› Fri, 03 Feb 2012
Osaka for the day (part 2)
It was so much fun wandering through the shotengai, passing all the restaurants, souvenir shops, DVD shops, Billiken statues, pachinko parlors, karaoke clubs… it seemed just totally endless.
After all this walking, I was getting hungry but couldn’t decide what to eat. I had read about a large crab restaurant on the Dotonburi canal that I thought could be good and decided that’s where I’d eat lunch.
I headed west, past the Bic Camera (note: link is video) and I exited the the shotengai, along the way passing a bookstore that looked interesting. From the window looking in, I saw that it was just packed full of massive collections of books that seemed very specialized. I imagined them to have been volumes and volumes of legal books or something technical. Either way I like it so I took a photo and walked on. After that, I came to the crosswalk that lead to the Dotonburi and stopped.
I was now standing on Sennichimae-dori (street) which bisected the shotengai. In front of me, (across the street) was the entrance to the continued shopping arcade. To my left was a large building that seemed like it was probably a Kabuki theater based on its architecture. Next time I’m in Osaka, I’ll pay it a visit.
The light changed and across the street I went.
I could see the Dotonburi Canal just up ahead now. The covered street opened up onto a pedestrian only street that runs parallel. With a huge Tsutaya bookstore to my right, I saw the crab restaurant just across from me. I walked over to the entrance and found a menu resting on a stand and looked through it. I quickly decided that this was not going to be the place for me to have lunch as it much more expensive than I had thought it would be. Besides, it was almost 4pm and if I had gone in, it would have probably taken too much time so, I decided instead to walk over to the fine Lotteria and get a quick bite to eat. Not gourmet by any means but fast. And, it had a second floor that looked down onto the street which seemed like a good place to do some people watching while I ate.
I ordered my fine cheeseburger set meal, paid, got my tray with my drink and fries (my burger was coming up as it was being prepared fresh for me) and went upstairs to get a seat with a view. It turned out that all the window seats were taken with young women busy typing away on their cell phones and ignoring the view so I took a seat in the next row back. I suppose to them, the view was nothing new or exciting, just the city they see everyday.
It didn’t take too long for my burger to arrive. However, just as it did, two girls got up from their window seats and left. I quickly moved up and began to eat. The view turned out to be nothing spectacular but it was nice to watch the steady stream of people below moving back and forth, crossing the canal with their shopping bags. While sitting there, I decided that I should have just stopped in Osaka for two nights after Koyasan and then hit Kyoto for two nights. Oh well.
Back down on the street after my gourmet meal, I wandered north again and crossed the canal. I turned after crossing to gaze upon the large sized billboards on the buildings along the canal. The most famous of them is the “Glico Man” neon sign. It has been here for ages and it is one of Osaka’s landmarks for sure. Not as thrilling in the daytime since it’s not lit up, but still fun to see. I love the architecture down here, it’s a place that definitely feels like it has kept up with the times.
As I reached the crosswalk to enter back into the shotengai, named Shinsaibashi-suji at this point, I paused to watch three repair men and a lone security guard going about performing some sort of window repair. I couldn’t tell exactly what they were doing but it seemed very important- they were all so focused on the job at hand. Perhaps they were so focused because they were trying to finish before the rain came which at this point, seemed like it would arrive any second. I crossed the street and was back in the covered shopping street.
After walking a block and coming back out to the open street, it was now raining. As I waited to cross yet another street, I saw a guy on the other side of the street sitting on the ground next to his bicycle, in the rain without an umbrella, trying to do some sort of repair to his laptop computer. It puzzled me why he didn’t move under cover.
The light changed and I crossed back under cover and out of the rain. In this block, I actually stopped into a couple stores. The first was a Yamaha music store then into the Disney Store, looking to see if they had any unusual merchandise based on any the shows I had worked on for Disney Animation- no such luck. The next stop was something totally unnecessary (especially given my lunch), Krispy Kreme donuts. I thought, “hey how about a nice donut for the Shinkansen” and went inside. There was a little bit of a line but not too long. After a minute or so I was surprised when these two young guys came and got in line right behind me. Turns out they were from Orange County, south of Los Angeles and in Japan on vacation with their families. It was summer vacation before their senior year in high school. Neither had been to Japan before and found the place pretty cool but didn’t seem to know too much about the country. I guess I am always shocked though when I meet other Americans here and see how much they really don’t know about Japan.
As we talked, they decided not wait in line ,since, as they correctly stated, they could eat these back in America. Not me, I never go in America and used this trip as the excuse to splurge. I ordered two donuts, the classic glazed and a glazed with chocolate and sprinkles, paid and left. It was now raining harder.
I came out of Krispy Kreme and had to wait again to cross yet another street. Even though it was raining harder now, I didn’t want to deal with my umbrella while holding my donuts and camera so it stayed stashed in my camera bag. I was glad it was finally raining and happy that the streets were wet since they would yield some nice light and reflections. I waited to cross the street for a couple of cycles and spent the time photographing the people in the rain.
Deciding that time was finally running out on my day in Osaka, I crossed the street and made my way up through the shopping arcade until I reached the Shinsaibashi Station entrance for the Midosuji subway line. I went underground and caught the train all in a very short amount of time. I arrived into Shin-Osaka station at 4:48pm and hurried down from the platform and out into the main part of the station. Shin-Osaka station is seperated into two areas, the non-JR tains and the JR trains. I had to get back to the JR area and get a Shinkansen ticket. Fortunately there is a JR ticket office right as you come out the local train area so I hurried inside. I got my seat on the 5:13pm Shinkansen to Kyoto and ran out of the office. Remembering my route from the Koyasan journey, I was able to get up to the right platform quickly. In fact, it took only 10 minutes to go from the subway, get my ticket and get to the Shinkansen platform. It gave me enough time to buy an nice cold can of coffee to enjoy with my snack on the train. I was happy.
