Saturday, February 11, 2006
Muted Holiday?
I stayed up very late last night, couldn't tell you why. I suppose I was using the Internet for longer than I should have, but then the Olympics came on TV (live around 4AM local time) and I sorta started watching...
On the subject of the Olympics, I must say I am always disappointed by the opening ceremonies. They're always so goddamn weird! Lots of dancers, bizarre costumes, nothing seems to make sense. Given the long history of the Games (not to mention Italy itself) you'd think they'd manage to put together something...I don't know...classy? Dignified? All I saw was people throwing flags around with super songs from the seventies played over the loudspeakers.
Anyway, with such a late night I didn't get up to much today besides laundry. Eventually I met up with Scott in the city but he was feeling sick so we kept things pretty chill. We hung out at his place for a while, watched some Japanese TV special about American murder mysteries, and made our way down to Shinsaibashi where the streets were surprisingly quiet. Perhaps it was due to today's holiday, National Foundation Day? I'm at a loss to explain the lack of activity tonight.
OK, well I'm sleepy and I've got another date with Mako tomorrow. No idea what we'll be up to, apparently it's some kind of early Valentine's Day surprise. Japan handles that holiday a little different than we do in the States, but I'm sure we can talk about that tomorrow.
つづく... (Click here to read more)
On the subject of the Olympics, I must say I am always disappointed by the opening ceremonies. They're always so goddamn weird! Lots of dancers, bizarre costumes, nothing seems to make sense. Given the long history of the Games (not to mention Italy itself) you'd think they'd manage to put together something...I don't know...classy? Dignified? All I saw was people throwing flags around with super songs from the seventies played over the loudspeakers.
Anyway, with such a late night I didn't get up to much today besides laundry. Eventually I met up with Scott in the city but he was feeling sick so we kept things pretty chill. We hung out at his place for a while, watched some Japanese TV special about American murder mysteries, and made our way down to Shinsaibashi where the streets were surprisingly quiet. Perhaps it was due to today's holiday, National Foundation Day? I'm at a loss to explain the lack of activity tonight.
OK, well I'm sleepy and I've got another date with Mako tomorrow. No idea what we'll be up to, apparently it's some kind of early Valentine's Day surprise. Japan handles that holiday a little different than we do in the States, but I'm sure we can talk about that tomorrow.
つづく... (Click here to read more)
Friday, February 10, 2006
Hard Drinks, Soft Cheese
Why do I love city life so much? Is is because I was born in a giant metropolis? Perhaps I was merely drawn to the city because I grew up in a tiny suburban town? Whatever the reason, I'm always happiest when I can walk between skyscrapers and gaze up at the bright lights that make nighttime seem like high noon.
I had to go into Osaka this afternoon to visit the Immigration office. No big deal, it was just some simple paperwork to acquire a "re-entry permit" as I'll be traveling abroad next month to...OOPS, almost let the cat out of the bag there! No more hints, you'll have to wait to find out where Mako and I are headed! Anyway, going to Immigration in Japan is like going to the DMV back home except you can actually get in and out of there in less than 45 minutes (and the employees are reasonably polite as well).
With my permit in hand I figured it would be a waste just to go straight home so I went up to Umeda and hung out around town. I found myself cruising past the movie theaters and I opted to see what was playing. There wasn't much worth seeing besides Munich and I'm pretty sure Mako and I are going to see that sometime soon (at least, I mentioned it to her and she seemed interested). Then I noticed that Mr. & Mrs. Smith was still playing. I know that came out nearly a year ago in the States but I never got around to seeing it plus I know Scott and Mako had both already seen it, so it seemed like a good choice for a solo affair. And it was! I had a good time and laughed more than anyone else in the theatre. I was pretty disappointed by the ending though; there wasn't much of one.
After seeing the movie it was Happy Hour so I strolled down to Captain Kangaroo for a bit. I happened to try a new beer tonight, Lion Stout from Sri Lanka. It's potent (8%) but quite tasty so I'll drink it again in the future. I also wanted one of their sandwiches but I wasn't in the mood for a burger so I tried the "Cream Cheese and Tomato" sandwich. WOW, I hadn't had cream cheese in ages...maybe nine months or so. Boy, did I miss it! It's OK, I don't need it in my life, but it sure was good to taste the familiar like that.
