Nara
Friday, August 26, 2005
Sunday, August 21, 2005
Nara
Two weeks ago Carl and I had a day off together, something that has become increasingly more rare as they keep throwing overtime at us, so we decided to get out of town and do something fun. We headed for Nara. Luckily our local station is on the Nara line out of town and 45 minutes later we found ourselves in the small quiet town of Nara.
First, a bit of history; Nara was the one of the first capitals of Japan from 710 - 784 AD. It is considered the cradle of Japanese culture, arts and crafts. It is also where Buddhism first flourished in Japan under the strong patronage of successive emperors and empresses. They sponsored magnificent temples and works of art, many of which have survived to this day. There are 7 cultural sites in Nara registered on the UNESCO World Heritage List, including the world's largest bronze Buddha, the world's largest wooden building, and the world's oldest wooden building. You can hardly take a step in Nara without tripping over something precious. Or over deer droppings. On to the story.
We arrived in Nara on a hot, sunny, clear afternoon. After a quick orientation by the friendly lady at the tourist center, we were on our way. The closest Canadian equivalent we could think of for Nara is Banff. A beautiful little tourist town in the shadows of the mountains, at one with the wilderness. Except the mountains are closer to hills and in Nara you have to feed the deer.
After a short walk up a shopping street there was a small pond, filled with coi and turtles, flanked by a three and five story pagoda. To the right is an old arts and crafts market and up and to the left is Nara Park. Nara Park was created in 1880 as a reflective spot with which to contemplate the beautiful monuments that are on each edge of the park. To further enhance the scenic setting they filled the park with tama (not tame) deer, a symbol of Nara.
I was raised by a hunter. I was taught to respect the line between wilderness and humans. Animals are not people and should not be treated as such. Bambi was never watched in our house because deer don't talk to skunks and the only evil hunters are poachers and those who hunt irresponsibly with no respect for nature. So of course, one of the first things I did in Nara was buy a packet of deer cookies sold by the vendors. I love you dad!
The vendors are scattered every 20 feet and are surrounded by deer. Carl was very disappointed to find that the cookies were made for the deer and not from the deer. The second you approach a vendor the deer surround you. This is why people and wild animals should be kept separate. The second people become a source of food, they are no longer a source of fear. And that's when the people should be afraid, very very afraid. All around the park you see the dance of people buying cookies and then running in circles trying to feed and avoid the deer at the same time. If you don't feed every deer around you right away they start to get ... pushy. In this amusing series of shots you can see me attempting to feed the deer and not become deer food myself. Stop biting my shirt you short, sharp-toothed monster! There's skin there!! Hey!!!
Carl had a better idea. Buy the cookies after dark and sneak up to other deer not surrounding the vendors and feed the deer by stealth. Much less dangerous for all involved.
After the @#%! deer we moved across the park towards the highlight of Nara, Todai-ji Temple, the world's largest wooden building, housing the world's largest bronze buddha. The huge horned Daibatsu-den (Buddha house) is hard to describe other than saying it is truly awesome in every sense of the word. And it used to be bigger. After it burned down twice, it was finally rebuilt in 1692 at two-thirds the original size. The Daibutsu, great Buddha, is even more awe-inspiring. He represents the Cosmic Buddha who presides over the universe, and each level of reality is depicted on the lotus flower he sits on. Each petal of the lotus he sits on is 10 feet tall. He is also flanked by impressive guardian figures. In the back corner of the building, there is a small hole in the base of one of the pillars. The inside is smooth from people crawling through, because apparently going through it reserves you a place in paradise. A camel passing through the needle's eye, so to speak.
To the west, and further up the hill are more temples, which have fantastic views of the city. They also provided some welcome shade on a hot sunny day. We walked south from there to Kasuga Grand Shrine, an important place for Shinto worship. The paths around it are lined with more than 2000 huge stone lanterns. We circled down to the east side of the park and finally settled in a Mos Burger restaurant to admire the sunburns we'd each picked up. Finally, we bought some bread to attract the minnows and watch the turtles eat the minnows in the pond, as we waited for the sun to set.
After sunset the Nara lantern festival began. For two weeks every August the streets and hills around Nara are covered with thousands of small plastic lanterns holding floating candles. There are also numerous buckets of water around, just in case. The number of volunteer hours that must go into that each night is amazing. But it's worth it. It's truly lovely. The lanterns were arranged to form words on the higher hills and in patterns on the ground. There were large bronze arrangements and floating holders on the ponds. We wandered among families as they took pictures of their children in yukatas playing among the lanterns and the still hungry deer. And after another hour of wandering we took our tired feet home to bed. Another day and night in Japan.