The donuts were great by the way. Oh, and the fan I bought in the morning? It turned out to be a great purchase. Next up, my night back in Kyoto…
› Mon, 16 Jan 2012
Osaka for the day (part 1)
Another morning has begun, and I’m still in Kyoto for one more full day. Surprisingly, after yesterday’s trek through the mountains of Kurama, in northern Kyoto, I managed to wake up on my own, just a little bit before my alarm went off. Upon opening the curtains and looking out the window, I saw right away that it was threatening rain again. However, that made me happy as I do enjoy photographing the hoards of umbrellas that appear in a good downpour. At the same time, I knew it was going to be another very humid day. Oh well, first things first- time for more yogurt and Frosties. And a little morning news as well.
I decided that Osaka would be my destination for the day, but before I left, I had to do a few things to get ready, like download some memory cards. After a nice video call home to see my wife and daughter, I was out the door and down to the JR ticket office in Kyoto Station, where upon I actually attempted to ask for the ticket in Japanese. I gave up though when the ticket agent asked me a question that I couldn’t understand. I was happy I tried though.
Next, I went back to the bakery in the basement of the Isetan Department store to pick up some small snacks for the road, then made my way back into Kyoto Station via the basement entrance which put me near the local JR platforms. This way is easier and almost like a short cut to get to the Shinkansen platforms which are on the south side of the massive station complex.
When I got down to the Shinkansen area and figured out which platform I needed, I still had plenty of extra time before my train departed so, I decided to buy a collapsable fan in hopes that it would help me avoid some of my overheating problems of the previous day. I started looking at the large selection of fans in the souvenir shop and decided that 1,000 yen would be my budget. At first, all I found were the higher priced fans but then I noticed a saleswoman helping a young salaryman in picking out some fans as gifts that were in my price range and quickly saw what I wanted. The fan I bought has a magnificent image of a tiger and dragon against a grey background, all printed on the finest polyester. Definitely a great purchase.
After that I decided to stock up on some tea, then made my way up to the platform to wait for my train to Shin-Osaka Station.
At this point I should say that I really didn’t need to take the Shinkansen. I cold have taken a local JR express train. But since it was free due to my JR Rail Pass, I felt I had no choice but to take it and enjoy its smooth and speedy ride.
The first thing I did after leaving the Shinkansen platforms, to was find a tourist information booth and get a map of Osaka. After a slightly confusing conversation with a police officer about the whereabouts of the tourist information booth, I found it and got my map. The woman working the booth was very friendly and fortunately spoke english quite well, as she had lived in the United States for a few years. She was very glad that I had come to Japan considering the earthquake of March 11th. I explained my history with coming to Japan and why was here this time- the conversation was quite nice indeed.
So, with my new map in hand a positive feeling about my day’s adventure, I made my way to the Midosuji Subway line (that line I had taken before when traveling to and from Koyasan) and took it to the Dobutsuen-mae station. The morning commute was over and the trains weren’t too crowded. I was surprised though, by how many salarymen still seemed to be on their way in to the office at 11:45am. Osaka feels different from Tokyo, perhaps a bit more relaxed and informal as compared to Tokyo. And I think the short sleeve oxford style that most of the salarymen had going on exemplified that feeling. (Also, on this subway ride, a young, early twenty-something woman sat down across from me on the train and spent her whole ride doing her make-up. It was a fascintaing thing to watch and it seemed like this was something she did all the time. She got on the train and by the time she got off, at the station before mine, she had completely transformed herself into someone else. )
Dobutsuen-mae station was pretty quiet when I got off the train. I was one of only a few people who did get off there and it made me think that, at least during midday, it was a quiet part of town. The station seemed a little more run down than some of the other stations I’ve been through and it set the tone as far as what I thought I could expect for this part of town. And, as I wandered above ground, I began to wonder even more what I was going to encounter. I was heading into what the people of Osaka seem to think is a very dangerous part of town, crime-ridden if you will. Well, compared to the Namba area north of Shinsekai, its definitely more run down, but compared to say downtown Los Angeles, it was just fine. I suppose it’s all relative, right?
By now it was noon and there were quite a few people in the area, although I think not at all like the amount of people that would be down here at night. Most of the excitement here really happens at night -and it had the same feeling as walking around the Kabukicho area of Shinjuku (in Tokyo) during the day. Where it’s not until the sun goes down, and the bars and restaurants open and fill up with people, that the seemingly seedy side of things really come out. Because at this point it was pretty dull actually. I saw no gangsters or dubious looking types lurking about. Only tourists and young people mixed in with older guys on bikes winding through the narrow streets. The few places places that were open were either small souvenir shops or restaurants mixed in with mahjong parlors full of men who looked like they spent everyday there, smoking, drinking and playing their games.
So much atmosphere here, I wish that I had more time to spend there. Many interesting characters and sites that would be fun to examine closer. It is on my list of places to return to for sure when my Japanese is good enough to have a conversation. Would be a good place to come and do a portrait project…
In the end, it didn’t take too long for me to make my way from the subway station to Tsukentaku Tower and I was looking forward to getting up high and seeing the (what I hoped to be) majestic views of Osaka.