Not much else to say, I guess. I can't help but notice that seeing American movies is fun but they rarely give me anything to think about like the Japanese movies I've been seeing lately. Indeed, how long has it been since an American movie made me think at all? Has it been seven years?
つづく... (Click here to read more)
I had to go into Osaka this afternoon to visit the Immigration office. No big deal, it was just some simple paperwork to acquire a "re-entry permit" as I'll be traveling abroad next month to...OOPS, almost let the cat out of the bag there! No more hints, you'll have to wait to find out where Mako and I are headed! Anyway, going to Immigration in Japan is like going to the DMV back home except you can actually get in and out of there in less than 45 minutes (and the employees are reasonably polite as well).
With my permit in hand I figured it would be a waste just to go straight home so I went up to Umeda and hung out around town. I found myself cruising past the movie theaters and I opted to see what was playing. There wasn't much worth seeing besides Munich and I'm pretty sure Mako and I are going to see that sometime soon (at least, I mentioned it to her and she seemed interested). Then I noticed that Mr. & Mrs. Smith was still playing. I know that came out nearly a year ago in the States but I never got around to seeing it plus I know Scott and Mako had both already seen it, so it seemed like a good choice for a solo affair. And it was! I had a good time and laughed more than anyone else in the theatre. I was pretty disappointed by the ending though; there wasn't much of one.
After seeing the movie it was Happy Hour so I strolled down to Captain Kangaroo for a bit. I happened to try a new beer tonight, Lion Stout from Sri Lanka. It's potent (8%) but quite tasty so I'll drink it again in the future. I also wanted one of their sandwiches but I wasn't in the mood for a burger so I tried the "Cream Cheese and Tomato" sandwich. WOW, I hadn't had cream cheese in ages...maybe nine months or so. Boy, did I miss it! It's OK, I don't need it in my life, but it sure was good to taste the familiar like that.
Not much else to say, I guess. I can't help but notice that seeing American movies is fun but they rarely give me anything to think about like the Japanese movies I've been seeing lately. Indeed, how long has it been since an American movie made me think at all? Has it been seven years?
つづく... (Click here to read more)
Thursday, February 09, 2006
Kurosawa Strikes Again
Monday's review test? Perfect. Yesterday's quiz, the one I studied for? Perfect. The quiz I didn't study for? Perfect (with a little help from the extra credit questions). I may not speak much Japanese but I sure do test well!
I saw another great film this afternoon, Ikiru, which gave me another huge handful of issues to think about. The film's title translates as "To live" and it certainly questions what it means "to live" our lives. I felt a special connection with the movie because of my years in the postal service and one of the film's messages is a sendup of bureaucracy. Looking back on that part of my life I can't help but feel like every day I spent there was a waste, especially after 2001 when I went to Japan and figured out that was where I wanted to be. So to see a man question what he had accomplished in thirty years in his office gave me an extra chill.
Obviously, much of the movie was alien to me. The central character, Watanabe, was also a widower with an adult son - something I couldn't possibly understand. Also, he was much older than me so he was faced with a lot of issues I have yet to encounter. I may kid myself sometimes but I know I'm a young man with more days ahead than behind, although one of the points of the movie may have been not to ignore the "deadline" we all must reach someday. Ehh, it's too soon to make any conclusions on this, I'll have to get back to you on that, probably after we discuss the movie next week. I've been doing so much thinking in the past few days it's a wonder I get anything done!
つづく... (Click here to read more)
I saw another great film this afternoon, Ikiru, which gave me another huge handful of issues to think about. The film's title translates as "To live" and it certainly questions what it means "to live" our lives. I felt a special connection with the movie because of my years in the postal service and one of the film's messages is a sendup of bureaucracy. Looking back on that part of my life I can't help but feel like every day I spent there was a waste, especially after 2001 when I went to Japan and figured out that was where I wanted to be. So to see a man question what he had accomplished in thirty years in his office gave me an extra chill.
