ancestors came from Kin. The guy helping me turned & repeated this to his co-workers and suddenly there was a flurry of activity. Turns out it's his JOB to help people trace their roots in Kin. Hotel forgotten, they first found Great-grandfather's name in a passport records book, then the plot of land he lived on, then the remaining relatives still in Kin.
Bing bang boom I'm in an old Okinawan-style home on the very ground which Great-grandfather grew up, talking (through an interpreter) to a 2nd cousin (Hajime, above left) & great uncle (Oji-san Seichi, above right) of my grandmother's. The 3 men are pouring over ancestral documents & discussing the family line at great length. Fresh sashimi is served. My legs beg me to get off the tatami mats, but I am too enthralled by all of this to care.
Suddenly I'm whisked away to the Kin museum to look at a book of Kin history for pictures of my relatives. Then I'm taken to meet the mayor (below). A photographer, who was present at the Higa house, takes tons of pictures & says I'm to be the headline of the next newsletter.
The 2nd day Hajime took me all over Okinawa to see the sights. This is Shiroji Castle. We also went to the Okinawa peace museum, the aquarium (Okinawa has the largest aquarium in the world), and a tourist village where, after going through an impressive cave, you can see many examples of Okinawan culture.
Later we had dinner with my grandmother's cousins -- Henry (far left), Mieko (3rd from left) and Setsuko Higa (next to me). Henry-san saw me off at the airport the next morning, loading me with Okinawan sugar & other yummy treats.
On April 12th I went from Okinawa to Kyoto. Kyoto is considered the cultural heart of Japan, and since it wasn't bombed in WWII, there are many old buildings still standing. To top it off, the cherry trees were blossoming. It was just beautiful. The first day I did the "Southern Higashiyama Walking Tour" from my Lonely Planet guide. First stop was Kiyomizu Temple.
Geisha from nearby Gion were strolling under the cherry trees.
Outside the temples are places where people purify themselves before entering. You take water in the cup, pour it over each hand, then rinse your mouth out. This is outside of Yasaka Shrine. Picture taken by Craig Godwin, an American I met along the way.
This is Sanjusangen-do Temple. Standing as is since 1266. It houses 1001 statues of the 1000 armed Kannon (Buddhist goddess of mercy).
Okay, okay, so they don't actually have 1000 physical arms. They have 40 each. Still a lot! And there ARE over 1001 figures.
I went on a boat ride over rapids on the river. It was fun, but not the thrill I was looking for. I was the only westerner, and the only one under 65 on the boat (except for the crew). At least the poleman was babe-a-licious.
My favorite spot in Kyoto has got to be the Philosopher's Walk. I hadn't planned on going, but got an e-mail from Professor Prince that touted it, so I gave it a last minute go. It was spectacular! I think I picked the right time and day too, cuz there weren't many people around. There was a relaxed, non-touristy feel there.
The philosopher's walk is a path next to a canal that's lined with cherry trees. It starts at one temple and ends at another. Old wooden houses and tasteful shops flank either side. The petals from the trees feather slowly down from the branches like mystic snow and blanket the water to float by like a moving painting. The pink variety fall one petal at a time, whereas the white also fall by the whole blossom. I attempted to catch a few blossoms before they hit the ground. I saw a tiny girl playing on a small footbridge and gave her a blossom. She took it shyly buy waved non-stop as I walked away. Two older women were jokingly trying to toss each other into the water. They saw me watching and we laughed together. Then they pointed out some tiny wild violets growing on the banks. As I watched an antique lady enter one of the ancient houses I thought, the people who live here must be among the luckiest people on the planet. By the time I reached the 2nd temple, the sun was setting orange to my right, and on the other side of the gargantuan temple gate was a full smiling moon.
I met 2 girls from Duesseldorf at the ryokan, and we had dinner together. Dorothea (right), and Silke (middle).
After Kyoto, on April 21st, I took the Shinkansen to Northern Honshu to see my friend Lola.
Lola lives with her husband Ron in *very* rural Japan, and I have to say I was quite relieved to see sprawling nature instead of urban sprawl. Unfortunately, it seems the Japanese may be slowly trying cover their mountains in giant concrete magic shell to stem erosion, but the mountains are still beautiful. We checked out lots of temples.
We took a day-trip to nearby Hirosaki to see the castle and temples there. Here's Lola and Ron, havin' fun stormin' the castle.
These old statues were really cool. I think the guy in back has a question, though.
I discovered I love Japanese karaoke. You get a private room for your group. There's a phone for ordering drinks (yay for sake!) and food, and viola! No making an ass (hee haw) of yourself in front of complete strangers. I'm sure I was a mike-hog -- it was just so much fun.
As far as I'm concerned, no one can touch Ron's version of "Aquarius." I think it's engraved in my frontal lobe permanently. Although Lola's "Mack the Knife" comes in at a very close 2nd (below). Bravo!
After Lola's, on the 21st, I went back down south. My destination was Nara, Japan's first capital. I saw more temples, did some shopping, fed some deer and met Lisa from Australia.
We spent most of the day checking out Nara. The main attraction was Todai-ji Temple. The main hall, Daibutsu-den, is the largest wooden building in the world, and houses a 16 meter high bronze Buddha.
Even better than Todai-ji was Kasuga Taisha. Founded in the 8th century, the grounds of the shrine & the shrine itself have hundreds of lanterns that are lit twice a year during the Lantern festivals.
The next day I went back to Kyoto as a base for going to Himeji castle, Japan's oldest still-standing (and non-replica) castle. It's huge and very cool.
My last day in Japan I spent in Tokyo. I checked out the Asakusa neighborhood, which has this cool (albeit touristy) shopping arcade leading up to a temple. It was very picturesque, and I had a blast.
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