I found my way into the tower and went inside, taking the elevator from the ground up to the second floor observation platform. From there, I paid my admission fee to the Sky Lounge observation deck and rode the elevator to the top. The view was fantastic! And, aside from the overcast conditions, well worth the trip. I love just looking out across the dense sea of buildings- so many people doing so many things every day all packed into what feels like a very confined area. It looks very abstract to me. (One thing that I like, visually, is how when you are up high, like in a tower, and look out through a telephoto lens, like 200mm or greater, the buildings visually compress and create these beautiful abstract images.)
A truly fantastic image to me was that of Osaka Castle, nestled amongst the skyscrapers but standing out distinctly- am iconic image indeed.
On the top floor observation deck where I was, there is a statue of Billiken, the “God of Good Luck”. It’s a iconic thing in this area, popular in Tsukentaku Tower and Shinsekai for that matter. (I first saw a statue of him when I exited the Dobutsuen-mae subway station.) Anyway, up on this deck, people like to have their photos taken with this statue, and to help facilitate that, there were two photographers there to provide that service as a souvenir ( after you buy the photo they took of course). I didn’t end up doing that as the whole Billiken thing meant nothing to me- in fact when I was there, I had no idea what it was even all about. But, never the less, I was in the minority with that and there was a constant line of people waiting to be photographed.
On the way down from the observation deck you end up in a museum about the history of Shinsekai and Tsukentaku Tower. There were amazing diorama’s of the city in older times, a room showing old films and then finally the souvenir shop. I was gettng hungry at this point but decided against a lunch of soft serve ice cream and instead bought a postcard of the tower to send to my daughter. The final cool thing that I saw there was a display near the elevator to the ground floor. It was, what appeared to be, a transforming robot model of Tsukentaku Tower! I wasn’t able to get any great shots of this model since there were guys all around it, working on it but it looked cool. I do love transforming robots.
When I arrived back down on the street from the tower, I decided that I would continue walking instead of taking the subway to my next destination, Namba and the Dotonburi. So, I headed north on Sakaisuji Avenue, into the area known as Nipponbashi or “Den-Den Town”- Osaka’s version of Tokyo’s Akihabara .
On the walk, I had stopped in some shops, mainly some toy and anime shops but bought nothing. I walked up Sakaisuji Avenue until I reached Nansan-dori turned left and headed into Namba. There I did spend some time in a camera shop, they had a some great used gear but nothing that I truly needed.
Namba was where I had caught the train to Koyasan days earlier and was curious to see it in a little more detail. With this in mind, I left the main streets and headed into the shotengai, or covered shopping arcade. It was magnificent. One shop that I found most interesting was the knife shop. I was mesmerized watching the owner show some beautiful knives to (who I think was) a chef and his assistant. There were more shops in this section that made me think this was the restaurant supply area of the shotengai. There were many shops selling seemingly everything you’d ever need to run a restaurant, including one that sold what seemed to be every conceivable sign you could ever need for your establishment. Way beyond the no-smoking or toilet signs it seemed.
Next up- the rest of the day in Osaka and my evening in Kyoto.
› Wed, 09 Nov 2011
Northern Kyoto: Kurama and Kibune (part 2)
So, I finally made it to Kibune and was it ever worth it. My “hiking buddy” was still with me, about 10 feet ahead, as we finally came to the end of the trail. All I could think about was finding a vending machine and pouring huge amounts of liquid into my body. I was so soaked in sweat- it was just stupid. I’ve been living away from such a humid climate for so long that I’m just not used to it anymore. In an attempt to cool down on the hike, I had taken off my light weight oxford shirt that I had been wearing, but it didn’t really help as my undershirt was just wet. I had so much sweat pouring down my face that I felt like I was never going to cool down. Sorry to make such a huge deal about this, but I have never been this overtaken by perspiration in my life.
So, as I came down the path that winds down the hill, I emerged out of the forest, and onto a road, Kibune Street. You then cross that to reach the stone stairs that lead up to Kifune Shrine. The beautiful staircase is adorned with red lanterns on both sides that start at the bottom and end at the wooden gate at the top. There is also the lovely metal railing running the length of the stairs- nice touch.
Before heading up, I paused to catch my breath and tried and cool down a little. I didn’t see any vending machines and decided that getting a drink could wait as I wanted to see the shrine before it got too dark.
My hiking buddy had wandered away without really saying anything to me, he just made his way up the stone stairs and I felt a bit bad that I didn’t get to thank him for his assistance. The entire time I was following him, I just thought ” I should buy him a cold beverage when we get to the end of the trail.” In reality, I think he just wanted to ditch me as fast as he could, especially given how much of a mess I was.
So after some photography/cool down time, I ascended the stairs into Kifune Jinja or Kibune Shrine. When you reach the top of the steps, you enter through the gate then make a left up some more stairs to the shrine itself. There weren’t that many people there as it was getting late in the day, maybe 10 people including myself. I spent about half an hour total looking around and photographing the shrine. And by then, the light had started to fade and I decided to leave as I wanted to see some of the town and river before it got too dark.
As I was getting ready to head back down the exit stairs, I was approached by two young japanese women, maybe 20 years old each who asked me to take their picture. I replied yes and the one girl handed me her camera. I was a bit shocked when I realized that it was a disposable film camera. They posed in front of a statue of two horses, I clicked the shutter, and they were good. (I wish I knew what the significance of the statue was. I wasn’t able to talk to anyone up in the shrine to find out any additional information.)