To see all our pictures, click here.
First, a bit of history; Nara was the one of the first capitals of Japan from 710 - 784 AD. It is considered the cradle of Japanese culture, arts and crafts. It is also where Buddhism first flourished in Japan under the strong patronage of successive emperors and empresses. They sponsored magnificent temples and works of art, many of which have survived to this day. There are 7 cultural sites in Nara registered on the UNESCO World Heritage List, including the world's largest bronze Buddha, the world's largest wooden building, and the world's oldest wooden building. You can hardly take a step in Nara without tripping over something precious. Or over deer droppings. On to the story.
We arrived in Nara on a hot, sunny, clear afternoon. After a quick orientation by the friendly lady at the tourist center, we were on our way. The closest Canadian equivalent we could think of for Nara is Banff. A beautiful little tourist town in the shadows of the mountains, at one with the wilderness. Except the mountains are closer to hills and in Nara you have to feed the deer.
After a short walk up a shopping street there was a small pond, filled with coi and turtles, flanked by a three and five story pagoda. To the right is an old arts and crafts market and up and to the left is Nara Park. Nara Park was created in 1880 as a reflective spot with which to contemplate the beautiful monuments that are on each edge of the park. To further enhance the scenic setting they filled the park with tama (not tame) deer, a symbol of Nara.
I was raised by a hunter. I was taught to respect the line between wilderness and humans. Animals are not people and should not be treated as such. Bambi was never watched in our house because deer don't talk to skunks and the only evil hunters are poachers and those who hunt irresponsibly with no respect for nature. So of course, one of the first things I did in Nara was buy a packet of deer cookies sold by the vendors. I love you dad!
The vendors are scattered every 20 feet and are surrounded by deer. Carl was very disappointed to find that the cookies were made for the deer and not from the deer. The second you approach a vendor the deer surround you. This is why people and wild animals should be kept separate. The second people become a source of food, they are no longer a source of fear. And that's when the people should be afraid, very very afraid. All around the park you see the dance of people buying cookies and then running in circles trying to feed and avoid the deer at the same time. If you don't feed every deer around you right away they start to get ... pushy. In this amusing series of shots you can see me attempting to feed the deer and not become deer food myself. Stop biting my shirt you short, sharp-toothed monster! There's skin there!! Hey!!!
Carl had a better idea. Buy the cookies after dark and sneak up to other deer not surrounding the vendors and feed the deer by stealth. Much less dangerous for all involved.
After the @#%! deer we moved across the park towards the highlight of Nara, Todai-ji Temple, the world's largest wooden building, housing the world's largest bronze buddha. The huge horned Daibatsu-den (Buddha house) is hard to describe other than saying it is truly awesome in every sense of the word. And it used to be bigger. After it burned down twice, it was finally rebuilt in 1692 at two-thirds the original size. The Daibutsu, great Buddha, is even more awe-inspiring. He represents the Cosmic Buddha who presides over the universe, and each level of reality is depicted on the lotus flower he sits on. Each petal of the lotus he sits on is 10 feet tall. He is also flanked by impressive guardian figures. In the back corner of the building, there is a small hole in the base of one of the pillars. The inside is smooth from people crawling through, because apparently going through it reserves you a place in paradise. A camel passing through the needle's eye, so to speak.
To the west, and further up the hill are more temples, which have fantastic views of the city. They also provided some welcome shade on a hot sunny day. We walked south from there to Kasuga Grand Shrine, an important place for Shinto worship. The paths around it are lined with more than 2000 huge stone lanterns. We circled down to the east side of the park and finally settled in a Mos Burger restaurant to admire the sunburns we'd each picked up. Finally, we bought some bread to attract the minnows and watch the turtles eat the minnows in the pond, as we waited for the sun to set.
After sunset the Nara lantern festival began. For two weeks every August the streets and hills around Nara are covered with thousands of small plastic lanterns holding floating candles. There are also numerous buckets of water around, just in case. The number of volunteer hours that must go into that each night is amazing. But it's worth it. It's truly lovely. The lanterns were arranged to form words on the higher hills and in patterns on the ground. There were large bronze arrangements and floating holders on the ponds. We wandered among families as they took pictures of their children in yukatas playing among the lanterns and the still hungry deer. And after another hour of wandering we took our tired feet home to bed. Another day and night in Japan.
