Sacred Spaces in Ise (by Mary)

I'm handling this entry because: (1) it's midnight and everyone else is asleep; and (2) Ise is 

Mark in front of Naiku

starting to feel like a distant memory, and I want to make sure we cover it since it was so significant for Mark. He can fill in the details later.

Ise (e-say) was high on his list because it's the home of Japan's most sacred Shinto shrine--called Ise-jingu, which dates back to the 3rd century. (The Shinto religion itself dates back to 500 BC.) For Shinto practitioners, this is the "holiest" place in the world for them and where one makes pilgrimage. Mark's analogy was that it's what Mecca is to Islam, and what Jerusalem is to Christianity and Judaism.

Naiku: Shinto ritual being watched by the crowd 

About Ise-Jingu
Ise-jingu has two parts. We went to Geku (the outer shrine) right after stashing our bags at the ryokan. We headed to Naiku (the inner shrine) the next day.

One of the most interesting things about this place is that all buildings associated with the shrine are rebuilt every 20 years. The current buildings (which are being disassembled now) are right next to the new buildings (which are now in use). They have been built exactly the same way over the centuries without any nails. A few reasons for this: 

Tree huggers (pushers?) at Naiku

1. Kami (spirits) are attracted to what's new, clean and pure. The older buildings look--old--so they need to be replaced in order to continue attracting goodness.
2. Craftsmen are respected here, and by rebuilding every 20 years, traditions and ways of building can be passed down from generation-to-generation. If they waited 50 years, the skill might be completely lost.

Our room at the ryokan

The shrine was really crowded both days--lots of school groups and tour buses. Only the imperial family and a few priests have access to the inner sanctum--big fences keep the general public out. However, we watched priests perform special rituals with people who had pre-arranged (and paid for) the honor to go inside the fences. From what we observed, most were businessmen and a few families, and we got the sense that this is pretty out-of-reach for most people.

Where We Stayed

Tired after a full day of walking

We stayed in a gorgeous, very old ryokan that had sliding doors covered with rice paper, tatami mats and futons, a small table and a sitting area where we could have tea and read. We had one rolling bag with us, and the ryokan-keeper meticulously washed the wheels before we were allowed to carry it up the stairs in into our rooms. (Outside dirt is profane, which is why we take off our shoes when going inside.) 

The toilets and bathing areas are communal--shared with other guests. We're getting used to this and haven't had any difficulty at all. We especially love the western toilets throughout Japan -- heated seats and all kinds of features that we don't have at home. But that's another blog post for another time...

Screen to the porch at sunset

Eating Through Ise
We had an amazing lunch and dinner experience in Ise. We went to a pub for dinner--no English menus or photos of the food, so we were totally guessing about what we were ordering and how much of it. The food just kept on coming -- sashimi, sushi, pork, miso and salad. It was so good, but actually started hoping that the food being brought out from the kitchen was going to another table (which was never the case). We amused the locals and continue to learn new lessons every day.

After our day at Naiku, we hopped a few trains that would take us to Kyoto, where we'll stay for the next six days. Looking forward to being in one spot for a while -- and also realizing that we're at the halfway mark of our trip.

Rainy Day in Takayama (by All of Us)

From Gifu, we headed by train to Takayama for the day. We walked through the morning market and headed to the Hida Kokubun-ji, the town's oldest temple. We did temple-like things, which you've read about in other blog posts at this point. =)

Preserved part of the old city (before the rain)

"Happy" as written by the puppet behind Kara

Then, torrential rain started. Not just regular rain; it was soak-you-to-the-bone rain. (Note to selves: Weather.com works here, too.) 

So we purchased two umbrellas to share, and headed to the Karakuri Museum that houses lots of lion masks that are used in local festivals. We also saw a puppet show with mechanical karakuri ningyo that flipped and did all kinds of tricks. Some of the puppets were also controlled by skilled handlers -- one of the puppets even wrote the kanji symbol for "happy" on it, and wrote the word in English, too. Here's a picture of Kara with it. Pretty cool!