Now, I thought I should ask them to return the favor and get a quick picture of me as I wanted some record of myself there. As soon as I asked, I immediately realized that they didn’t really speak any english and my little bit of Japanese wasn’t going to get me anywhere. You see, when they asked me to take their photo it was one of those things where it was an awkward “excuse me” from them and then once I saw their camera I understood what they wnated. However, with my camera things got a bit confusing. The girl who took the picture was overwhelmed to say the least by my camera, which I totally understand. It took several tries but in the end I got a photo of my ultra sweat soaked self for posterity.
Ok, so now that that’s out of the way, down to the river.
As soon as I hit the street, I found a vending machine and got a beverage, a CC Lemon. So good. It was beginning to get dark and so as the light began to fade, I decided that I should make my way down to catch the bus to the Kibune train station while at the same time, exploring the quiet street. Honestly, there really wasn’t too much to see but what there was, was beautiful.
I was walking south down the main road that runs through Kibune, Kibune Street, with the river on my left. Traditional restaurants lined the side of the river and they had platforms built out over the river for what looked like a fantastic dining experience. I couldn’t really see much unfortunately- mostly just lanterns through wooden screens. (NOTE: I did know about the restaurants before hand but, due to my physical appearance, I didn’t even bother trying to stop and eat. I definitely looked like some crazy riff-raff.)
At one point, where there was a break in the buildings exposing the river, a beautiful crane (I think it was a crane) flew down and landed right in front of me. Magical. It was one of those moments that seemed almost staged.
I sat on the edge of the road next to the river and watched the bird for a good while. In fact, I waited for quite a while thinking maybe it would leave and I could get some nice shots of it taking flight. But, that never happened, so I gave up and decided to move on. It was a nice walk the rest of the way to the bus stop. Maybe one or two cars passed me but I was the only one walking. It was a great walk, so many little details to see and appreciate and photograph.
I finally reached what seemed like a parking lot and hoped that it was the bus stop. I couldn’t tell from any of the signs and there was nobody around to ask. Maybe a minute after I got there, a bus arrived and it was the right one. The driver got out to have a cigarette and I got on the bus to wait. I took the seat next to the driver’s seat and didn’t wait very long at all for him to come back. On the way down we started chatting and I managed to pull together enough Japanese to tell him why I was there, where I was from, etc. It was a nice way to pass the time on the short ride and he was extremely friendly.
Kibuneguchi station was quiet. The sun was down now and the natural sounds of the night were playing a peaceful tune. It was nice. The train ride back down to Demachiyanagi Station was pretty quick as was the rest of the trip back to Kyoto Station.
I decided that to top off the day, the perfect thing for dinner would be Tonkatsu. So I headed to a little place I like called KYK Tonkatsu in the underground shopping area called Porta next to Kyoto Station and had a great meal. Tonkatsu is one of those foods that i just can’t ever get enough of. Cue the obligatory food pic…
After dinner, I made a quick stop at the Lawson convenience store for some yogurt and orange juice, then it was back to the room. I was tired and wanted to get a much earlier start on the next day. Next up… a day in Osaka.
› Tue, 18 Oct 2011
Northern Kyoto: Kurama and Kibune (part 1)
The beds in the Hotel Granvia are very comfortable and I slept very well. Maybe too well. I had set my alarm to wake me by 7am but I guess I just shut it off in my sleep. I was surprised when I woke up and realized it was after 9am, since every morning prior to this, I woke up easily before 6am. I was now feeling a bit rushed as the day began and it was already looking pretty hot, and like it might rain at some point.
I fell asleep the night before as the computer was downloading that days photos. I wish I hadn’t fallen asleep like that though since I still needed to get some work done which now added to my rushed feeling. So, I pulled out some yogurt, opened up the “Frosties” ( Frosted Flakes), and started writing. Not too long after I started, my iPhone rang, it was my wife and daughter wanting to FaceTime.
We a had a great time talking and before I knew it, it was almost noon. The clock was ticking now- I had to hurry to get out of the room and get the day’s adventure underway. In addition to just getting dressed, I needed to send some clothes down to be cleaned and just made the collection deadline to get them back that evening. I jumped in and out of the shower got out of the room as fast as I could. I decided to head the northern area of Kyoto, into the mountains to an area called Kurama.
I was hungry again since my breakfast was pretty light, so before I caught my train, I ran down to the basement of the Isetan department store that’s part of the massive JR Kyoto Station. I made my way down to the Andersen Bakery and grabbed a couple things then headed back out to the station entrance. (Side note: I am, unfortunately, unable to resist these bakeries. Their power over me is great. It is good we do not have them in America.)
I hopped on the JR Nara line for a short ride and got off at Tofukuji. From there, I transferred to the private Keihan Main line to Demachi-Yanagi, followed by one more train change to the Eizan Kurama Line to Kurama. All together it took just under and hour to get there and it was amazing to me how I felt like I was no longer in Kyoto, but instead like I had gone someplace totally new. As the train made it’s way higher into the mountains, it gave me the feeling I was heading someplace remote and less traveled, it was nice even if that wasn’t really the case.
After arriving in Kurama, I quickly headed out of the small station and was greeted just outside the station gate by the huge statue of the Kurama Tengu mask, or Kurama Goblin.