Obviously, much of the movie was alien to me. The central character, Watanabe, was also a widower with an adult son - something I couldn't possibly understand. Also, he was much older than me so he was faced with a lot of issues I have yet to encounter. I may kid myself sometimes but I know I'm a young man with more days ahead than behind, although one of the points of the movie may have been not to ignore the "deadline" we all must reach someday. Ehh, it's too soon to make any conclusions on this, I'll have to get back to you on that, probably after we discuss the movie next week. I've been doing so much thinking in the past few days it's a wonder I get anything done!
つづく... (Click here to read more)
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
I Found Myself Much More Reasonable
It rained again today...or maybe it was snow. I don't get this weather at all. Are we stuck with one nasty weather front all week or does a new one come everyday to make walking around here so miserable?
Remember how I thought I had two quizzes on Monday but there turned out to only be one? Well today I expected one quiz and got two instead! I'm quickly growing to dislike my Spoken Japanese teacher. She's one of those teachers who puts everything on the syllabus and then expects you to just do all the work (and prepare for any quizzes) without any notice from her. I know that sounds like me whining about nothing but most teachers are a lot more upfront about homework and exams - my teacher last semester was incredibly informative, writing all of our work on the board everyday and he wouldn't let us leave without calling our attention to it at the end of every class. Irregardless, I think I did just fine.
Speaking of Japanese class, sometimes I get the feeling like my textbook is actually a subversive method of propaganda. Many lessons make mention of popular tourist destinations in Japan and I often encounter odd little sentences among the grammar points that seem eerie, such as "I will study Japanese even after I return to my country" and "John was already thinking about quitting The Beatles before he met Yoko." It certainly seems like a hidden agenda is at work here!
Ethics class was mighty interesting this afternoon as we discussed some of the larger points of the Sermon on the Mount and considered whether or not they were practical ideas or not. We wandered across a number of different topics, inevitably touching upon the morality of capital punishment among other things.
What I found most notable was something that came out of nowhere and was not really a focus of our discussion at all but it was something I never really considered before. From talking about The Golden Rule the teacher suggested in passing that the same standards could be applied to ourselves; that is, "Treat yourself how you would want others to treat you." It was something that had never occurred to me but as soon as he put it out there I began to wonder why I am so hard on myself. I've always been my harshest critic, especially when I feel I've made a mistake but even when I just feel like I'm getting too far ahead of myself. I don't know why but it's like a perverse form of modesty or humility run amok! Obviously the matter requires much more thought but I wanted to share that with all of you - I bet a lot of you beat yourself up too much just like I do.
Kazu turned up out of nowhere this afternoon and we had a bit of a chat. It seems he has no more classes and he's bound to graduate in a few weeks (the Japanese school system operates on a different schedule than the US does) so he's busy trying to get into some kind of a graduate program in the States, hopefully alongside his girlfriend Jung Eun who's also graduating soon. With his help, I navigated a Japanese website and got myself some Sumo tickets! There's a tourney next month that overlaps Spring Break and I'm gonna spend a day watching giants battle it out while enjoying some adult beverages. I'll have to pace myself because the matches run from 9AM - 5PM! Maybe I'll save the booze until after lunch?
Lastly, I had to share a funny moment from this morning. A girl in my Written Japanese class (whose name I don't even know) came up to me and asked me "Has anyone ever told you that you look exactly like Peter Lorre?" I was taken aback but quickly answered, "No, that's a first." I've heard plenty of celebrity comparisons offered to me over the years; those of you who know me have heard (or suggested) John Candy, Orson Welles or even Winston Churchill. Notice a pattern here? All fat, dead men. So I welcomed the new option, even though Lorre was known for playing shady characters and is also very, very dead.
What do you think?
