Japan - Day 2, Part I: Hachiman-gu Gardens

Day 2 needs a little back story.

My dad, for all of our life in California, has created Japanese gardens for homes and businesses.  He still does.  It's an art, and I've come to realize that he is an artist.  He was trained by his uncle Hideo in a garden next to a historic shrine.  When we visited this uncle the day before and came to find out the gardens were in this city, I knew we needed to stay in Kamakura the next morning and find it, even without a guide.

My relatives all referred to the gardens as "Hachiman-gu" and told us we would have no trouble finding it.  The official name of the shrine where the gardens are is Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu.  The shrine was built in 1063 A.D. and has deep significance in the center of Kamakura.

Ready to dig deep into my Samurai roots: "Welcome to 'Kamakura, Home of the Samurai' for the World Heritage" 

Our taxi ride demonstrates the narrowness of the roads in much of Japan: wide enough for vehicles to travel on, but narrower than the length of most vehicles.  The crazy thing, to us, was that these narrow back roads were shared by cars (going to ways - which sometimes didn't work without backing up) and pedestrians.

At the outer gates of Hachimangu

Immediately inside the gates is a mote, absolutely filled with blooming water lilies.  A wide bridge welcomes you into the grounds.

This may not mean much to anyone else, but my dad always works with trees using poles and strings to either help shape the trees or help support their branches.  It was validating to me to see these methods used.  This was also a wisteria plant, which my dad likes to use overhead a lot.

This section of the grounds had many, many white flags.  I wanted to know the significance.  Without a guide, I started taking pictures so I could ask my dad when I got home.  He said these were representative of a battle that had taken place.

Wishes or prayers of visitors

At this washing area I saw another familiar element of my dad's gardens: bamboo water works.

 There was a little side garden that cost a few coins to enter.  Blake suggested we go ahead and pay to see what was inside.  It was a beautiful and took a LOT of pictures inside.  We were impressed by the level of detail in this side garden.  Even the pathways weren't just hurried slabs of concrete but moved with the gardens and were attended to in detail.  I remember walking past a young gardener, and looking at him with respect, thinking my dad may have been just like him many years ago.

Going through our photos at home with my dad he started getting really excited at this point.  THIS section where we happened to choose to detour in was the garden my uncle worked in and where my dad was trained!  My dad intimately knew the stones and trees and paths in all our pictures and had stories for many of them.  The pictures from this point on are of this garden.

Apparently, this is one of the spots that my dad spent a lot of his time.

 Even the pathways here added to the garden's beauty.  In the photo just above the cement and stones move together in a zig-zag pattern that flows with the garden.  Underfoot, even the measures taken to make the paths more pedestrian friendly were customized to individual stones.

This little gate may not be appreciated by many, but the best artisan was brought in to construct it for the garden during the time that my dad and his uncle were there.

 After leaving the garden we walked up (and up and up) to the main Shrine.

The gates of the shrine are guarded by these warriors.

In the courtyard of the main shrine were these huge barrels or bins.  It looked like food storage to us, but there was no sign explaining what we were seeing.  Several days later we found out these are barrels of sake donated each year by local brewers as an offering. Interesting, no?

The city has a long main street that runs straight up to the shrine.  In the center, between the lanes for traffic is a long walk way, paved with stones and covered with trees.  As we were walking down this path away from the shrine we saw a young couple in wedding attire being escorted to the shrine.  In one sense, it seemed to have such history cultural significance.  On the other hand, the modern couple's photographer and videographer were always rushing just a few steps ahead of the bride and groom.  It's another example of the dichotomy in modern Japanese culture.

The whole excursion to the garden set us back a few hours on our schedule, but I'm glad I got to experience a bit of my own modern family history.  I appreciate my dad's work more, and his uncle for training him.

Family Scripture Time, Alma 37:37

As part of our bedtime routine every night, we practice reciting a scripture verse, say a family prayer, and everyone gives everyone hugs.

It really has been a great blessing.  There have already been times when Claire was scared of the dark, or worried about something and I've been able to remind her about a scripture we've worked on.  We discover that the truth taught in that scripture applies right now for a time like this. 

We always thought this scripture memorizing was for Claire since she is old enough to understand the words and old enough to recite them on her own.  As Anson grew older it was harder to keep him from running around like crazy during this special time so we would give him a turn, too.  It helps him feel involved and focus (a little).  Anson's turn is repeating the 2-3 words that mom or dad reads at a time.

