Another easy, less than 10 mile day. I should be careful about getting used to these things, they might make me spoiled.
Today was the mother of all train-hopping. We took four separate trains to get to this out-of-the-way mountain the Daniel want to climb. I initially was skeptical. O yee of little faith! Today was one of, if not the best day of the trip. The weather was cloudy enough so that I didn't worry about sunburn (yes, even I worry sometimes), the wind was cool enough so that we didn't get excessively sweaty, and the crowds were meager enough to see where we were going. And where we were going was spectacular! No offense to that beautiful scenery of Colorado, but Mt. Kurama has you beat. You might still win in climb-ability, though. Hiking a trail of stairs is annoying.
This was possibly the greenest mountain I have ever climbed. The best part? It was a warrior monk mountain! Warrior Monks! An apparently famous monk, who's name I can't remember, founded a rather militaristic school of Bhuddism that trained Imperial Guardsmen for the Emperor's security. I was three bamboo sticks away from being all Kung Fu Panda. Note: Daniel has just informed me that Kung Fu Panda is Chinese. Dammit. Anyway, warrior monks are cool. We started our hike at the Kurama train station, went up the mountain (by stair) and back down the mountain on the other side (by stair) to the town of Kibune for a late lunch. There are pics on fb that I strongly encourage you to check out, because lunch was really freakin' cool. There's a good-sized river that flows next to the town. There are lots of shrines dedicated to the Water Kami (god) that resides in the river. There are lots of restaurants where you can sit above the water and eat. Yeah. You read that right. As if sitting above a river to eat lunch wasn't cool enough, your food (noodles) would come to you via a bamboo shoot water transportation system. You'd pick up the bunch of noodles with your chopsticks before they floated away, dip it in your cup of dipping sauce, and chow. Maybe a little gimmicky, but it was awesome.
We took it four more trains to get back to Kyoto, finished up gift shopping, and landed in our hotel room to begin packing. Packing sucks. Not only because it means you're leaving, but it also means you have to fit everything you've acquired into the suitcase you came with. It's proving to be difficult. Here's hoping we don't need to buy any last-minute suitcases. It's been absolutely fantastic trip and I don't think anything could've gone better. I've even come to terms with our shoebox of a room. Thanks Japan, it's been fun. See you next time!
Love,
Leah Murphy, stair-mastering explorer
Monday, May 27, 2013
Day 9: Kyoto
Easy day today. Walked less than 10 miles.
We decided to try a "hamburger" place we had seen from the bus previously called The Surprised Donkey. Red flag #1. The Japanese word for hamburger and hamburg are the same, which Daniel had neglected to mention previously. Red flag #2. What we ended up eating was called Hamburg steak. It was basically a hamburger with no bun in elongated form looking kind of like Salisbury steak, served with hot potato salad and flavorless, nugget-type fried things. Daniel ordered his with a side of fried chicken. Not surprisingly, it was the worst meal we've had this entire trip.
Post-meat coma, we went to Kinkakuji, a golden temple (literally gold. It's a 3 story building and the top 2 floors are gold lacquered) and walked around the grounds for a bit. Very pretty, but then it's shiny and gold so of course I think it's pretty. After Kinkakuji we visited another shrine (side note: how many shrines does one city need?!) called Ryoan-ji. It's famous for it's dry garden. Rocks in islands surrounded by white gravel. It's a zen garden and oddly pretty.
We came back to the hotel before dark for possibly the first time all trip. There was much cleaning up done it was decided that we should try the Kyoto nightlife. Oh my God y'all, we found shopping and a dessert place that sold parfaits and waffles and pancakes with fruit and whip cream and ice cream and ooooh it was tasty. Then we decided to try out a bar. They were lots to choose from, so we kind of followed the crowd until we found one that we liked. It was an Irish pub. Only yours truly would go to Japan and have drinks at an Irish pub. On the plus side, it was the second best Guinness I've ever had. The bartender even had a certificate (displayed in the bathroom) from Guinness declaring him a Best Pour Winner of 2013. So our night was going really well, and then they got amazingly better. You know those jokes that say a rabbi, a priest, etc. walk into a bar? Well mine starts like this: So I was at an Irish pub in the middle of Kyoto when a geisha walks into the bar. Hand on a Bible serious here. A-maaaaa-zing. We hunng out, stared at the geisha for little while, had a couple drinks, then toddled home and went to sleep. Good night.