つづく... (Click here to read more)
Remember how I thought I had two quizzes on Monday but there turned out to only be one? Well today I expected one quiz and got two instead! I'm quickly growing to dislike my Spoken Japanese teacher. She's one of those teachers who puts everything on the syllabus and then expects you to just do all the work (and prepare for any quizzes) without any notice from her. I know that sounds like me whining about nothing but most teachers are a lot more upfront about homework and exams - my teacher last semester was incredibly informative, writing all of our work on the board everyday and he wouldn't let us leave without calling our attention to it at the end of every class. Irregardless, I think I did just fine.
Speaking of Japanese class, sometimes I get the feeling like my textbook is actually a subversive method of propaganda. Many lessons make mention of popular tourist destinations in Japan and I often encounter odd little sentences among the grammar points that seem eerie, such as "I will study Japanese even after I return to my country" and "John was already thinking about quitting The Beatles before he met Yoko." It certainly seems like a hidden agenda is at work here!
Ethics class was mighty interesting this afternoon as we discussed some of the larger points of the Sermon on the Mount and considered whether or not they were practical ideas or not. We wandered across a number of different topics, inevitably touching upon the morality of capital punishment among other things.
What I found most notable was something that came out of nowhere and was not really a focus of our discussion at all but it was something I never really considered before. From talking about The Golden Rule the teacher suggested in passing that the same standards could be applied to ourselves; that is, "Treat yourself how you would want others to treat you." It was something that had never occurred to me but as soon as he put it out there I began to wonder why I am so hard on myself. I've always been my harshest critic, especially when I feel I've made a mistake but even when I just feel like I'm getting too far ahead of myself. I don't know why but it's like a perverse form of modesty or humility run amok! Obviously the matter requires much more thought but I wanted to share that with all of you - I bet a lot of you beat yourself up too much just like I do.
Kazu turned up out of nowhere this afternoon and we had a bit of a chat. It seems he has no more classes and he's bound to graduate in a few weeks (the Japanese school system operates on a different schedule than the US does) so he's busy trying to get into some kind of a graduate program in the States, hopefully alongside his girlfriend Jung Eun who's also graduating soon. With his help, I navigated a Japanese website and got myself some Sumo tickets! There's a tourney next month that overlaps Spring Break and I'm gonna spend a day watching giants battle it out while enjoying some adult beverages. I'll have to pace myself because the matches run from 9AM - 5PM! Maybe I'll save the booze until after lunch?
Lastly, I had to share a funny moment from this morning. A girl in my Written Japanese class (whose name I don't even know) came up to me and asked me "Has anyone ever told you that you look exactly like Peter Lorre?" I was taken aback but quickly answered, "No, that's a first." I've heard plenty of celebrity comparisons offered to me over the years; those of you who know me have heard (or suggested) John Candy, Orson Welles or even Winston Churchill. Notice a pattern here? All fat, dead men. So I welcomed the new option, even though Lorre was known for playing shady characters and is also very, very dead.
What do you think?
つづく... (Click here to read more)
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
Logic vs Love
Let's see if this makes any sense...
I've spent a lot of time thinking about Mako and I lately and most of my thoughts have been negative. Without getting into any real detail, I've been a little preoccupied with some of Mako's faults and what I view as problems in our relationship. Not all of them are entirely her faults, of course, for I am all too eager to assign blame to myself when it comes to miscommunication and the like. This led me to a particularly low point on Sunday evening when I sent Scott a message all but declaring my intention to "look elsewhere."
Yesterday, however, I gave the matter a lot more thought. I don't know what exactly allowed me to take another look at the problem but somehow I came to realize that my perspective was off. My focus was on the negatives and I was barely acknowledging all the positives of our relationship. I was looking ahead to our future and ignoring the fun we have now. I was painting Mako with broad generalizations and creating false dichotomies.
Essentially the problem was rooted in the priorities I was assigning to my life in general but particularly to what I look for in a woman. Most of you know that there was a long gap between my previous girlfriend and Mako (how long isn't important here, but most of you know that I know exactly how long that gap was - to the day). During that time I thought a lot about the sexual side of being a couple as well as the romantic/loving side and I decided that I missed the latter far more than I missed the former although I took both to be essential "halves" of dating.
