Dream, Create, Inspire

Kyoto is all that it’s made up to be… a beautiful place bustling with energy, history and excitement.   Nishiji market is busy with all kinds of goodies. 

The shrines, temples are endless and the sites are crowded with visitors.  The greatest of these to my liking were Tenruji temple, the Monkey Park and Nara Park. 

At Arashiyama, the monkey park and at Nara, the deer park, the animals seem happy and content living among the humans.  I don’t see evidence of mistreatment or in humane treatment.  If anything, maybe the animals are alittle spoiled as they don’t really have to hunt for their food. People seem to follow the rules and are tespectful.

Had a surprise when my friend from Hawaii, Sandi and her husband, Randy, came to Kyoto. We got together and visited the Golden Pavilion (Kinkakuji) and Ryoanji. Wonderful sites and wonderful visit.

Akio, my cousin, and his wife Catherine went to a Geisha dance performance.   The venue was in a theater in the Gion District and it was beautiful. 

The performance was a real art.  The stylized movements were slow and very controlled.  The necks of the geisha seemed to be important and they all had long elegant necks.  I could tell the Maiko from the Geisha as the Geisha were dressed in more subdued colors.  The Maiko have more pronounced red makeup around the eyes and Maiko have lipstick on lower lip only. I really never knew the difference.  Maiko are girls learning to be geisha.  It takes years of training.  The young girls enter after Jr high and live at the houses and learn skills from geisha.  I wondered if there were still girls who wanted to join.  Catherine said yes there are, not alot, but there still are some.  It surprises me, because it seems like such a servitude way of life, but Catherine says it is still a respected field and they are taken care of.  
The one geisha in the middle was older I could tell and her movements were perfect.  The musicians, Akio told me, were probable retired geisha.  The musicians also performed in controlled synchronized movements, even to the point of turning the pages. At the end, during their bows, the geisha tossed tied sashes to the audience.   Akio caught one.  Now I have an awesome souvenir.   We looked at it later and one of the geisha wrote a thank you and signed her name…

Had a wonderful time getting to know my cousin, his wife and even had dinner with their son and his family. 

My cousin Akio is the best cook. I loved eating dinners with him and Catherine. We could learn from the Japanese way of small portions, taking your time and savoring food and company.

Life can be hard in Japan. Work can be very demanding. As a result, there may be little time for leisure, enjoyment and vacation.  I think this brings on stress. Catherine, Akio’s wife, thinks I have a stress free life and she wants to strive to have the same.  There always seems to be something to worry about though.  People can stress ourselves out … over needless things, things we can’t control.  I feel we should just take deep breaths and enjoy.  Exercise is also important.  Here in Japan, I am walking about 20 000 steps a day. Before coming, I also walked at least 10 000 steps a day.  In some ways, I think, being single helps.  I  can live my life as I wish.  However, if you have a partner, you should relish your time together.  If you should still be together after all these years, rediscover why you choose your partner and live your lives as friends as well as lovers.  Anyway, life in Japan can be very hard. It’s a lovely place to visit, but, I think, I prefer living in America, most especially Hawaii. Hawaii No Ka Oi!

Just like that … Dogo Onsen in Matsuyama is fabulous. They claim to be the oldest onsen in Japan and the inspiration for the onsen in Spirited Away. I stayed in a hotel just across the street and went to the onsen 4 times in my 3 days stay. The onsen is being renovated so there is only one working bath. I loved it. It is quaint and magical.

I cannot take pictures from inside the onsen, but the tiles have a picture of a stork that legend says his leg was healed from the waters. In this onsen you must bring your own soap, shampoo and conditioner. My hotel supplied all the needed stuff so there was no problem. I just didn’t feel comfortable wearing the yukata across the street. I managed to get a tour of the emperor’s bathhouse at dogo onsen.

Of course he had a private onsen as he is not allowed to show his skin in public.

I walked to Murayama castle and it was awesome. I got there right before closing time so towards the end there weren’t many people there. What a magnificent castle. It was very intact and quite beautiful to see. It brought me back in time. I could almost imagine the samurai there.

After closing I lingered at the top and the sun awarded to go down. Some others stayed there too and we all watched the sun set. It was beautiful.

On my way down I saw high school cross country or track kids sprint up the hill. It was nice to see the kids… and what a beautiful castle that was.

The next day I decided to walk to Temple #51 since it was close by. Indeed it was close by and it had much to be seen. There were various sites to be seen there.

I checked out as much as I could then headed back to the onsen. I went to this small cave to see the buddahs. It became very small and dark. Spooky to me as I almost became stuck… but it finally opened up to the street with all these buddahs. Yikes!