Love,
Leah Murphy, pub-loving explorer
We decided to try a "hamburger" place we had seen from the bus previously called The Surprised Donkey. Red flag #1. The Japanese word for hamburger and hamburg are the same, which Daniel had neglected to mention previously. Red flag #2. What we ended up eating was called Hamburg steak. It was basically a hamburger with no bun in elongated form looking kind of like Salisbury steak, served with hot potato salad and flavorless, nugget-type fried things. Daniel ordered his with a side of fried chicken. Not surprisingly, it was the worst meal we've had this entire trip.
Post-meat coma, we went to Kinkakuji, a golden temple (literally gold. It's a 3 story building and the top 2 floors are gold lacquered) and walked around the grounds for a bit. Very pretty, but then it's shiny and gold so of course I think it's pretty. After Kinkakuji we visited another shrine (side note: how many shrines does one city need?!) called Ryoan-ji. It's famous for it's dry garden. Rocks in islands surrounded by white gravel. It's a zen garden and oddly pretty.
We came back to the hotel before dark for possibly the first time all trip. There was much cleaning up done it was decided that we should try the Kyoto nightlife. Oh my God y'all, we found shopping and a dessert place that sold parfaits and waffles and pancakes with fruit and whip cream and ice cream and ooooh it was tasty. Then we decided to try out a bar. They were lots to choose from, so we kind of followed the crowd until we found one that we liked. It was an Irish pub. Only yours truly would go to Japan and have drinks at an Irish pub. On the plus side, it was the second best Guinness I've ever had. The bartender even had a certificate (displayed in the bathroom) from Guinness declaring him a Best Pour Winner of 2013. So our night was going really well, and then they got amazingly better. You know those jokes that say a rabbi, a priest, etc. walk into a bar? Well mine starts like this: So I was at an Irish pub in the middle of Kyoto when a geisha walks into the bar. Hand on a Bible serious here. A-maaaaa-zing. We hunng out, stared at the geisha for little while, had a couple drinks, then toddled home and went to sleep. Good night.
Love,
Leah Murphy, pub-loving explorer
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Day 8: Nara
Took a day trip to Nara today. It was one of the original capitals of Japan way back when until 784, so lots of temples and cool buildings to see. Also, more sacred deer. These ones were much less mangy than the ones on Miyajima and much more entertaining, or rather, people interacting with them was entertaining. You could by a stack of "deer biscuits" to feed the sacred deer. Watching people freak out when they got swarmed by waist-high deer was hilarious. What were the expectations there? Honestly. Daniel and I declined to feed the deer.
We went to lots of different temples, but the coolest one was Todaiji. Very big, and contained a huge Buddha statue called The Great Buddha (appropriate, no?). Emperor Shomu was accused of hogging all the bronze and precious metals in Japan to build his Buddha and various other statues for this one temple. A little girl in line with us put it this way: "This place was built by a bad man," and yeah, lots of wars and using his religion to make people unhappy, in my opinion, makes him not so nice.
On a much happier note, we went to a sake brewery and guess what, y'all? I like sake! We had a tasting and got free sake cups and bought some bottles and everything was delicious and nothing hurt. The end.
I decided (possibly a sake-influenced decision) that I knew how to get us back to Kyoto and I could handle finding the right train and getting us to the platform. No problem. I did great. Except when I picked a local train instead of a rapid one and what was a 45 min ride that morning (because Daniel knew to pick a rapid one. Isn't he special?) became a 2 hour ride that night. We didn't get home until 10, y'all. After walking all day in the heat and being all sweaty and dusty, not getting back to a shower until 10 gets you some pretty interesting looks from other people.
Love,
Leah Murphy, sake-liking explorer
We went to lots of different temples, but the coolest one was Todaiji. Very big, and contained a huge Buddha statue called The Great Buddha (appropriate, no?). Emperor Shomu was accused of hogging all the bronze and precious metals in Japan to build his Buddha and various other statues for this one temple. A little girl in line with us put it this way: "This place was built by a bad man," and yeah, lots of wars and using his religion to make people unhappy, in my opinion, makes him not so nice.