When I looked at Mako and I from this perspective I found both halves were not to my liking. Various factors prevent us from being properly "alone" very often which means our opportunities for sexuality are relatively few and far between. In the romance department, I felt like the language/cultural differences between us were sizable and apparently not moving closer together with any urgency. It seemed to me that in both "halves" of dating Mako and I weren't working as a couple.
The problem here, of course, is that there aren't "halves" to dating (or anything else for that matter). To read the above paragraph you would think that we were a chaste pair of casual acquaintances who spend time together just to avoid being alone. This is completely false! Not that I want to get into these kinds of things here, but we didn't sit around holding hands all night on my birthday or at the onsen. And it should be obvious to anyone who has seen us together or even just read this blog that Mako cares about me a great deal. For "evidence" (if one is so inclined) one has only to look at her decision to knit me a new hat. How many girlfriends (or friends even) would make that kind of offer? Not many!
In other words, I was judging Mako by a set of totally artificial standards derived from a broken relationship that was so long ago, I wasn't even the same person I am now. I was hung up on arbitrary definitions of complicated words like "love," "passion" and "relationship" and I was using them to convince myself that Mako wasn't the right girl for me. I was twisting the facts to prove to myself that I needed to find another girlfriend rather than accept them as clear indications that we are right together.
Mako's not perfect and neither am I; nobody is! Sticking with her is not "settling for less" or even "compromising myself." Yes, I could go out there and meet someone else. It is entirely within my power and my right to do so. But why? What would I gain from that? Simple logic tells me that the odds of meeting another person as loving as Mako is a stretch. I'm far more likely to spend the rest of my visit here looking for someone like her but somehow "better" in an abstract, nearly meaningless way.
It's hard to elaborate without the details but I really can't explain several key factors here, I'm sorry. Just understand that I feel a lot happier about us than I did this weekend which is why I made some odd statements during my posts that suggested something was wrong. There was something wrong but it was my own doing.
Well I need to do a little studying. That language barrier isn't going to fall on its own!
つづく... (Click here to read more)
I've spent a lot of time thinking about Mako and I lately and most of my thoughts have been negative. Without getting into any real detail, I've been a little preoccupied with some of Mako's faults and what I view as problems in our relationship. Not all of them are entirely her faults, of course, for I am all too eager to assign blame to myself when it comes to miscommunication and the like. This led me to a particularly low point on Sunday evening when I sent Scott a message all but declaring my intention to "look elsewhere."
Yesterday, however, I gave the matter a lot more thought. I don't know what exactly allowed me to take another look at the problem but somehow I came to realize that my perspective was off. My focus was on the negatives and I was barely acknowledging all the positives of our relationship. I was looking ahead to our future and ignoring the fun we have now. I was painting Mako with broad generalizations and creating false dichotomies.
Essentially the problem was rooted in the priorities I was assigning to my life in general but particularly to what I look for in a woman. Most of you know that there was a long gap between my previous girlfriend and Mako (how long isn't important here, but most of you know that I know exactly how long that gap was - to the day). During that time I thought a lot about the sexual side of being a couple as well as the romantic/loving side and I decided that I missed the latter far more than I missed the former although I took both to be essential "halves" of dating.
When I looked at Mako and I from this perspective I found both halves were not to my liking. Various factors prevent us from being properly "alone" very often which means our opportunities for sexuality are relatively few and far between. In the romance department, I felt like the language/cultural differences between us were sizable and apparently not moving closer together with any urgency. It seemed to me that in both "halves" of dating Mako and I weren't working as a couple.
The problem here, of course, is that there aren't "halves" to dating (or anything else for that matter). To read the above paragraph you would think that we were a chaste pair of casual acquaintances who spend time together just to avoid being alone. This is completely false! Not that I want to get into these kinds of things here, but we didn't sit around holding hands all night on my birthday or at the onsen. And it should be obvious to anyone who has seen us together or even just read this blog that Mako cares about me a great deal. For "evidence" (if one is so inclined) one has only to look at her decision to knit me a new hat. How many girlfriends (or friends even) would make that kind of offer? Not many!
