Merv and Trudy are bound for Canada. It has been an extraordinary month of travel, discovery, indulgence, laughing, bonding and sitting cross-legged. What makes this visit especially meaningful is that our reality has opened up before them. We no longer feel isolated in our experience here. They courageously placed themselves within this new context--a place from which they can relate to us and from which our time here can be validated and appreciated. What`s more, through Merv and Trudy we have learned to see Japan with wondrous eyes again. They showed us that what we are doing here is, in fact, amazing.
Shiraishi Island
On April 29 we packed up for Golden Week. First stop: Shiraishi island. After a hearty breakfast and hilarious episode of Wiretap we set off. Our bags weighed a ton, due in large part to the 4 bottles of wine we insisted were necessary to celebrate C’s 30th that night. Catching the train and ferry was a breeze and before we knew it we were traipsing up the steps to the villa. It was too much to ask to have the place to ourselves but our housemates were pleasant.
We arrived at around two and cracked a bottle of wine to inaugurate our vacation. We stretched out on teak lawn chairs and gazed at the ocean below. As we inhaled the warm salty air, we declared in unison: It doesn’t get much better than this!
What we didn’t get a photo of:
On the ferry ride to the island, we witnessed two sketchy yakuza types devour a bucket of KFC with CHOPSTICKS! Guess in Japan, it's not finger-licking good.
Shiraishi Villa
hike: ass kicking. view: kick ass.
happy hikers
the last of the blossoms
The Birthday Party
The bottles consumed
Moving On To Kotohira
This is the family-run ryokan we stayed in. Lovely setting, right on the river. My only complaint was the pillow filled with lego. Other than that, quite comfortable.
Group shot (imagine me in that space) on the water.
Merv gearing up for "The Birthday Party, the sequel".
Karate Kids
Nothing like a little ryokan hijinx after a couple glasses of wine. In this case, it's the yukata photo shoot, a must for Japan.
from the archives...
Kotohira-san Shrine
Bright and early we made our way up the 783 steps to the famous shrine of Kotohira-san. This shirne is dedicated to the Guardian of Mariners and a visit will ensure a safe voyage for all travelers and pilgrims (tell that to me in the rental car later). Here we are washing our hands to make us worthy um, to not enter. Entrance is denied to foreigners at the top but we were invited to drink vending machine coffee and view the city below.
not photographed: parents dragging whimpering three-year olds up the nearly 800 step climb. (BTW, the one-two-three-weeeeee makes a kid's arm pop out of the socket after two hundred steps) Other missed opportunities: the girl who climbed in stilettos and the man who climbed in a three piece black suit and tie. Are they [DELETED] insane?
The heat is getting to me. I need to buy a Japanese parasol which I will twirl girlishly for the next few days. In 96 hours, I will leave it behind on the train. 120 hours later, I will reclaim it at a Lost and Found in Tokushima and declare the Japanese the most honest people on the planet.
Kabuki Theatre (restored to its former glory)
Iya Valley
Haiku:
rental car, road winds
mom chats up snack bar hostess
vine bridge, don't look down
On Monday we picked up the car at Awa Ikeda station. I cranked a beer on the train to settle my nerves and to also get out of ever having to sit in the driver's seat. C was up to the task and after a few shaky turns was ruler of the road again.
...until this freaking bus rounded a narrow corner and came barelling towards us at top speed.
What I said: It's okay, sweetie, just back it up and let him go by.
What I thought: Yeah, I know this part. It's where we all die!!!
We stayed at a three hundred year old farm house in the Iya Valley. The project is called Chiiori and is run by volunteers (code word for hippies). Staying here was a highlight of Golden Week for us. It was relaxed, quiet and surrounded by unimaginable beauty--the stars at night were unbelievable! On Monday evening we all piled into cars and made our way down the windy mountain roads to the local onsen (hot springs). Here, we bathed in outdoor baths and soaked in mineral pools under the night sky. In other words, we all got nekkid together!
Boys Day Flags
The farmhouse
woodpile (Merv's shot--nice one)
Christmas Card shot
Inside the tatami room
The vegetarian takes over...
good eats (if I do say so myself)
setting up for bed
Tuesday we drove out to the vine bridges. The drizzly weather was perfect for such an outing. It made the bridges that much more slippery for maximum thrills. Also, others stayed away. We had them all to ourselves!
Tokushima
After roughing it in Iya, we opted for a little swank. C made a fantastic find in the Sun Route Hotel. It was brand spanking new and featured flat screened televisions with internet, comfy beds and funky designs. Oh, and the hot water was a welcome ammenity after Chiiroi.
view from hotel room
Bored? Have an artsy photo shoot at swank hotel.
Some celebrities we saw in our travels:
We found this familiar face in Tokushima. He had an entire bar dedicated to him, called simply "Dylan". Well, had we known Bob was such a cheapskate, we would never have visited him. He charged us ten dollars for a bottle of beer! But if you see him, you should say hello...
Colonel Samurai
The ubiquitous Wanted Man. Waiting to welcome you at every station.
The Age of Enlightenment
Scattered across the island of Shikoku are 88 sacred Buddhist temples. This is the oldest pilgrimmage in Japan, dating back 1000 years. A guidebook for pilgrims was even published as early as 1685. A serious pilgrim, or "henro" will walk to all 88 temples to complete a circle in the search for enlightenment. Along the path, each pilgrim must abstain from meat (easy), alcohol (hard) and pray to the great Buddhist saint, Kobo Daishi (incidentally, the saint who founded one of the few sects of Buddhism that believe enlightenment can be achieved in a lifetime).
Nowadays, most pilgrims take Air Con buses to the 88 temples and need only take a week off work to get back on Monday enlightened. But there are still a few brave souls willing to take the time to walk or cycle. Check out this blog by our friends Ashley and Neil. They biked the 88 temples for charity during Golden Week. For more pics, click on their individual blogs.
As for us lot, we decided to walk in the footsteps of Kobo Daishi...for a day. We walked to the first 3 temples on the path, accumulating about 10-12 kilometres worth of enlightenment. But our daily input of zen was eaten up when we missed the train back to Tokushima by a hair and had to wait with Wanted Man at a station on the milk run. Gahhh!
Pilgrim costume. Available for purchase at the gift shop.
Merv brilliantly captures our faces as we realize another train will not be coming for close to two hours.
pissy pilgrims
Kibi Bike Tour
We rented bikes and rode across the Kibi plain, visiting shrines and temples at our leisure. To reward ourselves at the end of the day, we made reservations for the wonderful Kinki restaurant. Here they serve Buddhist Temple food, a vegetarian's dream. Some of the culinary delights included boiled tofu with enoki mushrooms, konyaku, pickled daikon, miso soup, and steamed greens. I'm sorry. I know I'm making you all salivate.
Kingers and Karaoke
This was such a fun night. Merv and Trudy said they would only stay for fifteen minutes. Two hours and a million beers later, we were still hammering out tunes.
Merv and Christopher rip into a little Johnny Cash. Because you're mine...I WALK THE LINE!
This is our friend Dan. He likes to sing Rick Springfield. Did you know that Jesse's Girl has...
FOUR guitar solos.
And the rock star point.
Rene was HILARIOUS. This was 8 minutes of him yelling: GET UP! I AM A SEX MACHINE!
Himeji Castle
Happy Mother's Day!
School Visit
