Jared Visits the Imperial Palace

The current imperial palace is located on the same plot of land that the Edo Castle inhabited during the 1600's. In 1868, the capital of Japan was moved from Kyoto to Tokyo and the Palace was completed in 1888. This palace complex was destroyed during World War II and rebuilt in the same style. They Imperial palace is the residency of Japan's Imperial family. Visitors cannot enter the palace buildings or the inner gardens but the surrounding gardens are quite a spectacle. The Japanese view of naturals beauty is something to be commented on. Every blade of grass is trimmed uniformly with great precision. The trees are trimmed to exacting specifications with almost a Seussian quality to them. It is so different than the traditional American "rugged is best" look and offers a glimpse into a culture where beauty is in the skillfulness of the craftsman. Plus, those koi in the pond are as big as my arm.

One of the many intriguing things in the outer gardens of the palace was the statue of Kusunoki Masashige. I was curious about his legacy and why his statue was featured so prominently in the gardens. Further research concludes that Masashige is the epitome of Samurai loyalty. To make a long story short, Masahige was a brilliant tactician that willingly obeyed his Emperor, Go-daigo, and led himself and his armies to certain death due to the emperor's decision. It was interesting that he became sort of a patron saint for Kamikaze Pilots in WWII. His last words during his ritual suicide were reportedly, "Shichisei Hōkoku!" which translates to "Would that I had seven lives to give for my country!"

The most intimidating aspect of the palace were the walls. Constructed of stone, these huge walls ring around the entire complex and end in a deep moat. The construction is incredible and the pictures offer hardly any depth to the austerity and impressiveness they exude when you are there in person.

Kamakura

I had my first excursion out of Tokyo. It was quite menacing, actually. It is a 67 minute train ride south from our train station to the Kamakura station. It took me a few tries trying to locate the correct train and I almost got one the wrong train not once, but three times. Thankfully, I managed to find the train that would take me where I needed to go. Phew. It was a long train ride, so I gave myself permission to fall asleep. This was a big step for me since my first few nights here after riding the trains, I had nightmares about falling asleep, missing stops and the like. It was kind of strange to see some countryside after being pent up in the city for a few weeks. When I arrived at Kamakura, I got my bearings by copying a map down in my handy dandy, NOTEBOOK! (My usual procedure when I’m in a new place.) The main attraction in Kamakura is the great Daibutsu. The humongo green Buddha statue that graces the cover of a lot of travel books. The first version of this great Buddha was completed in 1243 but then destroyed by a storm in 1247. In 1252, the statue was rebuilt by the same people who built the first one, Lady Inada and the Priest Joko. All of the funding for this project was raised by Joko and came from devotees. No governmental money or official financial aid was used in the building of this statue. The statue is about 12 meters tall and 12 meters deep. My favorite part of the Buddha was his hands. They were very serene and dignified. Pictures don’t do it justice.

Ameyoko & Ueno

During WWII, Ameyoko was the site of a black market. Now, Ameyoko (candy store alley) is a an eclectic collection of shops underneath a section of JR train tracks. Ameyoko still seems a teeny bit shady due to it’s location, past history and the amazing bargains that are available; exactly what I was looking for. It was a rich experience and there were things to see everywhere. There were all sorts of clothing and accessory stores that had everything from suits to pre-torn jeans. I was also amused by the collection of fish vendors. In the pictures below, those red things are exactly what you think they are. Some things looked appetizing, some things bearable and others I had no desire to be under the same tent with.

There was a light sprinkle when I arrived at the market but as soon as it started to drizzle, it seemed as if everyone in the vicinity had an umbrella except me. *Pop* *Pop* *Pop* Umbrellas of all shapes, sizes and colors appeared out of nowhere. I was the only bare head in a forest of mushroom covered people. I had forgotten to bring my beanie that day so luckily I found one in a 390 yen bin instead of having to pay the 2000 yen average price.

