| The
Cemetery | The
Park | Meiji-Shrine
| People of Tokyo
|
| Asaksa
| The Public Bath
| Hachiko
|
| The
Cemetery | The
Park | Meiji-Shrine
| People of Tokyo
|
| Asaksa
| The Public Bath
| Hachiko
|
The Cemetery
 asked
him if we could go take a look a little later. He agreed to take me. Oct. 13th, At 7:30pm, the rain was lightly coming down
and the air was a little cool, yet quite comfortable. We entered the cemetery
approximately 5 to 10 minutes after leaving Takada's Apartment. The moon
was shiny down upon us and there were small patches of fog in various places.
It was GORGEOUS! There was a perfect balance of exquisite flora complemented
by majestic gravestones. Some looked like miniature shrines covered with
symbols and gifts left by loved ones. There was a type of an anxious excitement
in the air that night, at least for me. It was getting close to Halloween, on a dark night,
it was rainy, foggy, and we were in a cemetery, all alone (as far as we knew).
I didn't feel nervous at all. But I think that Takada was feeling a tiny
bit uneasy. It was the first time that I had ever seen a Japanese graveyard.
There was only one way to describe it....... CHO SUGOI!!! |
|
|
| Back to top | Next |
The Park
| After going to the cemetery we headed to a local park across from the LDS Tokyo Temple (Which I might add is a beautiful building). The rain had subsided and it left the air feeling clean and crisp. The night was full of new sights, sounds, and experiences for me. I walked around the park in awe. The beauty of the landscape that surrounded me was astounding. There were ferns and big bushy plants of all shapes and sizes. Everything was green (which I might add is my favorite color). It was the perfect model of a typical Japanese Garden (5 times bigger though), occasionally found in the backyard of an American who is an Oriental enthusiast. |
I walked up some steps half
made of chiseled stone and the other from the surrounding dirt. Wooden
railways lined each side of the stairs leading to a clearing that had a
park bench with a roof  made
of logs tied together by rope and thatch on the top to prevent rain leaking
through. The roof was supported by more logs tied in the same manner as
the roof (Japanese style of course). As I beheld this structure
something began to stir at my feet. It was a frog two times the size of my hand. I bent down to check out the amphibious creature, as I did I noticed
garbage on the ground. I had been oblivious to it when I had entered the
park, probably due to my awe of the beauty that encased me. My heart sank! As I looked
around I began to find that there was garbage everywhere in this park.
This was one of the biggest shocks and eye openers for me. I had always
thought that The Japanese respected the land and didn't litter upon it,
like Americans did. I walked around the rest of the park still enjoying
the beauty, but with less sense of excitement. |
| We came to another clearing along the winding cobblestone trail. This section of the park had a huge pond in it. There were goldfish that occasionally poked their heads through the surface of the water. There was a bridge stretching over the body of water and upon this bridge we saw two young lovers kissing in the moonlight. We moved on without disturbing them. We left the park soon after that. The park was beautiful to me, but it also taught me an important lesson. The grass is NEVER greener in another country!!! This was one of the first experiences that shattered my fantasy like idea of Japan. |
| Back to top | Next |
Meiji-Shrine
| On Oct. 15, 1998 Takada and I headed out to see the Meiji-Shrine. Before we took off in that direction we walked along the busy streets of Tokyo. Looking at the various shops along the way. We had to grab a bite to eat too before we made our sojourn to the famous shrine. So we stopped and ate Sukiyaki at one of the local (what I call a mall) shop, my first time I might add. It was SOOO delicious (OISHI)! (you can check out more about the Sukiyaki on my Food page) |
Once we were done eating
our grub. We started walking towards Meiji-Shrine. It took us approximately 20-30
minutes to get to our destination from Takada's apt, only 15-20 minutes from Shibuya
(Tokyo
Square). The walk was nice. I was able to see a lot of Tokyo City and
the people that lived therein. There were  more
foreigners' in Tokyo than I had expected. Occasionally one would pass us
and say "Hi". It was nice to hear a little bit of English every once in
a while for a change. As we approached Meiji-Shrine we came to Meiji-park, the park that
surrounds the shrine. Takada told me that it was one of the largest,
if not the biggest, parks in Tokyo. There was a paved trail that lined the outskirts of the park for runners and bikers. The trail that brought people into the Meiji-Shrine
was gravel and about 4 feet wide. The park was very green and full of all
kinds of different plants. There was a very sweet smell to the moist air.