On a much happier note, we went to a sake brewery and guess what, y'all? I like sake! We had a tasting and got free sake cups and bought some bottles and everything was delicious and nothing hurt. The end.
I decided (possibly a sake-influenced decision) that I knew how to get us back to Kyoto and I could handle finding the right train and getting us to the platform. No problem. I did great. Except when I picked a local train instead of a rapid one and what was a 45 min ride that morning (because Daniel knew to pick a rapid one. Isn't he special?) became a 2 hour ride that night. We didn't get home until 10, y'all. After walking all day in the heat and being all sweaty and dusty, not getting back to a shower until 10 gets you some pretty interesting looks from other people.
Love,
Leah Murphy, sake-liking explorer
Friday, May 24, 2013
Day 7: Kyoto
Lesson 1: Flats are the worst shoes ever for walking around. Even worse than my sandals. So yeah, lots of walking done in inappropriate shoes today. My. Feet. Still. Hurt. On the plus side, the 11.15 miles we did walk were gorgeous. First stop today was the Yasaka shrine in the Gion area of Kyoto. The shrine and associated buildings were red, which was cool, but not the most impressive shrine we saw today (foreshadowing... dun dun Dun!). Gion is the geisha district and still has maiko (geisha in training) and geiko (Kyoto word for geisha) that perform at the tea houses all around the area. Daniel and I walked around Gion and actually saw a maiko! Apparently, daytime sightings are rare. We were exploring the back streets of the tea house area and I was so surprised I forgot to snap a pic. I did get a pic of some girls in kimonos (you can rent them and walk around the area wearing them) posing with a woman in full geisha make-up, but I'm not sure if she was a real geisha or just doing a photo shoot. Whatever, we saw a maiko. The rest is irrelevant.
In case you were wondering, Shrine 2, the Kodaiji Temple, was The Most Impressive Shrine of the Day. With all the shrines we've seen, I should start a contest or something. Anyway, the Kodaiji Temple's story is that a Bhuddist noble woman named Nene had it built for her dead husband, and then became a Bhuddist nun. The husband, and later Nene, were entombed in the Temple complex and one of the surviving buildings is their mausoleum. The Temple is famous for it's laquer work. It's very pretty. Even after 407 years, the maki-e gold paintings still look vibrant.
Shrine 3 was the apparently world famous Kiyomizudera Temple, where a pure spring comes out of the mountain and it's good luck to drink from it. It must've been Student Day or something crazy, because I counted no fewer than 14 different school groups there at 4 pm! What crazy hours do students keep here?! Due to ridiculous crowds and the aforementioned pained feet, we decided against waiting in line for the water. We'll have to make our own luck, I suppose.
The rest of our day was spent souvenir hunting in the Gion shops, replacing missing camera bits (Daniel) and hand-washing various pieces of wardrobe that had become scarce. I will never take a washing machine or dryer for granted ever again.
Love,
Leah Murphy, poorly-shod explorer
In case you were wondering, Shrine 2, the Kodaiji Temple, was The Most Impressive Shrine of the Day. With all the shrines we've seen, I should start a contest or something. Anyway, the Kodaiji Temple's story is that a Bhuddist noble woman named Nene had it built for her dead husband, and then became a Bhuddist nun. The husband, and later Nene, were entombed in the Temple complex and one of the surviving buildings is their mausoleum. The Temple is famous for it's laquer work. It's very pretty. Even after 407 years, the maki-e gold paintings still look vibrant.
Shrine 3 was the apparently world famous Kiyomizudera Temple, where a pure spring comes out of the mountain and it's good luck to drink from it. It must've been Student Day or something crazy, because I counted no fewer than 14 different school groups there at 4 pm! What crazy hours do students keep here?! Due to ridiculous crowds and the aforementioned pained feet, we decided against waiting in line for the water. We'll have to make our own luck, I suppose.
The rest of our day was spent souvenir hunting in the Gion shops, replacing missing camera bits (Daniel) and hand-washing various pieces of wardrobe that had become scarce. I will never take a washing machine or dryer for granted ever again.