I stopped to watch a mother and father try to get their very young son to cooperate in having his photo taken in front of it. Believe it or not, he didn’t seem to be very excited about having his picture taken. I found it amusing though. After that, I walked about another 50 yards maybe and was greeted with a great stairway up to the Nio-mon Gate of the Kurama-dera Temple.
As I ascended the stairs, I noticed an older man who seemed to be following me. When I would pause to take a photo, he would also pause, staying just behind me. As we reached the top to buy our entrance tickets, I paused to wipe my brow and said hello in Japanese. He smiled and replied “hello” in English. He was wearing a sport coat and had on a baseball cap that had “U.S.A” written on it. He didn’t seem to want to talk to me but rather just wanted to watch me take photos. So, from that point on, until we reached the point that the path split to either continue on foot to the top or take the cable car, he shadowed me. I have to add, that by this point, the heat was getting to me pretty badly and I was beginning to sweat very heavily. And as the hill got steeper, things were starting to go south as far as keeping myself looking cool and relaxed. In fact I was kind of worried about my new “friend” as he seemed to be struggling a bit as well. Eventually though he left me and headed for the cable car to the top and I never saw him again.
So up I went, passing more shrines, and climbing many steps on the path that zig-zagged to the main hall of Kurama-dera Temple at the top of the mountain. There weren’t too many people on the path since I think most people take the cable car up then walk this path back down.
During this climb, I seemed to be the only person that had any problem with the heat and humidity. When I finally reached the top, my shirt was starting to become soaked through where it was in contact with my camera bag and my small hand towel was already starting to reach the point of being too wet to be of any use. I imagine I was quite the sad site.
I spent about a half an hour looking around the temple hall and grounds of Kurama-dera. It was nice but not the most remarkable main hall of a Buddhist temple I have ever seen. I watched as they began to prepare the main hall for the night and I decided that if I was going to try and finish the entire trip I had set out on, I had better get a move on now.
My plan was to continue on and make the hike over to the neighboring town of Kibune and see Kibune Shrine. The trail to Kibune starts behind the main hall of Kurama-dera and goes up higher on the mountain and through the forest. It’s supposed to take an hour to complete and since it was now 4:30pm, I figured I had about an hour and a half of good daylight left and headed off on my way.
At first, the trail just went up and up and I was getting hotter and hotter. I passed the Reiho-den (treasure museum), then up more stairs, through a gate and then finally into the forest. At this point though, things started to get a little weird for me. I was a lot more tired from the heat than I realized and was extremely hot and soaked in sweat. As for anything to drink, I had only about a third of my bottle of tea left. The map I was using left me completely unsure where I was and I seemed to be the only person on the trail. But I pushed on, moving faster up the trail.
My heart was pounding after a good steep climb and I was getting even more tired and really began to question my decision. I stopped to catch my breath and decided that perhaps today really wasn’t the best day for me to make this hike and turned around to head back down. The thing that made me turn back was that I really couldn’t tell where I was on the map and how much further I had to go. Maybe I was being too cautious but better safe than sorry. I was now soaked through with sweat, feeling like I had just gotten out of a pool with my clothes on. So, back I went.
I got maybe 100 yards or so when low and behold, I ran into somebody! I was surprised and glad. Maybe I didn’t need to turn back after all. I politely stopped him and asked about our location on the map. Turns out, I was a little further than I thought and he was going to go all the way so I decided to reverse course and follow him. It worked out great and he really was gracious to allow me to tag along behind him. I did feel bad though since a couple of times I felt like I was holding him back. He was of course showing no signs of being hot, and as we hiked along, I just continued to get even worse. My hand towel was so soaked I could wring the sweat out of it and my hands were so wet, my camera was slipping out of my fingers. It was truly ridiculous and embarrassing.
It was a beautiful hike. Seeing the Kinone Michi was a highlight. it’s where the exposed roots of the cedar trees cross the trail- very unique. And from that point, it was pretty much all down hill. Now, you’d think that would have made things better but I wasn’t able to cool down at all. I was so tired and wanted to sit but couldn’t as my “trail friend” was keeping a very good pace. He wasn’t about to leave me behind, which I really did appreciate.
The hike from Kurama-dera to Kibune ended up taking about 40 minutes and when I descended into the small quiet town, I was so glad I made it. Next post- Kibune.
› Wed, 21 Sep 2011
Onto Kyoto
Leaving Koyasan was a hot, humid journey.
I took the bus from Shojoshin-in Temple to the cable car station and had to stand for the ride since the bus was small and there wasn’t anywhere to put my suitcase. I was already sweating profusely before I boarded the bus and the lack of air conditioning only made that worse for me. Also, I was stressed as I had to pay close attention to the time for this journey. In order to arrive in Kyoto at a decent time that evening, I had to make the 3:19pm cable car from Koyasan so that I could catch the 3:30pm train back to Osaka. A tight train schedule getting to my next destination, Kyoto.
I bought my ticket for the return trip to Osaka the day before as part of a Koyasan travel package. What I didn’t realize though, was that it wasn’t a direct train- I’d have to transfer to another train halfway to Osaka. Plus, I wouldn’t have an assigned seat, which I wanted. So at the top station of the cable car, I went to the ticket window to change it to the express train, but had no success. Trying to change that ticket was my only time encountering any sort of problems with my lack of Japanese speaking ability as the older ticketing gentleman didn’t want to take the time to help me. He just kept telling me the type of ticket I already had and waved me away. So, I let it go, deciding that I would deal with it at the bottom station, and got on the cable car. I dragged my stupidly heavy suitcase down the steep steps to the bottom of the car platform to board it at the front so as to save time at the bottom. It was so hot and I was really starting to sweat.