An odor I had never experienced before. It seemed like a combination of burnt incense, rotting wood, and clean oxygen from the plants in the area. It was quite refreshing. There
were many people in the park such as Joggers, bikers, walkers, people eating their
lunches on the grass, and one man meditating. It was a very peaceful setting. |
We then came to the main
entrance of Meiji-Shrine. A majestic Torii (gateway) was towering above us, about 10 feet away. It had to be at least 10 meters high. It immediately left
me with an exhilarating and  humbling
impression. From what I have been able to gather, these Torii are placed
in every entrance into shrines or holy places in Japan (Shinto or
Buddhist I am not sure). I saw them in many different places in my
travels through the country. We walked under the gateway and down the path a
little farther. I stopped along the way to take a few pictures of the landscape
that surrounded us. I even stopped to even take a picture of a spider the
size of a silver dollar. Quite different from the ones back home. |
After about 20 more minutes
of walking we entered the last Torii into Meiji-Shrine. Once inside I noticed
a little building that had a small altar like table in it full of water. It was like a miniature
well/bath (Japanese style of course). The people that were in
this small building picked up the ladles there that were made of  bamboo, dipped them into the water and washed their hands and rinsed their mouths
out. There was a sign above the well that I couldn't read. I
asked Takada to explain and he said, "They are cleaning themselves before
they enter the shrine". From my personal studies, I know that in most Asian
religions (mainly Buddhism and Hinduism) the hands and the soles
of the feet (as well as certain areas of the spine) are associated
with channels of energy called Chakras. It is a common to wash your hands and mouth to represent you washing away your
energy blocks, or "sin" as the west would call it, before entering a holy
place. This is so the ethereal energy can flow through you undistorted and your prayers will come out pure to the gods (something like that...I appologize now if I am incorrect). So
we proceeded to wash our hands and mouths and then entered the courtyard of the shrine. |
In the courtyard there were
patches of gravel symmetrically placed between the paved walkways. There
was a little stand covered with what appeared to be wooden signs hanging
from it in one of the  square
plains of gravel. We walked up to it and my friend, Takada, explained that
people bought the signs here at the shrine and wrote their wishes and blessings
on them. They were then hung on this stand so that the God's could read
them and answer their requests. After viewing this stand we proceeded up
to the actual shrine. I was able to take a few pictures, though you cannot
see as much, by looking at the pictures, as one can with the naked eye. |
It was an outstanding experience. I enjoyed looking at the entire shrine
and seeing the pictures, symbols, and the people practicing their religious
rites. I felt a little out of place due to the fact that I was not fully
aware of many of the customs. But I was glad to watch and see these things take place in real life. We spent
the rest of the afternoon walking around the shrine and park taking in
all the beauty around the area. |
| Back to top | Next |
People of Tokyo
There is only one thing to be
said about the people in Tokyo…THEY ARE EVERYWHERE!!! There  were
sooo many people in Tokyo. It was a zoo! It reminded me of an oriental
New York. While I was in Tokyo the people seemed, in general, very distant,
to themselves, and conserved if not shy, not including those who I got
to meet personally. They were not rude by any means...just went about their
business. The few people that I did get to meet and talk with in Tokyo
were very nice and polite. Especially Takada, for his kindness and for
allowing me to stay with him. He took me around to many different places
and taught me a lot of things about Japan. I would like to thank him and everyone else that was so kind to me
on this page at this time. I will leave them all, but Takada, nameless
for I am sure that I will forget one of their names (I am really bad
with names anyway...with Japanese names I am even worse) and would
prefer not to upset any of them. Just know that I was glad to meet you
and I appreciate your kindness. Dozo Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu! |
| Back to top | Next |
Asaksa
I had two days before I had to start my journey up to Aizu to meet my brother.
Takada wanted to show me a really happening place in Tokyo, Asaksa.
We took two trains and one bus to reach our final destination. It seemed apparent to me that this was the most common
mode of transportation in Tokyo. Those that did have cars
had to pay a lot for parking and other luxuries that come with owning
a vehicle. |
Once we got to Asaksa we noticed that there
was a festival taking place. We walked streets (the streets here
were styled a little older than the downtown city) gazing into the various
shops. The streets were packed with people of every size and age.