In other words, I was judging Mako by a set of totally artificial standards derived from a broken relationship that was so long ago, I wasn't even the same person I am now. I was hung up on arbitrary definitions of complicated words like "love," "passion" and "relationship" and I was using them to convince myself that Mako wasn't the right girl for me. I was twisting the facts to prove to myself that I needed to find another girlfriend rather than accept them as clear indications that we are right together.
Mako's not perfect and neither am I; nobody is! Sticking with her is not "settling for less" or even "compromising myself." Yes, I could go out there and meet someone else. It is entirely within my power and my right to do so. But why? What would I gain from that? Simple logic tells me that the odds of meeting another person as loving as Mako is a stretch. I'm far more likely to spend the rest of my visit here looking for someone like her but somehow "better" in an abstract, nearly meaningless way.
It's hard to elaborate without the details but I really can't explain several key factors here, I'm sorry. Just understand that I feel a lot happier about us than I did this weekend which is why I made some odd statements during my posts that suggested something was wrong. There was something wrong but it was my own doing.
Well I need to do a little studying. That language barrier isn't going to fall on its own!
つづく... (Click here to read more)
Monday, February 06, 2006
Monday Morning Quarterback (literally)
I knew it would be an odd day when I sat down for breakfast this morning and watched the national anthem being sung to open Super Bowl XL. It was probably the most out-of-place I've felt since I got here. The Super Bowl on Monday morning? Commercial-free, no less?
Sadly I had no time for football (making this an entire season I missed) because I had class at 9, although there was no quiz as I had anticipated yesterday. Instead I had a "review test" at 11. It was review, of course, so nothing earth-shattering went down. Aside from stumbling over a few grammar specifics, I knew all of the overall structures and I think I even did reasonably well understanding the listening comprehension section.
Ethics class went well this afternoon although the teacher looked me in the eye at one point and told me I looked "tired." Perhaps he noticed me nodding off a bit in his class last week? I hate when I do that, I feel totally humiliated. I had no problem staying awake today though, so I'm not sure why he thought I looked tired.
The weather continues to be nasty, cold and damp. I felt like a wimp riding the bus home from school this afternoon because I know it's not as cold here as it is in Albany. However, I don't have to walk home from school in Albany, I just have to take the bus (which is free). I think I will have to invest in a new winter wardrobe this fall because at my present body condition there's no way I'll be able to tolerate sustained freezing temperatures. Either that or I become a regular drinker of scalding hot coffee to warm my insides. Eh, I'd rather buy new clothes.
I had a lot of time to think about a lot of different issues today and I'm this close to really getting somewhere, I think. You'll have to wait for more on that another day though as my contemplation is not fully realized. In the meantime, here are those shots of Nara I took on Sunday: Enjoy!
つづく... (Click here to read more)
Sadly I had no time for football (making this an entire season I missed) because I had class at 9, although there was no quiz as I had anticipated yesterday. Instead I had a "review test" at 11. It was review, of course, so nothing earth-shattering went down. Aside from stumbling over a few grammar specifics, I knew all of the overall structures and I think I even did reasonably well understanding the listening comprehension section.
Ethics class went well this afternoon although the teacher looked me in the eye at one point and told me I looked "tired." Perhaps he noticed me nodding off a bit in his class last week? I hate when I do that, I feel totally humiliated. I had no problem staying awake today though, so I'm not sure why he thought I looked tired.
The weather continues to be nasty, cold and damp. I felt like a wimp riding the bus home from school this afternoon because I know it's not as cold here as it is in Albany. However, I don't have to walk home from school in Albany, I just have to take the bus (which is free). I think I will have to invest in a new winter wardrobe this fall because at my present body condition there's no way I'll be able to tolerate sustained freezing temperatures. Either that or I become a regular drinker of scalding hot coffee to warm my insides. Eh, I'd rather buy new clothes.