This was the first day we felt really tired during the trip. Things didn't work out as planned, but we rolled with the (weather) punches. When we got back to Gifu (where it was also pouring), we went to the grocery store, stocked up on junk food, and went back to the hotel to watch game shows and play cards. We don't really understand what's going on, but the diversion was much welcomed.

A lion mask used in festivals

PS. Kara and Maura were really good sports and have done pretty well as we've traveled together. Kara looks a little *unhappy* in the photo because her feet were wet and mom forgot to turn the flash on for the initial picture, so this was a retake.

Our Day in Gifu (by Maura and Kara)

We arrived in a town called Gifu last night after a long day of travel. Here everyone travels by

The caretaker of this shrine gave us treats!

train so we were on and off trains for four hours. It was long but worth what we did today.

Today’s adventures included a late morning, a breakfast of bananas, yogurt and croissants, tours of temples and shrines, a cable car ride, a castle, watching the finals of the sumo wrestling tournament, a nap, and a great dinner.

Shobo-ji Temple (by Maura)

One of the major religions in Japan is Buddhism. The centeral figure in Buddhism is known as the Buddha. We have seen statues of the Buddha nearly

One of three "Great Buddhas" in Japan

everywhere we have gone.

Shobo-ji Temple is a famous temple that houses one of three of the biggest statues of Diabutsu (Great Buddha). It was beautiful!

The statue of the Buddha at Shobo-ji Temple was built between 1790 and 1828. It is almost 45 feet tall and is made of different types of wood including ginko tree wood and bamboo, clay, Buddhist scriptures, lacquer, and gold leaves. 

Gifu Castle (by Kara)

Later we went to a castle called Gifu Castle. It was built in 1201 on top of a mountain. So we took a cable car up to it. The castle was attacked many times so it was rebuilt and reclaimed by many different people. Today it stands as a museum.

Top of the castle

Messing around at Gifi-jo

Ice cream in Gifu Park

Two Days in Nikko (by Mark & Mary)

Nikko was high on our list of places to see. Some of you probably know that Mark was born at Yakota Air Force Base about 45 minutes outside of Tokyo, and that his professional work centers on the religions of East Asia, including Japan. Nikko is the "shrine central" with World Heritage Sites as the centerpiece. It's also a place where Mark's parents brought him when he was a baby, so it's sentimental in that way, too.

Bullet train from Tokyo

Bullet Trains and Baths

We took our first bullet train (fabulous) and a few other connecting trains that got us to Nikko mid-afternoon. We stashed our luggage and took a hike into the mountains for a look at the shrines and temples. We passed the reconstructed shin-kyo (famous bridge), and ran into some Stormtroopers. (Yes, you read that right. See below.)

Mark and Maura went for a hike to check out a line of Jizo statues (protector of women, children and travelers) by the river,  while Kara and I headed to the ryokan to

At the Annex Turtle Hotori-An

watch the end of the sumo matches. Exhausted, we were in for the night. The girls and I took a traditional Japanese bath, which entails washing yourself head to toe in a communal shower, rinsing big time, then heading into a soaking tub filled with hot spring water. It could have been an amazingly relaxing experience. However, it was not as the girls approached this as their private swimming pool and decided to do laps instead. Obviously, we have many lessons to learn together.

Shrine and Temple Hopping

Nikko was founded in the 8th century when a priest named Shonin established a hermitage in the mountains. It's a beautiful place filled with towering cedars and beautiful stone pathways. It was also teeming with tourists like us--mostly Japanese.

Rinno-ji under construction

We went to Tosho-gu, the main shrine, which had many ornate buildings around it. The girls are getting pretty good at the purification ritual with water, which you do before approaching every shrine. It's about washing away the impurities so you can offer prayers and thanksgiving with a pure heart, mind and body--a practice that we've never done before, but that we're finding meaning in.