We headed up the main street (Sorry I don't  remember
the name) and headed towards the shrine and pagoda in the area. There was
a huge Torii with statues of various different Shinto god's in them.
I caught a picture of the god of fire (as you can see). I looked around and was impressed
by the statues and very large lanterns hanging around everywhere.
After going though the huge Torri we headed toward a small stand just to
the right of the main walkway in the shrine's courtyard. It was a
round table that contained ashes with incense sticks poking out(burning
of course). Takada explained that a person was to take the incense
smoke into their hand and waft it either over their head for more intelligence
(blessing the brain), or over the body for good health (blessing the body).
I cupped my hand over the smoke and let it pour over my head AND my body!
We then headed into the shrine. I took some pictures and we bought
a fortune telling page that are common at many of the Shinto Shrines. We both paid 100 Yen (about the equivalent of
1 dollar) and each opened the box with our birthday inscribed on it. Inside the box were papers that were to tell a person their fortune. I am happy to say that
mine was VERY GOOD. |
After browsing through the festival, the
streets, the shops. We headed towards the city again. We  picked
up a drink called Ramune on our way out of the festival. The drink was in what looked like a normal soda pop bottle
except that there was a marble in the top of the bottle that kept the pressure locked in tight.
The man at the counter popped the marble down into the actual bottle and
released the pressure for us with some device. This was something
I had never seen before. I was a little skeptical about drinking
this light blue colored fluid. Since I am an adventurous person, and a thirsty one at that, I dove right in and started to guzzle the Ramune.
It tasted so good! I can't even begin to describe it! There
is no pop in America that even comes close to what this tasted like.
Just imagine a pop that tastes something like a strawberry flavored starburst
and you'll start to get a small idea. Once we finished the drink the bottles
are reused so we gave them back to the stand dealer, And headed to
go catch our train home. |
| Back to top | Next |
The Public Bath
What an experience this was.
Talk about up close and personal experience with the Japanese! All
jokes aside, I really enjoyed the public bath that my friend Takada took
me too. I had told him the very first day that I was in Japan that
I wanted to experience the REAL Japanese lifestyle and culture. During my time with him,
he was sure to fulfill that wish. He told me, "you can't know the Japanese culture if you have never been
to a public bath before.". We entered into
a little building right smack-dab in the middle of the city. Once  inside
we headed to the men's section (thank the lord they separated the sexes...I
might have been in trouble). In what appeared to be a normal
wooden lockeroom. We undressed and prepared ourselves for the room beyond.
We walked through the sliding glass door with our towels wrapped around
our waists. Our towels were then hung neatly once we were inside of the
blue tiled room. There in front of us were three rows of little showers, with a small mirror under each shower
head, placed there to make shaving easier. A few of the showers were already taken and being used by other men.
All the showers were only about 3 feet off the ground (except the ones to cool you off). The objective
was to sit down on a little stool in your little shower area and shave, clean your hair, and wash your body off completely. Once this process was completed a person was to get
up and make their way over to the hot bath. This was designed to relax and warm a person's body up, especially during the winter and before bed. After a person is done with the hot bath they can then take a cold shower (normal sized showers this time...three of them
lined the far right wall) and then leave or return to the hot bath.
The hot bath was designed to fit approximately 10 people at a time (at least
the one we went to was). It was very soothing and rejuvenating.
I sat in the hot bath for about 20 minutes and returned to it twice after
a few cold showers. We left there feeling much more relaxed and calm. We also slept
more sound that night, at least I know I did. The picture to the left is not a picture
of a public bath. It is a picture of the bath in my brother's house
(which most, if not all Japanese baths are similar to). |
| Back to top | Next |
Hachiko
| Hachiko is a statue of a dog located in Shibuya (Tokyo Square). I do not know the significance of Hachiko except that he is the best locator in Tokyo. People will be talking on their little digital phones and person #1 will ask, "Where are you?" and then person #2 will answer, "with Hachiko." and then finding person #2 becomes an easy task. Because EVERYBODY knows where Hachiko is. I thought it was pretty cool! Unfortunately I don't have a picture of him...though I do have a picture of Shibuya under the People Of Tokyo section on this page. |
| Back to top |
If you would like to see more pictures or the
pictures on this page larger...
| Back to Main | Back | Next |