A couple nights ago, at Anson's turn Blake started to tell Anson the first words.  He, like the 2-yr-old he is, said, "No.  By [my]self!"  And then he proceeded to recite the verse without any prompting from the rest of us!

We all were shocked (even Claire), and went crazy congratulating him. We grabbed the camera to document the night and see if he could do it again.  Here is a clip of round 2.

Sorry, Buddy, for underestimating you!  Even though his little mouth can't quite form the words correctly (he's not even 2.5 years old yet), and even though I'm sure he doesn't understand the significance of the words, he knows what to say next.  I think kids are smarter than we give them credit for.  It's that eternal soul inside, I'm sure.

For those of you in the area and want to see more of what our kids are learning at home and at Church, this Sunday, Sept. 30, the children are all speaking and singing for the whole congregation (instead of adults giving sermons).  It starts at 9:00 am and should be done by 10:15 am.  Every year it's amazing.  There is something special about kids filling all the choir seats, singing and speaking from their hearts.  Send me a message and I'll give you the address and directions.  The theme is, "Choose the Right."  (Bonus: And if you stay for the 11:00 hour, I'm teaching all the children in Primary, which is Sunday School for kids ages 3-11.)

Japan Pictures - Day 1: Kamakura

I'm having a hard time coming up with the hours needed to post all my pictures from our fabulous trip to Japan.  I'm going to attempt to do pictures one vacation day at a time.

Day 1:  Wednesday, July 25th

• We arrived in Haneda Airport before 5am.
• Transferred trains a few times trying to get our Japan rail pass ASAP.  We didn't find the right ticket station and were keeping my Dad's cousins late so gave up and got on the train to meet them in Totsuka.
• After waiting at the wrong place for too long we finally found our meet up place and found my dad's cousin Sachiko.  Her husband Kanemi picked us all up in his car and drove us to their home where Sachiko had a HUGE breakfast already prepared for us.  Sachiko can speak some English - enough to communicate.  Kanemi has done a lot of business in English and lived in the Philippines for several years so his English is quite good.

Egg & ham, nimono with veggies & fish cakes, tofu with small fish & sauce, various homemade pickles from her garden, miso soup, and juice just for the Americans.  Blake even ate natto (fermented soybeans) on his rice.  I politely declined - I've tried that stuff and know I don't like it already.

This turtle kept my little brother company when he stayed with Sachiko & Kanemi about 10 years ago.

Sachiko had a tiny backyard (the size of an apartment patio) but it was filled with vegetables and ornamental plants.

Kanemi & Sachiko Sasaki's house: small footprint, steep stairs, tight garage & next to no space between neighboring houses, yet very well kept and beautiful potted plants wherever possible.

Sights around town: different body styles on vehicles, a lot more scooters, and tiled rooftops.

We aren't sure what the "Silicon Valley Express" was, but it was funny to see our home town on a store sign in Japan.

• Afterward, we first went to visit my dad's uncle Hideo (90 yrs old) and his wife Teruko (85 yrs old) who live in Zushi.  Their daughter Atsuko and her son (in his early 20's) were also there.  Kanemi translated for us the whole time.  Again they gave us a lot to eat and I must have drank about 15 cups of mugicha (a cold barley drink) because of the heat.  We showed them pictures. Teruko brought out pictures from when I was a baby and showed us what we all looked like back then.  She, of course, was much younger with thick, dark hair and I was a chubby-cheeked baby.  She told me she used to carry me on her back around the gardens.  Teruko kept telling me that I was so beautiful now and that she was so old.  In my mind, I hope I look as good and happy as she and her husband are at 85 and 90 years old!   
• Family history bit:  Hideo is the uncle that worked in the Japanese garden at Hachimangu in Kamakura and brought my dad in to work with him.  (My dad still constructs Japanese gardens for homes here in California.)  Hideo started working there after he retired about age 65 and worked there for about 20 years.
• When it was time to leave they all came outside and waved to us until they couldn't see the car anymore.  My mom always does that still.  She must have picked it up in Japan.

We prepared a photo album on the iPad to show relatives pictures of my immediate family.  Left to right: Kanemi, Hideo, (Cousin), Atsuko, Janet, Sachiko and Teruko.

Left to right: Blake, Hideo, (Cousin), Atsuko, Janet, Teruko, and Sachiko.