Well, another onsen time and I leave tomorrow for Kyoto. I really liked it here. I want to come back when the renovations are done. The feel of this place is good. In Matsuyama, I saw young children, teenagers, young adults as well as elders. Everyone seemed nice. Many riding bicycles as the land was fairly flat. A man even came up to help me when I took the wrong bus in trying to get to the station. I could stay here awhile.

Next on my agenda is going to Kyoto to spend time with my cousin Akio and his wife, Catherine.

It’s my birthday today!! Went on Mario Kart in Tokyo for my birthday and in Kyoto for a kinstugi workshop. Leaving Shikoku is a bit sad. I truly enjoyed this island.

… and just like that my birthday is over. I am a year older, wiser and still learning! Stay tuned for more!

Didn’t really know what to expect as I headed towards Iya  Valley.  All I know is I wanted to go to Scarecrow Village and do this homestay at this remote location called Romantei.   I had a hard time booking it, but he finally agreed to let me come for one night in between other customers.  He was busy so he couldn’t pick me up at the station.  I agreed to take the one hour bus ride to his place.  Well that included a 1 hour wait for the bus.  Then it started raining… but not so bad.  I finally got on the bus and he graciously was waiting for me at the bus stop.  His place was interesting… and so was he. 

He spoke in English and had a big laminated book with directions and information in English.  He especially noted that it takes 90 minutes for ambulance or help to come… so be careful.  He kept repeating that when given me directions.  He noted the safety exit sign if there should be a fire or some other disaster… and remember 90 minutes.  He showed me this book in which pervious guests had written heartfelt messages and drawn beautiful pictures.  He had me mark on his map where I came from.
Well, time to make rice.  He had me make a fire outside and cook the rice in a pot on the “stove”. 

Then he told me to take a furo.  The furo was wonderful.  I loved it and could have stayed in there all day.  It was evening and the sky was beautiful. 

After dressing, I met him in the dining room.  He had music playing and slowly brought me the items to eat. 

Then it was relax time.  He got out a candle, tea and incense.  He told me “relax time”  then he left me to go to bed and gave me the book and colored pencils so I could write him a message as his other guests had. 

The next morning, he had me manually grind his coffee beans for my coffee then I had to make another fire in the middle of the room to cook my mochi.  It was wonderful.  Served me miso soup.  So serene.  He made me feel very special. 

Then it was time to go.  I was being picked up by a tour guide to go deep into the valley to Scarecrow Village.  He usually will tour the guest, but he had to get ready for his next visitor.   Luckily I had some Hawaiian cookies and some Hawaii keychains to give him.  Then we followed his ritual of lowering the American flag, with song, no less.   I told him I’d send him the Hawaiian flag.  He raises the flag of his guests’ country. 

So… on the road with my guide and her driver.  We went to a samurai house and walked in the old villages.  This area of Tokushima was where samurai were sent to ensure peace in the area.  Now the villages are getting smaller in size as young adults chose to move away and only the elderly remain
There are maybe 20 to 30 people in each village. 

We had  buckwheat noodle ramen from a local resturant.  It was yummy.  The noodles were so fresh.  Instead of growing rice, they mostly grow buckwheat. 

Then, finally we made it to Scarecrow Village.  I loved it.  The lady who makes the scarecrows is not home today, but we got to see her house.  My guide knows her as she lives in a nearby village.   The scarecrows were wonderful. 

Only saw visitors and hardly any sight of townspeople, besides the scarecrows.  One day, maybe I will come back and take her workshop.  I’d love to meet her.  My guide says she made her first scarecrow that resembled her father and so many people thought he was real and stopped to talk with him.  So she was encouraged to make more.  She makes no money from the scarecrows but the government does provide her village with restrooms for the tourists and probly anything else that she might want. She doesn’t even sell souvenirs.  I respect that of her. 

Then on to the double and single vined bridges.  These bridges, they say, were built by samurai and they could cut down the bridges if the enemies were approaching.  The area is encompassed by gorges and valleys.  Now the bridges are reinforced with steel wire so they won’t collapse.  Little shaky, but quite fun to walk across. 

After the long day I was dropped off at my hotel near the edge of the valley. Oboke Station in Obake Valley… not pronounced obake but Oobake. Here, besides going to the onsen, I did a boat cruise through the gorge and visited a folktale museum.  

In Japan, they have lots of scary folktales so that the childen won’t go into the valley or other places they shouldn’t go.  There are stories of children or adults disappearing and not returning.  Now I recognize some of the scary masks and dolls my gramma used to have.  Interesting museum just in time for Halloween.  

Next on my agenda is going to Dogo Onsen… can’t wait! So excited for that one…

The animal shelter in Tokushima was started by a Canadian women, Susan Mercer and her husband, Hitoki. She wanted to rescue the dogs that were sheduled to be gassed from that horrible death. With humble beginnings she now runs the shelter with over 130+ cats and dogs and has a clinic that spays and neuters cats and dogs. She is at over capacity and had to recently stop taking animals in. They have 4 levels of outside floors of dogs. The volunteers, like me, walk the dogs for 15 minutes each.