The view back up to the top of the cable car platform.
The ride down was nice. The car was full and I again stood for the ride, holding my suitcase so that it didn’t roll everywhere and hit people. I was the only foreigner on the car and it struck me as interesting how the young kids on it reacted to me. When I was in Japan 20 years ago, the city I lived in, Okazaki, which was still small enough that there weren’t a lot of foreigners in it, at least not westerners. So when I would be out and small kids would see me then, I would often hear them quietly say to their parents, “gaijin” and point at me. In some ways, that was the same reaction I got from the kids on this cable car, the same look although without the whispering. It was surprising.
The cable car ride was short, five minutes in fact, and as soon as the doors opened, I heaved my suitcase out and made my way as fast as I could to the ticket window. This time, the ticket agent took the time to deal with me and upgraded my ticket to what I wanted. It cost me an extra 700 yen but it was totally worth it.
The train was going to be leaving any minute but I had to use the bathroom. I didn’t know if the train had a toilet so I ran to the bathroom and just hoped I wouldn’t miss my train. I made it back just in time. As I got to my seat, the train started to pull out of the station. I settled in and since there was nobody in the seat next to me, I slid my suitcase in front of the empty seat and relaxed. I decided it was time to drink the can of Pepsi Twist I bought from the vending machine near the cemetery, and it was delicious. I actually don’t drink soda anymore, but I made an few necessary exceptions to that rule on this trip. And then it was really only the occasional Fanta Grape or when I found a special regional Pepsi or something fun like that. I have yet to enjoy anything like the fun cucumber flavored Pepsi from a couple years ago, but the previous trip, I had something called Pepsi Balbao I think it was called.
Anyway, the train trip back was nice. I had intended to sort photos and perhaps write but I decided to just look out the window and enjoy the beautiful mountain scenery going by. It was fantastic.
The train arrived on time back into Namba Station, in Osaka. I now had to get to the subway and make my way back to Shin-Osaka station in the northern part of the city. I was in the lower middle of the city where the JR (Japan Rail) trains don’t go. It was weird to back here again so fast but since it was so fresh in my mind, I had no problem getting back to where I needed to go and was qucikly on the subway platform. The Midosuji Line, north to Shin-Osaka.
Once I arrived at Shin-Osaka, I hurried down to the JR ticket office for the Shinkansen and got my ticket. I could now slow down since I had about 40 minutes until my train. I took a minute and got some food then slowly made my way up to the Shinkansen platform. Was it ever hot up there! Again, as soon as i got up on the platform, the sweating began. It was ridiculous how hot I was. I got a nice cold bottle of tea and sat down and waited, trying to cool off- no luck.
The Shinkansen arrived, on time of course, and I was off to Kyoto. I settled into my seat and just started to stare off out the window. I love riding the Shinkansen and decided before I came on this trip to ride it as much as possible. It’s the little things like this that I enjoy so much. That evening on the train, I finally got to see a beautiful, colorful sunset as I sped towards Kyoto. Magnificent.
One thing that I am fascinated by is trying to capture other trains that I pass while riding the Shinkansen. Whether it’s local trains or trying to freeze a glimpse into another passing Shinkansen.
So, I arrived in Kyoto. It felt so good to be back there, so familiar and welcoming. It was so humid, in fact it felt hotter in Kyoto than Osaka. Checking into the hotel took no time at all and within 20 minutes of arriving into to Kyoto, I was relaxing in my room. I was staying at the fantastic Hotel Granvia which is located in Kyoto Station. The first time I stayed here was in 2006. It is my home away from home in Kyoto, I wouldn’t stay any place else (except in a Ryokan in Arashiyama?).
I was tired from the day but, after about 30 minutes of foot resting, I was out to explore a bit. I actually went to the south side if the station and wandered into the giant Aeon Mall to do some looking in the bookstore and hit the grocery store for some breakfast food.
I decided to call it an early night and headed back to my room about 10pm. Before that though, I went to the north side of the station to the Lawson convenience store for a snack, some chicken karaage (fried chicken nuggets if you will) and some orange juice. Such a great combination, not at all a fancy meal but one that hit the spot.
After eating, I downloaded and backed up the days photographs, took a shower and I was off to bed.
Tomorrow, onto Kurama in the northern mountains above Kyoto.
› Tue, 13 Sep 2011
Okunoin Cemetery (Koyasan part 4)
Okunoin Cememtery
So after breakfast I returned to my room to pack and get checked out. I was sad to be leaving after such a short stay, but onto the big adventure for the day-Okunoin Cemetery. However, it didn’t take me long to get sidetracked on my way out the temple. As no sooner was I 20 feet from my room, than the tripod was out and I was shooting. The place was just too beautiful and every time I turned my head, I saw something new and interesting.
I spent the next hour shooting around the pond that I had been looking at as I ate. The closer I looked, the more I noticed like the giant spiders or new fish swimming in the pond. There were little details everywhere that just begged to be discovered.
The monk, who didn’t speak English, was doing his daily routine of cleaning and had made his way to where I was. He found a gecko that was clinging to an inside window of a door and summoned me over to show me. These geckos apparently only live indoors here and it seemed I was lucky to have been able to see one. I tried to photograph it, but it just didn’t seem to want to have its picture taken as it did it’s best to hide, eventually climbing away behind the wall. The monk then took me to a corner of the pond to show me the frogs that I had missed as they were completely camouflaged and making no noise.