I had a lot of time to think about a lot of different issues today and I'm this close to really getting somewhere, I think. You'll have to wait for more on that another day though as my contemplation is not fully realized. In the meantime, here are those shots of Nara I took on Sunday: Enjoy!
つづく... (Click here to read more)
Sunday, February 05, 2006
Holy Simulated Sex, Batman!
Well you don't see that everyday.
I met Mako out in Nara for an afternoon of sightseeing and an unusual festival (to put it mildly). Nara was more of the same, I suppose. We saw the giant Buddha and the Kasuga shrine, just like I did with my Dad last month. Mako seemed a little frightened by the deer although they didn't mess with us at all. Eventually I coaxed her into posing with one although she kept her distance. Again, somehow my camera battery was too low to take video; I don't get it, I've barely used it in a week! I should probably buy a spare battery because this is getting to be annoying.
The real surprises came when we went out to Asuka for the Onda Festival to celebrate fertility. By that I mean they pray for a bountiful harvest in both senses of the word. Via pantomime they "plow the fields" and then Tengu "plows" Otafuku, if you get my meaning. Lots of stuff gets thrown out to the crowd who quickly fight to retrieve whatever it is. Mako managed to catch two pieces of mochi while I took one hit to my chest and one to the side of head (the latter of which was when I turned to see what Mako had caught). Of course, this was separate from the guys who walk around the shrine whacking people in the backside with sticks to "drive away evil." Somehow, Mako managed to get a tissue used in the ceremony and she gave it to me. Yes, it's "used" and I have no idea what's really in the tissue or what I'm supposed to do with it. When I suggested it was garbage Mako disagreed. First I've heard of a "holy spunk-rag."
Photos will be forthcoming (right here actually) but for a pretty good description you can read this blog post I found. My photos didn't turn out as well as his because I had a hell of a time seeing anything; the shrine was very crowded and despite what you might have heard about Japan I am hardly tall enough to tower over people (especially when they put their kids on their shoulders).
OK, I've got two quizzes tomorrow so I should get to sleep. I suppose I could say a hell of a lot more about what I saw today but I don't want to get over-reflective. I'm not really in the mood for that right now. Better to sleep on it, I think.
つづく... (Click here to read more)
I met Mako out in Nara for an afternoon of sightseeing and an unusual festival (to put it mildly). Nara was more of the same, I suppose. We saw the giant Buddha and the Kasuga shrine, just like I did with my Dad last month. Mako seemed a little frightened by the deer although they didn't mess with us at all. Eventually I coaxed her into posing with one although she kept her distance. Again, somehow my camera battery was too low to take video; I don't get it, I've barely used it in a week! I should probably buy a spare battery because this is getting to be annoying.
The real surprises came when we went out to Asuka for the Onda Festival to celebrate fertility. By that I mean they pray for a bountiful harvest in both senses of the word. Via pantomime they "plow the fields" and then Tengu "plows" Otafuku, if you get my meaning. Lots of stuff gets thrown out to the crowd who quickly fight to retrieve whatever it is. Mako managed to catch two pieces of mochi while I took one hit to my chest and one to the side of head (the latter of which was when I turned to see what Mako had caught). Of course, this was separate from the guys who walk around the shrine whacking people in the backside with sticks to "drive away evil." Somehow, Mako managed to get a tissue used in the ceremony and she gave it to me. Yes, it's "used" and I have no idea what's really in the tissue or what I'm supposed to do with it. When I suggested it was garbage Mako disagreed. First I've heard of a "holy spunk-rag."
Photos will be forthcoming (right here actually) but for a pretty good description you can read this blog post I found. My photos didn't turn out as well as his because I had a hell of a time seeing anything; the shrine was very crowded and despite what you might have heard about Japan I am hardly tall enough to tower over people (especially when they put their kids on their shoulders).
OK, I've got two quizzes tomorrow so I should get to sleep. I suppose I could say a hell of a lot more about what I saw today but I don't want to get over-reflective. I'm not really in the mood for that right now. Better to sleep on it, I think.
つづく... (Click here to read more)
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