To see all our pictures, click here.
Friday, August 05, 2005
The Long Weekend - Part 3
Our Sunday started late and in the pouring rain. Again.
Now Osaka is not the most touristy of cities to begin with. Even though it's the second largest city in Japan, and one of the oldest, it has often been called the ugly stepsister of Japan. It is a hub of business and it has great food, but those aren't really tourist draws. And let's face it, the gee-whiz factor of anything is dampened in a downpour. We started our mission, to show our friends our home, at a severe disadvantage. However, we did our best. We really did try guys!
We started by going to Osakajo, Osaka's castle, just a few minutes walk from our apartment. We have a lot of photos of the castle already, but we added a few new ones to show the change of the seasons. And of course Scott had to have his picture taken, the little camera hog. We wandered around the plaza and over to a nearby shrine. It really is lovely, but again, the rain didn't help. "Hey, you should go look at the fantastic zen rock garden. I mean if you can make it past the river on the path." We were helped in our explorations by a sweet volunteer guide, who did her best to explain Buddhist rituals in limited English. And after posing for a picture with us she gave us directions to our next destination. Shi-Tennoji Temple.
Now we had never been to Shi-Tennoji before, even though it is one of Osaka's largest temples. It's just a little outside of our usual areas, so we were finding it for the first time with Joe and Leanne. When we got to Tennoji station we wandered upstairs looking for a map or sign or tourist information office. We had barely climbed the stairs before a kind man had spotted our confusion and was trying to help us. When Carl had finally made our destination clear he lit up like a light and bolted across the station with our group hardly able to keep up. He raced out of the station, to the intersection and pointed down the street. Apparently, all we had to do was go straight until we reached a large intersection and we'd be there. It was at this point that Joe turned to me and asked,
"Does this ever happen to you?"
"What?"
"Strangers coming up to you, offering to help?"
"Well, now that you mention it no, never."
Leanne chipped in with, "Oh, this happens to me all the time."
Carl said, "Me too, even when I know when I'm going, I've had people offer to help me."
Joe and I looked at each other.
Joe said, "See, this never happens to me. I've been here 10 months and no one's ever walked up to me and offered me directions or help, without me asking."
"Oh, that's just because you're a guy," Leanne said.
"No, this happens to Carl too. I think it's because you're a blonde."
And that's when it all became clear. The power of the blonde. Oh, they tried to deny it, but the path their yellow hair cleared for us was undeniable. Now at this point, some of you may be going, "But Colleen, you're a blonde too!" No, I've always been a mousy blonde, or a reddish blonde, or some other kind of -ish blonde. Never a true, flaxen haired, yellow blonde. And comparing the looks I get, with the giggles and points that Carl and his charming grin and sunglasses get is honestly like comparing the sun and the moon. The hair of the blonde glows. It emits an aura that draws people to them. Like moths to the proverbial flame they are.
However, Leanne and Carl did not glow brightly enough to make the rain go away. So after receiving our directions we walked down the street with our increasingly battered umbrellas looking for the temple. Japan is a place of such history and contrasts that temples and shrines really are everywhere, even in the middle of a busy city. We crossed the street at one point to check out a small shrine we though might have been connected to the temple. But just half a block later we found our destination. Exactly where our guide said it would be. We wandered around and saw monks taking offerings to ring bells for followers. Candles being burned at small shrines. We performed some ritual ablutions ourselves, rinsing our hands and mouths at one of the fountains even though, oh yeah, it's still raining. We walked into the heart of the complex and saw an admission booth for the temple gardens. Now we were feeling a little beaten down by the rain, and Joe, Carl and I just wanted to move on and not pay to see the gardens. But Leanne insisted and we were glad she did. Even in the rain the zen gardens were wonderful. Quiet and peaceful, truly beautiful. We took a lot of photos even though a lot of them were blurry because my hands were shaking in the damp cold. We left just before the gardens closed and moved on to Namba.