Part of bigger story about leading a good life

A few shrines are under renovation so they'll be ready in 2020 when Japan hosts the Olympics. Mark had his heart set on seeing Sanbutsudo Hall at Rinno-ji (temple), which is under construction. But the architects did something truly brilliant to keep visitors coming and money flowing to the town almost completely dependent on tourism. They built a structure around it, moved the statues, paintings and other contents to the outside walls, and created a seven story museum where tourists can watch the intricate work of reconstructing this 400 year-old building. Loved seeing how it will all fit together without nails -- basically, a massive 3-D puzzle.

Elephants imagined

We all liked the "Hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil" carvings in one of the buildings surrounding the shrine, and the ornate elephants that had been carved by an artist who had never seen an elephant, but who had heard descriptions of the beasts from others who had traveled outside of Japan. We got to see a private Shinto ritual being performed by a priest, and listen to a talk in the Taiyuin-byo (another shrine). Kara also found a gate with her name on it -- the Kara-mon Gate.

Take the Last Train to Gifu

We ended the day on a train to the smallish city of Gifu, where we'll stay for three days and do a series of day trips. More to come!

More Photos

Kara at Kara-Mon Gate

Shin-kyo

Stormtroopers across from Shin-kyo

Last Day in Tokyo (by Mary)

Fish...at the Fish Market

This is a super quick post because we're getting on a train in seven six hours for the next part of our trip. We had another great day in Tokyo despite the crazy rain and wind we're experiencing tonight. Made it back to the apartment after a long day out right before the sky started falling.

Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo

We started today at the famous Tsukiji fish market, which handles 2,888 tons of fish every day. By the time we arrived at 9:30 am, most of the day's catch had already been processed and was being loaded onto trucks to go to the airport or to a variety of places across the country, or on scooters to be taken to various restaurants throughout the city. Everything moved so FAST and it was hard to take it all in. We took some video, but it doesn't do it justice. If you're interested in seeing what it's like, check out this video posted to YouTube.

At Miraikan with the world behind us

Next stop was Miraikan (the Museum of Emerging Science and Technology), which is really well done. Lots of hands-on science exhibits and emerging technology that blew our minds. Plus there was Asimo the robot and "Joey", the skeleton the girls befriended. (Obviously they miss their friends and Joey was a better option than talking with their parents for another full day.) The kids had a blast and we hung out there for most of the day. We learned about climate change (and what we can do about it), how new medicines are being developed and delivered, and created a vision for the city we'd like to inhabit in the year 2050.

Maura & Kara with "Joey"

We've been working hard to stick to our budget, but splurged a bit to celebrate our last night in Tokyo. It seemed only fitting that, if we started the day at the fish market, we end it with sushi that was fresh caught this morning. We went to a traditional restaurant in Ginza with tables that are low to the ground and cushions on the floor (and, thankfully, a well for our legs and feet underneath the table). The food was delicious and a great way to end the week -- see below for pictures if you'd like!

Traditional Restaurant

It was also followed by a crushing ride on the subway. Just when you think it's not possible for another person to get on the train, another person squeezes in. Experiencing it in real life isn't nearly as bad as it looks from the outside--people are so courteous and they've been especially kind to Kara who spends a lot of time looking at peoples' legs. And people seem to have a great sense of humor about our clumsiness on the trains--and we join in the laughter, too.

Tomorrow, we'll use our Japan Rail passes for the first time and leave Tokyo. I have to admit that I'm both excited and nervous to leave the big city. My (incredibly) limited language skills have not been a huge barrier here, but that is likely to change rather dramatically. Food options will be very different, too, which may be a struggle for our staunchly vegetarian child. And, I'm pretty sure we won't have access to the wifi that has powered this blog, helped us to process our travels, and enabled us to stay connected to home. None of this is bad--just different. 

Regardless, we'll have plenty to share when we can get back online.

Have a great few days!

- MMM&K 

Miso Soup with Clams

Sushi and Sake 

Mark & Maura