The Ueno park is another huge park that houses many things such as an amphitheater, pond, Buddhist and Shinto shrines, and even a full fledged zoo. I only visited the pond and shrines due to the rain but on the way out, I had a delicious side of grilled squid. In a little shack, there were several squid cuts available to choose from which were then grilled and basted with a delicious sweet sauce. It was served with a chili powder and mayonnaise. A LOT of mayo. It was quite satisfying in a chewy, rubbery manner. Mmmm, Mmmm, good.

Tokyo Tower Ascent: Attempt No. 1

I went to the Tokyo Tower the other day to look around. I was obviously impressed since that is often the aim of sculptures like this. The Japanese take pride that their tower is taller than the Eiffel tower. I guess size really does matter… We were all hoping to go up to the observation deck after a birthday party but the chilluns were tired so we got dinner and went home instead. I got some cool pictures just walking around the base though! It was really neat to see another one of those things most foreigners only see in pictures up close and personal. The Tokyo Tower is an integral part of the skyline and has often reoriented and helped me get my bearings while I’m out on the town. Hopefully next time I will be able to go inside and look around.

Teacher Jared... Ha... Seriously...

I am now an official substitute teacher! My first substituting experience took place last Friday taking the place of one of the playground supervisors. My day was full of keeping the children from destroying each other and keeping as much sand out of their mouths as I could. I was mostly successful with the first one but we're working on the second task... This school has been a good experience thus far. I was invited to go to Sichi-go-san with S's class which is the ritual performed on the three, five and seven year olds (Sichi-go-san's literal translation is three-five-seven). Most of the kids got dressed in Kimonos and we went down the block to a Shinto temple. The priest performed a beautiful ceremony to bless the kids "so they grew and listened to their mommy and daddy." It was pretty cool to be able to see this traditional ritual and get a small taste of the Shinto religion. I love the look and feel of the Shinto temples and I'm surprised by how many there are around town.

Another cool thing about the school is it's location. It is right in the shadow of the Roppongi Hills Mori Tower. One of the tallest buildings in Tokyo, this is just an overall sweet building. It is mostly offices but has a bunch of upscale shops and restaurants inside. I appreciate the building for it's architectural value. I don't know much about that kind of stuff but I like know what I like when I see it.

Tokyo From 60 Stories

After a lot of frustrated map reading and muttered curses, I found my way to a part of Ikebukoro called Sunshine City. I really didn't know what was there but I had just heard that it was a neat place. It turns out that Sunshine city is a huge mall inside of a skyscraper. (I've realized that pretty much all of Tokyo is a mall. It really is a consumer's paradise.) After following signs written in characters with sketchy english underneath (Ha I absolutely love the English they use here.)

I made my way to an observatory 60 floors up in an elevator dubbed one of the worlds fastest.

I only peed my pants a little.

When I got there and unstuck myself from the floor of the elevator, the view was positively overwhelming and exciting. My main thought while up there was something along the lines of, "Wow, I have a lot of exploring to do between now and February." Every bit of Tokyo is absolutely gorgeous in it's own way. It has such a uniquely human feel to it and I love it more with every step I take down it's streets. The pictures hardly do it justice but at least you can kind of get a feel for the depth and expanse of this city.

Asakusa

The original Asakusa shrine was constructed in 1649. It has since been torn down and rebuilt multiple times since it's founding. The story of the Asakusa Shrine is an interesting one. Three fishermen were fishing (surprise) on the banks near where the shrine is located today. When they hoisted their nets, the found a statue of Kannon (the Bodhisattva of Mercy--the deity alleged to have great powers in purifying people and granting them true happiness). The village chief enshrined the statues and the three men were henceforth worshipped as deities. When we visited, there were people everywhere.

The street leading up to the shrine was lined with bustling shops filled to the brim with gold and red, tacky souvenirs and visitors. There is a sharp contrast between the Asakusa shrine and the Meiji shrine in terms of commerciality and belief systems. It is a beautiful piece of architecture and is one of the few buildings in the area that survived the Tokyo air raids of 1945 and has since been dubbed and Important Cultural Property by the Japanese Government.