Namba is one of the two downtown cores and it's where I work. We wandered through the claustrophobic underground mall choked with people in the middle of the afternoon and back out onto the rain soaked streets. We had to stop at the giant Apple store and let the boys ogle the toys. And then we went to Dotomburi bridge, a place famous for its giant neon signs. Giant neon signs that, unfortunately, weren't lit up yet. Oh. We though about staying and watching the elaborately dressed teenagers hit on each other until they were turned on (the signs, not the teenagers), but we thought in the interest of time we should move on.
Onto the subway, where we marvelled at the number of men with Platinum Blonde and Bon Jovi hair-dos. We went across town to Umeda, the other downtown core and where Carl works. We went straight to Yodabashi camera, one of Carl's favourite places in Osaka. All toys and gadgets and gizmos. On our way back into the mall Carl and Joe stopped for a beer at one of vendor carts that are everywhere. A sort of portable stand-up bar. It is over these beers that the legend of the leprechorn was born. A mythical creature with astonishing powers that I really have to let Carl tell you about. I am in no way capable of truly communicating the full mythology of such a creature myself. Until then you will have to imagine the powers of such a creature yourself.
Barely recovered from our encounter with the mystical creature, we went to Kinokuniya, a huge bookstore that thankfully has an English language section. After a few purchases at the temporary English language bargain section we went back out and tried to decide what to do next. By this time, the rain had worn down everyone's patience and enthusiasm. Even our umbrellas had reached their ends. And I know my feet were hurting. We decided to go in search of karaoke for our last night in Japan together. We wandered through the closing malls and up and down the soaked streets. Just as we were about to give in and go to the overpriced Big Echo a sidewalk flyer person stopped us and pointed us in the direction of their establishment. They took pity on our tired faces and rode up in the tiny elevator with us. As we were ushered into our private room, we couldn't help noticing the faded wallpaper and fraying seats, all infused with the permanent smell of cigarettes. But the price was right and they had a great selection of songs, which we belted into submission for an hour.
Then we were off to our last stop of the day. Sushi. We decided on a kaiten-zushi, a conveyor belt sushi restaurant that can also be found in North America. For those unfamiliar with the concept, chefs put small plates of sushi on a conveyor belt that goes around the entire restaurant. You pick up any plate that looks appetizing to you and your bill is determined by the number plates you pile up. We had some very good sushi, and a chance to relax in a warm dry place. By the time we were done the rain was gone. And we walked home to dry clothes and hot baths.
The next morning Joe and Leanne left with us as we went to work. It was sad to see them go. But we had a great time with them for our first long weekend in Japan.
For all the pics, click here.
Now Osaka is not the most touristy of cities to begin with. Even though it's the second largest city in Japan, and one of the oldest, it has often been called the ugly stepsister of Japan. It is a hub of business and it has great food, but those aren't really tourist draws. And let's face it, the gee-whiz factor of anything is dampened in a downpour. We started our mission, to show our friends our home, at a severe disadvantage. However, we did our best. We really did try guys!
We started by going to Osakajo, Osaka's castle, just a few minutes walk from our apartment. We have a lot of photos of the castle already, but we added a few new ones to show the change of the seasons. And of course Scott had to have his picture taken, the little camera hog. We wandered around the plaza and over to a nearby shrine. It really is lovely, but again, the rain didn't help. "Hey, you should go look at the fantastic zen rock garden. I mean if you can make it past the river on the path." We were helped in our explorations by a sweet volunteer guide, who did her best to explain Buddhist rituals in limited English. And after posing for a picture with us she gave us directions to our next destination. Shi-Tennoji Temple.
Now we had never been to Shi-Tennoji before, even though it is one of Osaka's largest temples. It's just a little outside of our usual areas, so we were finding it for the first time with Joe and Leanne. When we got to Tennoji station we wandered upstairs looking for a map or sign or tourist information office. We had barely climbed the stairs before a kind man had spotted our confusion and was trying to help us. When Carl had finally made our destination clear he lit up like a light and bolted across the station with our group hardly able to keep up. He raced out of the station, to the intersection and pointed down the street. Apparently, all we had to do was go straight until we reached a large intersection and we'd be there. It was at this point that Joe turned to me and asked,
"Does this ever happen to you?"
"What?"
"Strangers coming up to you, offering to help?"
"Well, now that you mention it no, never."
Leanne chipped in with, "Oh, this happens to me all the time."
Carl said, "Me too, even when I know when I'm going, I've had people offer to help me."
Joe and I looked at each other.
Joe said, "See, this never happens to me. I've been here 10 months and no one's ever walked up to me and offered me directions or help, without me asking."