Love,
Leah Murphy, poorly-shod explorer
Thursday, May 23, 2013
It's a big one: Days 4, 5, and 6!
Sorry Mom, the Internet at the last 2 hotels was so slow that updating this was more frusturating than it was worth, but I have Wi-fi again, so here we go!
Day 4
Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. It was, as expected, fascinatingly nausea-inducing. I was silent for a good 3 hours after we left (and this is me we're talking about). The things that happened when the A-bomb dropped were horrifying. Did y'all know that since 1968, each and every time a nuke test is even rumored to have occurred, the current mayor of Hiroshima (and often Nagasaki) sends a formal letter of protest to the leader of that country? Obama has racked up 9 so far. Kim Jong Un, 1. One of the very significant goals of the museum is to illustrate how absolutely horrible nuclear weapons are, and how we as a world can and must eradicate them. I gotta say, they're pretty convincing. Something I never put together: Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes is about a girl from Hiroshima. She got leukemia because of A-bomb radiation. When I saw the exhibit and the Children's Memorial, I almost lost it.
After the Museum, we went to Miyajima Island, home of the huge red gate that stands in the ocean and lots of sacred deer. The deer are actually pretty annoying, but the gate was cool. The coolest thing, though, was the Udon soup with oysters I had for lunch. Best. Meal. Ever. Also? I finally made some friends! Daniel and I decided, at 4 pm, to hike up a mountain that was 2.5 km of straight up vertical steps. Needless to say, we weren't going to make it up and down again before dark. We ended up climbing (and at that point yes, it was climbing) up to the ropeway instead of the summit and took the last cable car of the day down the mountain. Sharing our car was a German man who's name escapes me and an Italian dude named Fabrizio. Daniel and Fabrizio talked photography (you're shocked, I know) and German man and I talked food. It was fantastic.
Day 5
Traveled from Hiroshima to Kurashiki. Pleasant journey, except for the whole crowded trains thing. The Shinkansen are fine because there's reserved seating, but the local and subway lines? Forget about any illusions of personal space you might cling to. I thought it would get better after we left Tokyo, but no. I wonder if there is ever a point a Japanese person will say, "Nope, that train's too packed. I'll just wait for the next one." I have yet to identify that point, and I was pushed into some old lady's lap! So anyway, Kurashiki is actually too small to need public transportation, which works for me. We saw the old city, called the Bikan district, in one afternoon/evening. Based on what I've experienced in the US, when something is old and preserved and colonial, especially part of a city, it tends to be used in a manner related to that time period. In Philly, Old City has some colonial buildings that are classified as Historical and are used either as museums or something related to it's original purpose. In the Bikan district, most of the historical buildings were people's homes. There were some cool shops and some museums, but it was overwhelmingly residential.
After wandering around most of downtown Kurashiki, we wandered back to our hotel when on the way, we made a delightful discovery: a beer bar! Apparently, bars that serve craft brews are rare, so lucky us! And tasty beer! And a good night was had by all!
Day 6
Trained it from Kurashiki to Kyoto and arrived at the last hotel I will have to live in for the rest of the trip! The rooms have actually gotten progressively smaller as the trip has gone on. In Tokyo, we stayed at a Ryokan (traditional Japanese hotel). It had 2 rooms and a closet and a bathroom and it was marvelous. Also, tatami mats :) In Hiroshima, we stayed at the ginormously huge and prodigiously ugly Bunka Koryu Kaikan where we had a room with desk space and a chair, a closet, a bathroom, a comfy chair, and room to maneuver no matter which of these things were in use. In Kurashiki, we had the requisite bathroom and closet in the room, but our chair at the desk would hinder movement to the bed if the chair was in use. Here in Kyoto, where we will be living the longest (5 nights), we live in a shoebox. A bathroom, airplane lavatory-style but with a shower. No closet, but helpful hooks with hangers that poke out of the wall. A desk with a completely unnecessary chair, seeing as how one can sit on the bed and still comfortably use the desk. And the largest TV out of any room we've stayed in. Priorities, people.