I haven’t really had much experience with medium to large dogs so walking them wasn’t easy, especially when they are scared and don’t want to walk. I had to literally pull the dogs to get them to walk. One dog was soo scared he was walking backwards most of the time and accidently walked himself over a ledge! In a panic I pulled him up by his collar. Good thing I didn’t choke him to death! Another time, later in the day when I was feeling pretty good about how I was doing, when transferring leashes I mistakenly dropped a leash and that dog went running off… free. I ran after him up the hill and thank goodness the staff was there and she grabbed the dog. Never forget those two… BeeBee and Dixie. Now I hold on to the leashes with a steel grip. They are not going to get the best of me again!

So day after day I spend walking the dogs picking up poop for about 4 hours a day. It gets to be physically as well as emotionally draining. I am saddened by the condition of some of the dogs … many are scared, have goop in their eyes and their fur is matted and dirty. The staff do the best they can. They are constantly working at cleaning and feeding as well as walking dogs. I am saddened when I think they spend the most, if not all of their day, in their cages. I wonder if they are happy and if it’s the best for them. Some do get adopted, but what about those that don’t. My thoughts disturb me and my heart feels heavy, but I just walk the dogs.

I have to admit, though, that they are less scared of me as the days go on. The one that walked backwards off the ledge is not doing that anymore.
I will continue to follow the website to see if some get adopted.

If not for Heart I wouldn’t have come here and as a result I have discovered the many wonders of Shikoku. Tokushima is known for the Awa Odori (tradition bon dancing). Every August for 3 days they have a festival that draws many from all over the world. They get over a million people to come. As a result Tokushima has the infrastructure to handle such an event. It gets obvious as you see many stage venues and wide streets to enable such a feat. All year around they have performances here at the Kaikan 3 times a day and once at night to give you a taste of Awa Odori. It is quite enjoyable. I went to two performances on different days and each one was great. Some different dances and performers, and still a fabulous show with audience participation. The dancing was vivacious and lively.
The costumes were colorful and attractive. It was amazing to see the women dance in their ghettas. I need to see if I can walk that way in my ghettas.
They give a brief history and show the evolution of Awa Odori.

Besides Awa Odori, I went up to Mt Bizan, saw the view… and ate the most delicious ramen I have ever had. I decided to walk to temples # 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 out of the 88 Temple Pilgrimage here on Shikoku. It was wonderful. The mileage between temples ranged anywhere from 1 mile to 3 miles so I could do it all in one day. Met some great people walking. Got hooked into getting the Goshuin at each temple. For a price of 300 yen they do calligraphy and stamp which is unique to their temple. It is just beautiful and now I want more. So much so that I decided next week to do 5 more that are close to Tokushima.

More walking dogs. A girl from Sado Island that I worked with showed up this week so I am no longer the only volunteer. Nice to have help here. She finds the work just as hard and, like me, struggles to find meaning. She has more experience working with rescue dogs and she feels that they need to first lose their fear of people. She says we should be building relationships not just walking the dogs. She spends more time with some of the dogs, but I just do as they ask… 15 to 20 minutes walking the dogs. I have to admit, though, I think some of them are not as fearful of me as they were in the beginning.
This next weekend I walked the 5 other temples. Temples # 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. Those took me longer than I excepted. It was tirering, but I met up with some more fun and interesting people and even walked with some to the last temple. At the 4th temple, I left my wallet at the goshuin counter and they drove to find me to return it. I didn’t even know. Think it might been because I took a low hanging persimmon from a tree and ate it, thinking that maybe it gave me bad karma. The persimmon wasn’t even that good. I was just tired and a bit hungry. So glad to get my wallet back and I won’t break the rules again.

Maybe someday in the future I will come back and finish the 88 temples. I just didn’t plan on it this time and don’t have the time. You need at least 2 months for just that. We shall see. Where I am going soon, in Dogo, there are a few temples close by. I may try to do them.
My time in Tokushima is done. Three weeks, actually, went by fast. I am heading to Iya Valley to see Scarecrow Village. So excited for that. Leaving my new friends, Maddy and Jenor. Maddy from Victoria Canada and Jenor from Germany. We will keep in touch via Instagram.
Japan is known for their questionable treatment of unwanted animals. Each year thousands of animals are getting destroyed at cruel gas chamber’s in Japan. That is what Susan Mercer is trying to stop.
Each city has its own kill shelter which are named as so-called animal welfare center’s. Some cities utilize lethal injection as method of killing but majority of the cities still utilize gas chamber which cause extreme fear and suffering to animals. I don’t want to explain the suffering and how long it takes to die, because it is very upsetting. Look it up if you want. So, no matter what, I commend Susan for doing what she has started and continues to do. I wonder, at times, if there are other ways to do things in order to get them adopted faster. However, I remain committed to those like Susan who attempt to make a difference in the lives of animals. Now I am off the do what I want to for the remaining of my time here in Japan.