My favorite part of the buildings would have to be the enormous lanterns that hang in the gates. The lanterns read, "Kaminari Mon" which translates to "The Gate of Thunder." I'm also a big fan of statues and this shrine was bursting with awesome examples to look at. There are many Buddha statues around the shrine and there are four different sculptures of gods in the Kaminarimon that are actually quite freaky to look at.

Shibuya

After a short train ride from Harajuku, our next stop was Shibuya. This place (along with a lot of other places too, as I'm finding out) is huge! I was blown away by the Shibuya crossing which is directly outside the train station. When the crossing light goes green, the whole intersection becomes a blob of moving people and there are no rules. Just get to where you need to be before the light goes red. Oh, and don't get trampled. I was told that I was there at a relatively relaxed time so it wasn't as packed as it usually is. I was still blown away. I'm definitely going back as soon as I figure the trains out.

Harajuku

After our visit to the Meiji Shrine, we went through Takeshita street in Harajuku. This street is where all of those darn teenagers get their outlandish clothes and where youth culture has it's roots. One way of describing this part of Tokyo is by saying that the city is just one huge mall. There are shops everywhere. This was also where I did my best to jump the language gap and order something at Mcdonald's. Thank heaven for pointing and grunting.

Meiji Shrine

After recovering for a day or two and dealing with Jet Lag, my aunt and I hit the town. Our first stop was the Meiji Shrine, located in Meiji-jingumae. The Meiji Shrine was a gorgeous first stop for us to make. Located in one of the hearts of Tokyo, we stepped out of the blaring hustle and bustle of the streets and took refuge in a wooded sanctuary where people have come for centuries to feel peace and tranquility. On the road to the sanctuary, we saw several workers raking the gravel, creating a pristine walkway in a practice that demonstrated the precision and dedication that permeates this culture. The gate in the picture is called a Torii and are made out of Japanese Cypress. The Torii symbolize the roost of the mythical bird that woke up the sun god Amaterasu from her cave every morning. When you pass through a Torii, your heart is cleansed and your mind is purified. Toriis separate the divine from the everyday and when you walk through, you leave the everyday and enter a holy place. (Just a bit of cool trivia) We learned that the shrine had been bombed during WWII and had since been rebuilt. Near the entrance, HUGE chrysanthemums were growing. The chrysanthemums represent the royal family and are tended very carefully resulting in a vibrant bloom. Inside the courtyard of the shrine, there was a whole wall of prayers written on wooden planks and hung up to be sent heavenward.

I made it!

I have arrived in Tokyo! After twenty hours of flying through three cities, my plane touched down at the Tokyo Narita International airport last night at nine PM local time. After working my way through Immigration and dealing with a lost bag, my uncle Nate located me and we took the bus into Tokyo. Talk about sensory overload. I was overwhelmed with the sheer enormity of things! After hurtling through the streets of Tokyo at I'm sure at least 400 MPH, we arrived at Shinjuku station. Shinjuku is the largest train station in Tokyo and there were people everywhere. I guess it was hardly busy because my uncle told me it wasn't full at all. I'm so excited to get in the midst of things. We went to a Mcdonald's near Shinjuku that was on the fourth floor of a building. It was sweet! Now I know why people call big cities, "Concrete Jungles." It is a fitting description. We walked through canyons of buildings decorated by millions of dollars of ads. Space is precious here in Tokyo, and seeing a piece of wall without an ad on it is a rare occurrence. We made our way through the checkerboard of suited businessmen into the actual station. We boarded our train along with every other living soul in the city and went one stop to the Yoyogi station. The station is right in our neighborhood and it's about a ten minute walk to the house. The neighborhood is just gorgeous. After crashing that night, I woke up this morning at about 10. We ate breakfast and then I took "I" and "N" to the park. What a cool park! There were a whole bunch of baseball players which surprised me. We played soccer on a sand lot surrounded by huge trees and really cool play equipment.


I'm just so excited to be here! I'm off on my next adventure so I'm signing off until then.
Peace
jared