Bitching about the room notwithstanding, Kyoto has been very cool so far. Visited the Heian shrine and it's very large, very shady garden. Good plan on a 80 degree day. Saw 2 Shinto priests blessing 2 separate tiny ones, each with respective beaming Moms and Dads. Seriously Tiny Babies. So cute! We might have done some shopping after that, and I might have found an Uniqlo, and it might be my new favorite store. Maybe. Here's to no more shopping, I hope. Amen.
OH!!! I forgot to mention, I made another friend! Way back 2 days ago, on our first night in Hiroshima, Daniel and I ate okonomiyaki. A British tour group came in, led by a Japanese-speaking Brit with a very loud red plaid shirt. Guess who we saw whilst getting on the train in Kurashiki this morning wearing the same shirt? We chatted. Then, guess who we saw while getting money at an ATM in Kyoto this afternoon? We chatted some more. We'll see if Loud-Shirted Brit shows up anywhere in our Kyoto tour.
Love,
Leah Murphy, internet-ed explorer
Day 4
Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. It was, as expected, fascinatingly nausea-inducing. I was silent for a good 3 hours after we left (and this is me we're talking about). The things that happened when the A-bomb dropped were horrifying. Did y'all know that since 1968, each and every time a nuke test is even rumored to have occurred, the current mayor of Hiroshima (and often Nagasaki) sends a formal letter of protest to the leader of that country? Obama has racked up 9 so far. Kim Jong Un, 1. One of the very significant goals of the museum is to illustrate how absolutely horrible nuclear weapons are, and how we as a world can and must eradicate them. I gotta say, they're pretty convincing. Something I never put together: Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes is about a girl from Hiroshima. She got leukemia because of A-bomb radiation. When I saw the exhibit and the Children's Memorial, I almost lost it.
After the Museum, we went to Miyajima Island, home of the huge red gate that stands in the ocean and lots of sacred deer. The deer are actually pretty annoying, but the gate was cool. The coolest thing, though, was the Udon soup with oysters I had for lunch. Best. Meal. Ever. Also? I finally made some friends! Daniel and I decided, at 4 pm, to hike up a mountain that was 2.5 km of straight up vertical steps. Needless to say, we weren't going to make it up and down again before dark. We ended up climbing (and at that point yes, it was climbing) up to the ropeway instead of the summit and took the last cable car of the day down the mountain. Sharing our car was a German man who's name escapes me and an Italian dude named Fabrizio. Daniel and Fabrizio talked photography (you're shocked, I know) and German man and I talked food. It was fantastic.
Day 5
Traveled from Hiroshima to Kurashiki. Pleasant journey, except for the whole crowded trains thing. The Shinkansen are fine because there's reserved seating, but the local and subway lines? Forget about any illusions of personal space you might cling to. I thought it would get better after we left Tokyo, but no. I wonder if there is ever a point a Japanese person will say, "Nope, that train's too packed. I'll just wait for the next one." I have yet to identify that point, and I was pushed into some old lady's lap! So anyway, Kurashiki is actually too small to need public transportation, which works for me. We saw the old city, called the Bikan district, in one afternoon/evening. Based on what I've experienced in the US, when something is old and preserved and colonial, especially part of a city, it tends to be used in a manner related to that time period. In Philly, Old City has some colonial buildings that are classified as Historical and are used either as museums or something related to it's original purpose. In the Bikan district, most of the historical buildings were people's homes. There were some cool shops and some museums, but it was overwhelmingly residential.
After wandering around most of downtown Kurashiki, we wandered back to our hotel when on the way, we made a delightful discovery: a beer bar! Apparently, bars that serve craft brews are rare, so lucky us! And tasty beer! And a good night was had by all!
Day 6
Trained it from Kurashiki to Kyoto and arrived at the last hotel I will have to live in for the rest of the trip! The rooms have actually gotten progressively smaller as the trip has gone on. In Tokyo, we stayed at a Ryokan (traditional Japanese hotel). It had 2 rooms and a closet and a bathroom and it was marvelous. Also, tatami mats :) In Hiroshima, we stayed at the ginormously huge and prodigiously ugly Bunka Koryu Kaikan where we had a room with desk space and a chair, a closet, a bathroom, a comfy chair, and room to maneuver no matter which of these things were in use. In Kurashiki, we had the requisite bathroom and closet in the room, but our chair at the desk would hinder movement to the bed if the chair was in use. Here in Kyoto, where we will be living the longest (5 nights), we live in a shoebox. A bathroom, airplane lavatory-style but with a shower. No closet, but helpful hooks with hangers that poke out of the wall. A desk with a completely unnecessary chair, seeing as how one can sit on the bed and still comfortably use the desk. And the largest TV out of any room we've stayed in. Priorities, people.