Next stop… Taiji where my dad and grampa grew up.  The only relative we know that lives there now is my dad’s sister’s child, Hiromi.  She is about my age and we have alot in common.   She was a kindergarten teacher and preschool director.  She even helped plan the new preschool facility after her retirement. 

Besides both being educators, we both love ballroom dancing.  She takes private lessons and loves to perform. I take group lessons and just love to dance. I am lucky that in Hawaii there are many nonprofit social clubs where dance lessons are plentiful and reasonable and socials are weekly.  I tell her that she needs to come to Hawaii to truly enjoy social dancing.  She married later in life so her and her husband,  Shigeharu, have no children. I like him.  He has a great sense of humor and is fun to be around.  He has a type of polio and is not very mobile at this time, but he is getting treatment for his condition.

Taiji is a small (population 3000) fishing town.  In the past they were known for whaling. Now they have become imfamous for dolphin killing.  When the documentary,  “The Cove” came out in 2009, the  world was shocked at the inhumane and vicious killings of dolphins in the cove.  The cove is a beach area in Taiji where the fishermen scare the dolphins into.  

Then they cone off the area so they cannot escape and proceed to slaughter them by hammering metal rods near their blow holes to cause death or they bludgeon them to death on the beach.  The cove turns red with blood.  That is why the dolphin watch groups call it a red cove day or a blue cove day.  It is a horrific scene of which makes me weak with disgust.   This is still going on, but now they move the dolphins to another area so they cannot be seen or photographed.  Nowadays they also select the “choice” dolphins to be sold to aquariums or sea life parks and then kill the rest to be sold for meat in Japan and China.  A live dolphin brings alot more than a dead one.  They can sell a live dolphin for up to $300,000 versus for meat they get maybe $600. Please, if you can, try not to support those types of shows. I have to admit that I did go to the dolphin/whale museum in Taiji because I felt I needed to see it. There was educational information that was interesting and there was an exhibition about the early whaling industry in Taiji. The dolphin show was okay and after it they let you, for a fee, feed the captive dolphins. Thank goodness some aquariums are now stopping these types of shows as a result of public awareness and pressure.

On my last day there, the fishermen trapped some dolphins. We went to see and my heart sunk as I realized they would all be killed or be sold. I wish I could have set them free…

This all disturbs me very much and I asked Hiromi why they cannot find other ways to make a living.  She replied that the soil is not good for farming and there are no other types of fish that can support their livelihoods.  They claim that it is part of their traditions and is a way of life.  This still goes on today.  The quota for last season was 1,849.  They ended up capturing/killing a total of 560 dolphins.  The dolphin watch groups (Dolphin Project) are still protesting, monitoring and pursuing lawsuits. Feel free to look them up and support them.
I know that fishing is in my family’s background and still continues with my brother who fishes for salmon in Alaska.  My descendents were whalers not dolphin killers. My grandfather and father both left Taiji and made lives for themselves in another small fishing community… in Petersburg Alaska.

Other than that, Taiji is a lovely town.  I enjoyed visiting the schools and the “Kaino” home.  Hiromi still takes care of the house where my grampa, dad, aunt and uncles grew up in.  I think she is ready to sell it though as the upkeep is getting to be too much. 

She and Shigeharu have a nice home nearby.

We also hiked to Nachi Waterfall, the tallest waterfall in Japan at a drop of  133 meters. Besides being an awesome waterfall, it is also worshiped as a Shinto diety. 

Mostly, I enjoyed the dinners together at Hiromi’s house.  She was most gracious and I hope I get the chance to do the same for her one day. 

Leaving Taiji I had many thoughts… one of my dad being sent to school there and living with his grandmother when he was only 10 years old and not speaking any Japanese.  He struggled, but survived and thrived.  He accomplished so much in his time there.  He was placed in kindergarten when he was ten, but excelled his way to high school to end up at the top of his class in 7 short years. 

We went to the museum archives and looked my dad’s “box” where we found pictures and his awards.

Then he married my mom and they went to to build a new life in America to Alaska where his mom and dad were living.

Then I think of Hiromi and how her life was and is so different because her mother chose to stay in Taiji, Japan. 

We are similar and yet soo different.  The choices we make determine our  future and future of generations to come.  We cannot go back, only forward looking ahead.  It also reminds me that we should never stop making new choices that continue to develop and enrich our lives.