•  We then went to visit Kamakura's famous Daibutsu - a giant bronze Buddha that has survived hundreds of years (cast in 1252 a.d.).  For a small fee tourists can also go inside.  Inside it is interesting to see the individual pieces fit together and secured.  On the way back to the car we had purple sweet potato flavored soft serve ice-cream, which the area is famous for.

Sachiko taught us how to wash before entering holy ground: each hand, then cup water into your mouth using your hand and spit the water onto the ground = clean hands and clean mouth

This photo shows the inside of the body looking up through the neck to the head/hair.

Sweet potato ice-cream was really yummy!

•  By this time we were feeling the effects of having little sleep.  We had left from the Salt Lake City airpirt at 9:45 PM on Monday, had a layover to catch the red-eye out of LAX, and flew all day/night (crossing the date international line) for total flight time of 16+ hours to arrive at 4:55 am in Tokyo.  By the afternoon Sachiko & Kanemi kindly offered to take us to the hotel to have a nap before going to to the firework show that night.
• Our hotel was small but we were excited to have a Japanese style room with tatami floors, sliding doors, and futons to sleep on.  The blinds on the windows and the paper on the doors made the light just right for a much needed afternoon nap!

Our room.  The doors are slid open here.

Towels, toothbrushes with mini toothpaste, pajama robes & ties

In true Japanese form, our bed was waiting in the closet, along with blankets & pillows.

I've always heard about how these tables in the winter keep your legs warm underneath.  We clearly didn't need it in the hot & humid summer weather, but I wanted to take a pic of the mechanics of the table.

Close up of the floor: tatami mats are laid close to each other throughout the whole room.

The paper panels act like curtains and are connected to each door.  Each door can slide along the floor to any position on the track.

Room decor was subtle but effective in such a small space.

• Sometime around 6pm Sachiko & Kanemi came back to walk us to the beach for the firework ("hanabi" or fire flower) show.  We walked through the streets with the entire town down to the beach.  Several people, especially young adults, were in a traditional yukata (similar to a kimono but light weight for summer time).  The sidewalks were lined with street vendors selling food, bottled beverages, and light-up toys for the kids.

• The crowded beach was orderly and the crowds were patient as the sun set and the sky darkened enough for the fireworks.  There were food vendors along the main strip.  I wanted to taste every one, but Sachiko had brought a picnic dinner already (sushi rolls, inari sushi, yakitori, and grilled beef tongue).  There was a speaker system throughout the beach along the little bay with an announcer explaining the upcoming portion of the firework program.  One portion had fireworks with music.  Another portion was individually sponsored bursts.  Before each of these dedicated bursts the announcer would explain the sponsor of the single firework and the message that went along.  I didn't understand most of the messages, but I did catch a couple:  "Thank you, Mom & Dad."  or "[insert name], I love you.  Let's get married!".  The crowd would respond to each message with an "ooh/ah", a laugh, or various chit-chat.  The most spectacular portions were the ones where there were fireworks in the sky and on the water.  Most of the fireworks were launched from two barges in the bay.  Every so often a smaller, faster boat would cut along the middle of the bay lighting charges and throwing the charges out behind it to float on the water and burst.  The combination of the sky bursts, water bursts, and the reflections on the water resulted in the best firework show I've ever seen.

On our walk to the beach.

Sachiko & Kanemi brought food for all of us and even mats to sit on.  By the end of the night, all that sand behind us was filled with fellow spectators.

Traditional festival attire is still alive in this modern age.  I love it.

We also had a spectacular sunset to start off the night.  As a side note, Sachiko and Kanemi seem to smile a lot.

• After the show was over the masses on the beach had to fit through walking tunnels that crossed under the road between the beach and the town.  It was a human traffic jam literally.  We stood practically still, shoulder to shoulder, shuffling our feet just a little to move.  Blake and I were amazed at how patiently, quietly, and orderly the masses "evacuated" from the end of the firework show.  (If we were in the US, I'm certain there would be pushing and complaining and people pick-pocketing and drunk people being loud and making a scene.)
• We walked back to through town with the rest of the town, shops closed but streets still lit up, and made it back to the hotel to say goodbye to Sachiko and Kanemi who would take the train home instead of driving because of the masses.  We could see (and hear) the crowds at the station from our hotel room balcony.  That station was just as crowded as the beach.  For a long while.

Red & white festival lanterns were hung on the street gates around town.

The train station stayed this full for a long time even though trains picked up car-fulls of passengers.  Also, you can see the bike racks below for people to ride their bikes from their homes to the station.  The bike rack was probably three times the length of what's shown in the photo and had two levels.