Bitching about the room notwithstanding, Kyoto has been very cool so far. Visited the Heian shrine and it's very large, very shady garden. Good plan on a 80 degree day. Saw 2 Shinto priests blessing 2 separate tiny ones, each with respective beaming Moms and Dads. Seriously Tiny Babies. So cute! We might have done some shopping after that, and I might have found an Uniqlo, and it might be my new favorite store. Maybe. Here's to no more shopping, I hope. Amen.
OH!!! I forgot to mention, I made another friend! Way back 2 days ago, on our first night in Hiroshima, Daniel and I ate okonomiyaki. A British tour group came in, led by a Japanese-speaking Brit with a very loud red plaid shirt. Guess who we saw whilst getting on the train in Kurashiki this morning wearing the same shirt? We chatted. Then, guess who we saw while getting money at an ATM in Kyoto this afternoon? We chatted some more. We'll see if Loud-Shirted Brit shows up anywhere in our Kyoto tour.
Love,
Leah Murphy, internet-ed explorer
Monday, May 20, 2013
Day 3: Hiroshima
Most of today was traveling, so this should be short. There were no surprise festivals, earthquakes, weddings, or injuries on the train. We went 4 hours from Tokyo (I'll miss you, Tokyo!) to Hiroshima. Note: Bento boxes are delicious and Japanese scenery is very pretty for the first hour. Then, it all begins to look the same.
Our hotel is absolutely massive. It's like a white-tiled, hugely massive rectangular thing with a big tower on one side. I have no words. It's huge. It's also ugly.
We walked through a market (modern, though. Clothing, cute accessories, electronics, phone plans. I bought socks.) to get to the Okonomiyaki place for dinner (okonomiyaki = a pancake cooked under noodles and other toppings). Hiroshima is also apparently famous for their oysters. I got some at dinner and yeah, they were pretty tasty. Sorry Half Shells, you've been replaced.
I'm about to say something very obvious: Hiroshima can be really depressing. I might be a special snowflake here, but I feel ridiculously guilty for being American in Hiroshima. After dinner we walked to the A-Bomb Dome (Old government building 160 meters from the epicenter of the blast. Everyone in it was killed instantly, but the burned out shell is still there as a reminder that nukes are really bad things.) and I felt kind of sick to my stomach. We can see 2 graveyards from the window of our hotel room. I have no clue if they're modern or bomb-related, but the fact that this city was leveled and everyone in it killed kind of makes that irrelevant. They're still reminders of death and, by extension, what was done here. An organization of survivors have posted artwork around the city depicting that night to keep people aware of the horrors of nuclear weapons and why they should be banned. I took a picture of a poem that was pretty gut-wrenching. We might go to the Peace Museum tomorrow, and I'm willing and ready, but I have a feeling that my reaction will be kind of like what it was after the Holocaust Museum: nausea, shock, and horror, but this time with a heaping tablespoon of guilt.
Love,
Leah Murphy, uncomfortable explorer
Our hotel is absolutely massive. It's like a white-tiled, hugely massive rectangular thing with a big tower on one side. I have no words. It's huge. It's also ugly.
We walked through a market (modern, though. Clothing, cute accessories, electronics, phone plans. I bought socks.) to get to the Okonomiyaki place for dinner (okonomiyaki = a pancake cooked under noodles and other toppings). Hiroshima is also apparently famous for their oysters. I got some at dinner and yeah, they were pretty tasty. Sorry Half Shells, you've been replaced.
