first venture out

Japan: Day 2

(Wed.)
I woke up a little early this morning. Ok, really early. I was up at 1:30 am. Bright and shiny. So I got online. I looked at some ideas in the area. I did some work-work. I walked down to the bell stand and picked up a local map. I found an ATM in the hotel basement and retrieved some local currency. I busied myself for a few hours and finally talked myself back under the blankets.

At 4:45 I was awake again. So this time I relented. I dressed, grabbed a hat, loaded my bag with camera, guidebook, and maps, and escaped the hotel. At 5:05 I was back at the bell stand. I was holding my map and humbly asking, “Where am I?” I can usually find myself within a few blocks, but this morning was different. He answered by giving me a different map. One I can only describe as a map-for-dummies. It even came with a handy lanyard so I could wear it around my neck. After a short and very educational orienteering lesson, I tried again, pocketing the new dummy-map.

I wandered until I found myself at the Zojoji Temple. This is my first Buddhist temple, so I don’t know how it ranks. But in the sunrise it’s stunning. I climbed up the steps to the massive doors. I could hear and smell the interior. Incense and chanting. I began to peek in the open door as a small older woman came out. She looked at me and smiled. She extended an arm behind herself, into the doorway, to indicate that I was welcome to enter. I snatched off my hat and gave what I can only hope was received as a respectful-thankful nod-bow. She smiled and appeared to understand. I walked inside, ... and stopped.

First - the sound. Six monks were singing/chanting. In the expanse of the large room, it was beautiful, mournful, and full of something like honor, occasionally punctuated by large deep bells.

Second - the smell. Incense, but not the cheap head shop kind. It was clean, and not dusty or ash smelling.

Last - the morning light beaming through intricately carved windows and glowing on the monks and the many idols and icons about the room. The scene was hard to describe. In the back of the room near me was as small table, with the incense pot. Occasionally persons would enter, sprinkle a bit of incense into the smoldering pot, stand and say their words very quietly (something I can only compare to lighting candles in the back of a Catholic church), drop a few coins into a grate at the far side of the table, and then depart. I watched two people do this. Meanwhile something very intricate was happening on a large slightly raised area in the forward center part of the room. Here the bear-headed monks and there boss monk (please forgive my ignorance) played out a ritual beneath some large and decorated statues. The chanting/singing continued. Around the raised floor there were chairs where three or four people sat in reverence. I stood in the back, trying my best to be respectful, and not be irreverent with my obvious awe.

I watched for about 20 minutes. I wanted to take pictures, but something stopped me.

The gardens outside were also impressive. It was a complex of things that I saw as old Japan. Most interesting were the rows and rows of small stone statues of children. They stood shoulder to shoulder, perhaps 10 inches high, in long lines. There were hundreds of the. Each stone child wore a crocheted red winter cap of some kind, along with other tidbits. Some had flowers. Some had red rain slickers around their shoulders. Some had toys and necklaces. It was fascinating. I need to ask someone what this means. I took a few pictures. I hope I didn’t break any buddhist laws in doing so.


The circuitous route back to the hotel included a walk-by of the Imperial Palace, morning rush, Tokyo bike couriers, hot canned vending machine coffee (more on that later), and more gardens.

It was a good morning.

Now it’s 10:15am. I have 45 minutes to relax before work.

Maybe another hit of that coffee....


Lunch. It was nothing special. Then meetings. They were nothing special. Then I went up into the Tokyo Tower. That was kinda cool. Then I went for dinner. Now that was special.

I got a price fix meal at a real Japanese restaurant. Appetizer, salad, sashimi, soup, mixed tempura, and fruit dessert. This was paired with wine, beer, and teas. It was an experience. I have a photo of each course. Mark had an upgraded version. His included a piece of beef instead of the tempura. Let me tell you, the rumors are true. Japan does have the good stuff. Imagine a piece of prime, cooked medium rare and served on a hot plate. The beef was already cut into strips, yet it was tender enough to cut those strips into bit sized pieces - with his chopsticks. It was an experience. Kimono clad waitresses and service with an impeccable attention to detail. It may have been a bit outside of my budget, but it’s recoverable. I was planning to eat from streets stalls Friday anyway.

more later... sleep beckons....