"Oh, that's just because you're a guy," Leanne said.
"No, this happens to Carl too. I think it's because you're a blonde."
And that's when it all became clear. The power of the blonde. Oh, they tried to deny it, but the path their yellow hair cleared for us was undeniable. Now at this point, some of you may be going, "But Colleen, you're a blonde too!" No, I've always been a mousy blonde, or a reddish blonde, or some other kind of -ish blonde. Never a true, flaxen haired, yellow blonde. And comparing the looks I get, with the giggles and points that Carl and his charming grin and sunglasses get is honestly like comparing the sun and the moon. The hair of the blonde glows. It emits an aura that draws people to them. Like moths to the proverbial flame they are.
However, Leanne and Carl did not glow brightly enough to make the rain go away. So after receiving our directions we walked down the street with our increasingly battered umbrellas looking for the temple. Japan is a place of such history and contrasts that temples and shrines really are everywhere, even in the middle of a busy city. We crossed the street at one point to check out a small shrine we though might have been connected to the temple. But just half a block later we found our destination. Exactly where our guide said it would be. We wandered around and saw monks taking offerings to ring bells for followers. Candles being burned at small shrines. We performed some ritual ablutions ourselves, rinsing our hands and mouths at one of the fountains even though, oh yeah, it's still raining. We walked into the heart of the complex and saw an admission booth for the temple gardens. Now we were feeling a little beaten down by the rain, and Joe, Carl and I just wanted to move on and not pay to see the gardens. But Leanne insisted and we were glad she did. Even in the rain the zen gardens were wonderful. Quiet and peaceful, truly beautiful. We took a lot of photos even though a lot of them were blurry because my hands were shaking in the damp cold. We left just before the gardens closed and moved on to Namba.
Namba is one of the two downtown cores and it's where I work. We wandered through the claustrophobic underground mall choked with people in the middle of the afternoon and back out onto the rain soaked streets. We had to stop at the giant Apple store and let the boys ogle the toys. And then we went to Dotomburi bridge, a place famous for its giant neon signs. Giant neon signs that, unfortunately, weren't lit up yet. Oh. We though about staying and watching the elaborately dressed teenagers hit on each other until they were turned on (the signs, not the teenagers), but we thought in the interest of time we should move on.
Onto the subway, where we marvelled at the number of men with Platinum Blonde and Bon Jovi hair-dos. We went across town to Umeda, the other downtown core and where Carl works. We went straight to Yodabashi camera, one of Carl's favourite places in Osaka. All toys and gadgets and gizmos. On our way back into the mall Carl and Joe stopped for a beer at one of vendor carts that are everywhere. A sort of portable stand-up bar. It is over these beers that the legend of the leprechorn was born. A mythical creature with astonishing powers that I really have to let Carl tell you about. I am in no way capable of truly communicating the full mythology of such a creature myself. Until then you will have to imagine the powers of such a creature yourself.
Barely recovered from our encounter with the mystical creature, we went to Kinokuniya, a huge bookstore that thankfully has an English language section. After a few purchases at the temporary English language bargain section we went back out and tried to decide what to do next. By this time, the rain had worn down everyone's patience and enthusiasm. Even our umbrellas had reached their ends. And I know my feet were hurting. We decided to go in search of karaoke for our last night in Japan together. We wandered through the closing malls and up and down the soaked streets. Just as we were about to give in and go to the overpriced Big Echo a sidewalk flyer person stopped us and pointed us in the direction of their establishment. They took pity on our tired faces and rode up in the tiny elevator with us. As we were ushered into our private room, we couldn't help noticing the faded wallpaper and fraying seats, all infused with the permanent smell of cigarettes. But the price was right and they had a great selection of songs, which we belted into submission for an hour.
Then we were off to our last stop of the day. Sushi. We decided on a kaiten-zushi, a conveyor belt sushi restaurant that can also be found in North America. For those unfamiliar with the concept, chefs put small plates of sushi on a conveyor belt that goes around the entire restaurant. You pick up any plate that looks appetizing to you and your bill is determined by the number plates you pile up. We had some very good sushi, and a chance to relax in a warm dry place. By the time we were done the rain was gone. And we walked home to dry clothes and hot baths.
The next morning Joe and Leanne left with us as we went to work. It was sad to see them go. But we had a great time with them for our first long weekend in Japan.
For all the pics, click here.
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