I'm about to say something very obvious: Hiroshima can be really depressing. I might be a special snowflake here, but I feel ridiculously guilty for being American in Hiroshima. After dinner we walked to the A-Bomb Dome (Old government building 160 meters from the epicenter of the blast. Everyone in it was killed instantly, but the burned out shell is still there as a reminder that nukes are really bad things.) and I felt kind of sick to my stomach. We can see 2 graveyards from the window of our hotel room. I have no clue if they're modern or bomb-related, but the fact that this city was leveled and everyone in it killed kind of makes that irrelevant. They're still reminders of death and, by extension, what was done here. An organization of survivors have posted artwork around the city depicting that night to keep people aware of the horrors of nuclear weapons and why they should be banned. I took a picture of a poem that was pretty gut-wrenching. We might go to the Peace Museum tomorrow, and I'm willing and ready, but I have a feeling that my reaction will be kind of like what it was after the Holocaust Museum: nausea, shock, and horror, but this time with a heaping tablespoon of guilt.
Love,
Leah Murphy, uncomfortable explorer
Day 2: Tokyo
Ok, here's the much-awaited (according to mom) account of Day 2:
Started early with a rumbling and shaking at 6 am. My sleep-addled
mind interpreted this thusly: "If that's what happens every time a
truck passes, this is going to be really annoying." When I actually
woke up, the first thing that Daniel said was, "Did you feel the
earthquake?" So yeah, that happened.
Other than the earthquake, our first activity was the Meji gate. Using
our handy-dandy rail passes, we hopped on the subway and rode for 30
mins to get to the Harajuku district. A bigger dichotomy between
modern and ancient I have yet to see. Harajuku is also home to one of
them major shopping districts, and was made famous by all the
cos-players who would come shop and show off their outrageous
costumes. Sadly, didn't see a whole lot of those, but I took some pics
(they're on fb now) of every-day Japanese fashion. From what I can
tell (and I've been taking notes for 3 days now. I might've started in
the airport and Daniel might be sick of hearing me talk about cultural
norms as they relate to fashion), not a whole lot of people wear
sandals and most people wear socks (because you take your shoes off in
houses), girls wear mostly heels (and I have no idea how they do it),
and guys can wear whatever. Seriously, the emphasis put on looking
'pretty' is fascinating. Most of the women I see are in skirts and
have something lacy or gauze-y about their outfit, and EVERYONE WEARS
JACKETS. ALL THE TIME. This wouldn't be so unusual, but it was 75
degrees! I was sweating, looking at all the other people thinking,
"How can you wear a sweater right now? We just walked 4 miles!"
So, the Meji shrine was gorgeous and we were lucky enough to witness
another awesome event: a Shinto wedding! There are a few pictures on
facebook and Daniel took some really good ones. Public weddings might
not be my thing, but I suppose one makes sacrifices when one can get
married at the freakin' Meji Shrine. It was gorgeous. The priest and 2
possibly altar-ladies (priestesses?) led a processional of 2 lines:
one headed by the bride (escorted by her father) and one headed by the
groom. They walked from one side area of the courtyard up to the
shrine, were blessed, and then across the courtyard to the other
side-yard. The priest, bride, and groom went into a little building,
came out again, and then the whole processional went to a fantastical
wooded area with seats and trees that hung down into an almost perfect
bower.
We walked around the Meji Gardens for a bit, too. It's what the
Arboretum's little Japanese Garden wishes it could be. Think more
forest than garden, but not oppressively dark. It was green and cool
and very calming, except for the screams of agony. We saw medics go by
with a stretcher, and 5 mins later passed a French woman lying on the
ground in pain with an ankle that was very obviously broken. They
would try to move her, she would scream, they would back off. She had
a few friends/family hovering nervously, so I think she was going to
be ok as long as the medics could get her onto the stretcher and to a
doctor. I never want to hear screaming like that again. Also, it kind
of put a damper on the Garden experience.
After that pleasant interlude, we went shopping in Harajuku. Hooray!!!
A clerk tried to get me to buy a $50 shirt by letting it go for the
"special price" of $45. When I said it was still too expensive, he
consulted with his boss on the "best price he could give me", which
was $40. I said no, and he said, "Japan is expensive." It's not
actually expensive, but $40 for a t-shirt is silly. Needless to say,
we didn't end up buying anything in Harajuku, but went to an 8 story
bookstore where I bought $100 worth of children's books for the school
(which they will reimburse). So much fun!!! Then, Daniel wanted to go
to a department store called Tokyu Hands and we found a survival gear
floor with a pink personal bomb-shelter bubble (pic on fb). Then, more
shopping and home. Advice: Do not buy 20 lbs of children's books and
then carry them around for 4 hours. Your back will hurt no matter how
many different ways you can think to carry them. Day 2 walking total was 11.38 miles.