I could have stayed for several days just photographing inside the temple itself and never exploring any other part of Koyasan. I still spent another half hour wandering around the grounds of the temple after checking out before finally going into the cemetery.
It was definitely cooler up on Koyasan, but I guess temperatures are all relevant. It was still hot and humid and it really didn’t feel that much cooler to me. Add to that, the mosquitoes in the cemetery and I knew an interesting time was before me. I had to wear long pants and long sleeves in the cemetery as the mosquitoes had decided I was a good target. It didn’t ruin my enjoyment at all though.
I could try to describe what I saw but that’s not as interesting as seeing what was there. Here is a small sampling.
So this is a very small part of what is inside this amazing place. I was hoping that it would rain while I was there as I think it would have made for some incredible images, especially rain in the very early morning hours. It didn’t, so perhaps save that for next time. Snow would be amazing as well…
The actual town itself is interesting in that the few restaurants and shops that are there, seem to be there only to support the tourism- there really isn’t much else there. I found a nice quiet restaurant and enjoyed a lunch of Zaru Soba before I had to head out of town. After lunch, as I was walking back to Shojoshin-in Temple to retrieve my suitcase, I got stopped by a small Japanese TV crew. They interviewed me about why I came to Koyasan, what I did and how I felt about my time there. It was a bit of an awkward interview as the woman who was supposed to be interviewing me didn’t speak English. So the person who I assumed was the producer asked the questions and I did my best to not look at him while I answered. I’ll never know how it turned out though I guess.
In the end, I think a week would have been the optimum amount of time to stay in Koyasan. I feel like I saw maybe two percent of what is there. As it turns out, my host father from my time as an exchange student has an uncle who is a monk in Koyasan. I didn’t find this out until it was too late, however, next time I return there maybe I will be able to meet him?
Onto Kyoto now, via Osaka…
› Fri, 02 Sep 2011
Koyasan part 3
I slept incredibly well and woke up before my 5:30am alarm. One interesting aspect of staying at the temple lodging is that you are required to attend the morning Buddhist ceremony. No participation, just attendance. I was a little worried about being able to get up easily for this before my trip but I had zero problem. In fact, I really enjoyed getting up that early. The hadn’t risen very high and the temple had a really nice atmosphere to it. As I was getting dressed, I realized hat I couldn’t remember if somebody was going to come and get me, like with dinner, or if i was just supposed to go by myself. Well at about 5 minutes before 6am, I heard the official bell so I grabbed my stuff and split. On the way, it donned on me that I never took the time to figure out where the main hall of the temple was and so first I ran outside, put my shoes on and headed, in what I thought, was the right direction. It was the right way, but I needed to stay inside the temple so I ran back to the front door, dropped off my shoes and hurried down the hallway it because now it was 6am. Side Note: I love the sound that is made when you hurry down the wooden hallways. The creaking of the wood and the sliding of slippers instantly takes you back in time.
I got to the main hall just as the morning prayers were getting under way. I was finally able to confirm that I was the only guest staying there since I was the only other person besides the two monks. I had my camera with me of course and spent the first 20 minutes deciding how disruptive the clack of the shutter would be. I absolutely did not want to be rude or interrupt them so I pulled out the iPhone and took some shots and a little video. The angle was tough in that I was only about four feet behind them and they were slightly behind some pillars. I got a couple decent shots but decided I had to go for it with the DSLR. My Mark 3 has a “silent” shutter mode which is a little quieter in that it delays the mirror return until you release your finger from the shutter release button. It is however not as silent as a rangefinder, you can still hear, especially as close as I was to them.
So as the monks did their chanting and bell ringing, I worked on timing photos to coincide with their louder noises. The whole experience was amazing. Having no idea what was being said didn’t detract at all from my enjoyment. The chanting put you into a trance that made the time go by extremely fast and when it was all finished, 45 minutes had passed.
The monks rose from their spots and turned to greet me. The monk in front of me, who was the one who had served me dinner, said “good morning” and told me that my breakfast would be ready in 15 minutes and to return to where I had eaten dinner. He then walked away. The other monk attended to the shrine. He didn’t really speak English but I was able to ask well enough about what they had been saying in the chants. Unfortunately, while he understood my questions, he couldn’t really answer my them. He was however very gracious and showed me around the shrine and main hall. It wasn’t as big as it seemed, or perhaps there was a lot more but I just wasn’t allowed to see it and that made it seem small.
Breakfast was nice and simple again. Without realizing it, I spent 45 minutes eating and enjoying the view. The same as dinner but different as it was now morning. At one point, almost on cue it seemed, a large bug crawled across the outside railing and stopped, posing for me. I just sat there enjoying the experience, which is what the temple stay is all about. The design of the rooms and the garden, all made to look natural yet are completely designed by man for maximum enjoyment. It was a relaxing and mentally cleansing experience that I must return to do again.
After breakfast, I was able to talk to the monk who cold speak some English and he asked why I had come to Japan and what made me decide to com to Koyasan. I told him about my time as an exchange student in high school and how I had returned with my family wife. He suggested that we come back in the fall to enjoy the Koyo (red leaves). I told him that I would love to and that I noticed the Japanese Maple tree that would be in perfect view while eating. He smiled.