Love,
Leah Murphy, book-toting explorer
Started early with a rumbling and shaking at 6 am. My sleep-addled
mind interpreted this thusly: "If that's what happens every time a
truck passes, this is going to be really annoying." When I actually
woke up, the first thing that Daniel said was, "Did you feel the
earthquake?" So yeah, that happened.
Other than the earthquake, our first activity was the Meji gate. Using
our handy-dandy rail passes, we hopped on the subway and rode for 30
mins to get to the Harajuku district. A bigger dichotomy between
modern and ancient I have yet to see. Harajuku is also home to one of
them major shopping districts, and was made famous by all the
cos-players who would come shop and show off their outrageous
costumes. Sadly, didn't see a whole lot of those, but I took some pics
(they're on fb now) of every-day Japanese fashion. From what I can
tell (and I've been taking notes for 3 days now. I might've started in
the airport and Daniel might be sick of hearing me talk about cultural
norms as they relate to fashion), not a whole lot of people wear
sandals and most people wear socks (because you take your shoes off in
houses), girls wear mostly heels (and I have no idea how they do it),
and guys can wear whatever. Seriously, the emphasis put on looking
'pretty' is fascinating. Most of the women I see are in skirts and
have something lacy or gauze-y about their outfit, and EVERYONE WEARS
JACKETS. ALL THE TIME. This wouldn't be so unusual, but it was 75
degrees! I was sweating, looking at all the other people thinking,
"How can you wear a sweater right now? We just walked 4 miles!"
So, the Meji shrine was gorgeous and we were lucky enough to witness
another awesome event: a Shinto wedding! There are a few pictures on
facebook and Daniel took some really good ones. Public weddings might
not be my thing, but I suppose one makes sacrifices when one can get
married at the freakin' Meji Shrine. It was gorgeous. The priest and 2
possibly altar-ladies (priestesses?) led a processional of 2 lines:
one headed by the bride (escorted by her father) and one headed by the
groom. They walked from one side area of the courtyard up to the
shrine, were blessed, and then across the courtyard to the other
side-yard. The priest, bride, and groom went into a little building,
came out again, and then the whole processional went to a fantastical
wooded area with seats and trees that hung down into an almost perfect
bower.
We walked around the Meji Gardens for a bit, too. It's what the
Arboretum's little Japanese Garden wishes it could be. Think more
forest than garden, but not oppressively dark. It was green and cool
and very calming, except for the screams of agony. We saw medics go by
with a stretcher, and 5 mins later passed a French woman lying on the
ground in pain with an ankle that was very obviously broken. They
would try to move her, she would scream, they would back off. She had
a few friends/family hovering nervously, so I think she was going to
be ok as long as the medics could get her onto the stretcher and to a
doctor. I never want to hear screaming like that again. Also, it kind
of put a damper on the Garden experience.
After that pleasant interlude, we went shopping in Harajuku. Hooray!!!
A clerk tried to get me to buy a $50 shirt by letting it go for the
"special price" of $45. When I said it was still too expensive, he
consulted with his boss on the "best price he could give me", which
was $40. I said no, and he said, "Japan is expensive." It's not
actually expensive, but $40 for a t-shirt is silly. Needless to say,
we didn't end up buying anything in Harajuku, but went to an 8 story
bookstore where I bought $100 worth of children's books for the school
(which they will reimburse). So much fun!!! Then, Daniel wanted to go
to a department store called Tokyu Hands and we found a survival gear
floor with a pink personal bomb-shelter bubble (pic on fb). Then, more
shopping and home. Advice: Do not buy 20 lbs of children's books and
then carry them around for 4 hours. Your back will hurt no matter how
many different ways you can think to carry them. Day 2 walking total was 11.38 miles.
Love,
Leah Murphy, book-toting explorer
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