Off to photograph now, next up is the walk through Okunoin cemetery…
› Fri, 02 Sep 2011
Koyasan part 2
So dinner was wonderful, simple and really not that unfamiliar since it was a lot like other Kaiseki meals I have had at Ryokan’s before. The only difference was the absence of meat. It filled me up for sure and gave me the energy to get moving again.
I slowly made my way back up to my room to grab my tripod. I forgot that it gets darker earlier here so I was going to need some support to shoot in the dark. I started shooting around the darkened temple first. It was so quiet. I then headed out to the streets and wandered up a bit into the town. Not much to see though as everything was closed. I did however start to hear a loud crowd coming my way which turned out to be school kids heading into the cemetery for a little nighttime tour. I decided to go into the cemetery as well.
There were a few lamps to light the way but they really didn’t do anything. I pulled out my iPhone and switched on the flashlight app and it helped a little in lighting up about three feet in front of me, otherwise- pitch black darkness. So, I was ahead of the kids when I entered the cemetery and it felt a little weird. Not in a ghostly sort of way, but rather it started to weird me out with all the unfamiliar animal and bird sounds I was hearing. Add to that, the mosquitoes that were starting to eat me and I decided that maybe I should call it a night. I actually went pretty far in which I realized the next day, but that’s for the next entry. Oh, the other reason I decided to head back when I did, was that the bath was only open until 9pm so I had to get back to so as not to rush that. A bath in a ryokan is always something to be savored.
So, as I made my way back to the entrance of the cemetery, the school kids began to pass me. And as they did, many of them took the opportunity to wave and say “hello” and “hi”. I responded with the same and it was a nice exchange. It lasted a while as there about 100 kids in a line passing me on the narrow pathway.
When I returned to the temple, I found the little door, climbed through and headed to the room. I changed into my yukata and went to enjoy a relaxing bath. Funny thing about the bath here in Japan, is that even when it’s hot, a good soak in a hot bath is extremely relaxing. The tub was all wood and the water created a great optical effect of making the tub look concave. It made my tired legs feel a lot better, that’s for sure.
After the bath, I took time to download my photos and just relax. There was actually a TV in my room so I watch the Track and Field games going on Korea. Good stuff. Then, around 11pm, I fell asleep.
I guess I should mention that I left the TV while I slept. Was too creepy otherwise. I slept fantastically on my futon!
› Wed, 31 Aug 2011
Koyasan part 1
People here in Japan were curious as to why I would want to go Koyasan. It’s out of the way and nothing but temples. Plus, it’s a little bit of a pain to get there when you have to tote a suitcase. But, I decided to go becasue I thought it would give me a better glimpse into the traditional Buddhist element of Japan, clearer than just going to the main temples all the toursits go to.
Here’s some background on Koyasan from an excellent website on Japan and Japan travel called Japan Guide:
“Mount Koya (Koyasan) is the center of Shingon Buddhism, an important Buddhist sect which was introduced to Japan in 805 by Kobo Daishi (also known as Kukai), one of Japan’s most significant religious figures. A small, secluded temple town has developed around the sect’s headquarters that Kobo Daishi built on Koyasan’s wooded mountaintop. It is also the site of Kobo Daishi’s mausoleum and the start and end point of the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage.
Kobo Daishi began construction on the original Garan temple complex in 826 after wandering the country for years in search of a suitable place to center his religion. Since then over one hundredtemples have sprung up along the streets of Koyasan. The most important among them are Kongobuji, the head temple of Shingon Buddhism, and Okunoin, the site of Kobo Daishi’s mausoleum.”
So I made a reservation online to stay the night at a temple named Shojoshin-in, right next to the entrance of the famous cemetery, Okunoin. What an amazing experience! I arrived a just in time to check in as my journey there was a contiuous chain of just in time events, going from train to train to train to cable car to bus.
The train ride from Namba station in Osaka was spectacular. As the train ascended into the mountains, you felt like you were leaving one world and heading into a place that was quite far removed and remote. It turned out I wasn’t the only person on the train like I had thought, there were about 10 other people in the other three cars. After the train, I had to catch a cable car to the top of the mountain and for that, I was the only passenger. I missed the cablecar I was supposed to take since I had to make a short bathrrom stop. It threw off my trip timing and it meant that I would have to hurry even faster once I got to the top.
I got to the top and caught my bus. The fun of that was that the driver spoke no English and you had to push a button when you wanted the bus to stop. It was hard to hear the station announcements. Luckily, my stop was the stop everyone was waiting for so it ended up being no problem. Shojoshin-in was just down the street about 25 yards but the main gate had been closed and it took me a minute to figure out how to get in. I found a gardener who called someone to help me.
I got myself checked and chatted with the woman about how hot it was compared to home. The humidity of course is what got me, and as we talked I just sat there sweating bucks.
She took headed to my room and one of the monks took my suitcase and explained the way things ran. No yukata except to the bath or in the room. They would get me for dinner and if I wanted to go out after that, there would be a small door taht is left open for me to get back in. He left and i had about 1/2 hour to relax. One thing had to do was to keep all my valuables on me at all times since there were no door locks anywehere. So even when I went to the bathroom, the camera and lenses came too,
So dinner time arrived and I was escorted to my private room that had a beautiful view out into the garden. I imagine that in the fall, it would be even better with the Koyo, or red leaves that would be covering the hillside. Here is dinner, all vegetarian of course:
To be continued…
› Tue, 30 Aug 2011
Dinner, but not in Koyasan.
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