a may daytrip

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today is the last day of our long long weekend: so-called “golden week”

consisting of 4 national holidays over a weekend.

(no wonder, it is worth "gold" for hard-working japanese people!)

everyone is entitled to have fun!

and, today is kids’ day.
kids are treasure when japan sees the birthrate declining.
to celebrate the day, traditionally, carp streamers are put up outside.
usually, early may weather should be perfect for that.


the day before yesterday,

i went out to see lush mountainous areas in kyoto.

my brother wanted to show me the breathtaking scenery as you now see,
although he was too ill to take a walk there.
i truly rejoiced in sharing the day with my long-ailing brother.

only a few more days to go before this weekend,
hang in there, my global friends!

tying the knot

it was the most beautiful sunny day i’ve ever had in my life. i could find no single cloud in the blue sky. my beautiful boy and his beautiful fiancée tied the knot at 明治神宮 meiji jingu in tokyo on sunday. everything was gorgeous.

before the ceremony, families and friends all waited and chatted in a small room. then, when the young pair in traditional kimono arrived we (you may guess where i am in the picture below) had our first photo opportunity just like a press conference. (b & w photos taken by mr piano-man)

the couple signed their 誓詞 seishi (oath) in person. afterwards, louie, my son got a little bit nervous about ritualized form of shinto wedding procedure. so he rehearsed how to offer a 玉串 tamagushi, a sacred wand of 榊 sakaki tree with 紙垂 shide paper, to the gods. everything looked so divine.

with a red parasol open for the couple, we walked in a double line and moved onto the main shrine while hordes of tourists trying to capture a traditional wedding scene. unfortunately, the mother couldn’t be a photographer for the ceremony including a traditional music performance and dance and an exchange of rings, too.

meanwhile at 明治記念館 meiji-kinenkan, the reception venue with a spacious lawn garden, a traditional lion-dancer led the newlyweds to the reception hall of the historical “east-meets-west” styled retro décor where the guests and the parents of the couple awaited.


everything but the cuisine (it was french) was traditionally japanese. a ceremony of 鏡開き kagami-biraki (opening the lid of sake barrel) took place instead of cake-cutting. we shared the sake in 桝　masu (wooden cup) prepared on the table.

the bride changed her 白無垢 shiromuku (pure white kimono) into a colourful kimono in the middle of the reception. she took off a heavy wig as well. we all congratulated the two again and they became a blessed married couple now. the party was not that big but was very heart-warming. most of us wept for joy, naturally. as a mother, i was no doubt the happiest ever i could be in life.

today is my son's birthday... many happy returns, louie!!

and, have a happy weekend, everyone!!

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manjusaka 曼珠沙華

during 彼岸 higan, which is the equinoctial week, we japanese would visit our family graves because of the buddhist tradition. so i, too, went up to kyoto and visited our family temple where my father and my mother’s ancestors all lie at rest, today. as the temple is situated in the mountainous area and the grave yard overlooks the valley, people, both deceased and alive, can enjoy the spectacular view. it was too hot (the temperature rose above 30 degree celsius!) to appreciate it in the sun today, though.

after coming back home, i was a bit tired and had a nap. then, i went out to the park with my camera to look for 彼岸花 higanbana (manjusaka in sanskrit; spider lily in english), which only blooms during the equinoctial week. in the woodlands, i could find the blood-colour flowers here and there. they looked mystic, but beautiful. and, i wandered about in search of on something more mystic: white spider lily. there should be some in the park. i at last found a white mass near a serene pond just in time for the sunset. i felt something mystic like zen!

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sakura #2

the japanese have a thing about 桜 sakura (cherry blossoms). i missed the best season of 桜 in 京都 kyoto this yea, though. i don’t feel quite up to making my way through the crowd. everywhere you go you’ll only find streets thick with people in 東山 higashiyama, 京都, this time of year. instead, i upload my best 桜 pictures i took there a couple years back. they can refresh my memories of the beauty of 京都 in 桜 season, which was speechless. i did need no words to appreciate it, but i got tired of the crush and congestion in town, really.

so, spring has come to all over japan. not exactly -- it’s already summer out here. the temperature went up as high as 28 degree centigrade in 大阪 osaka yesterday: it was a bit too hot for お花見 o-hanami (sakura picnic). i saw many people having a party under the blossoms, however. the best blooms are clearly gone, while our お花見 mode is still in full swing. everyone enjoys power-pink 桜吹雪 sakura-fubuki (cherry blossom confetti) as an unseasonable summer breeze kisses the cherry blossoms. we japanese are terribly, unbearably fond of 桜. do you know why? because, 桜 is short-lived: the bloom makes us feel like such a fool if we missed it: the blossom goes with grace, no hesitation.


i heard one 鶯 uguisu (bush-warbler) singing somewhere yesterday morning. it’s springtime no doubt. and, the climate is mediterranean's at the moment. for me, it was perfect a saturday evening doing nothing but cooking linguine con le vongole with crushed chili and chopped parsley (from my mother’s kitchen garden) and sipping argentine white plonk. i am happily idling away my time at weekend, as i’ve been working full time for a project for my last two weeks now in an office in 京橋 kyobashi, 大阪, weekend has become something special (and allows me to eat lots of garlic) to me.


on the other hand, it is an good opportunity for me to discover 大阪. i don’t know much about the city even though i’ve been one of osakans for several years; i haven’t really been fair towards 大阪, you know. the office is located in the tower 21, overlooking 大阪城 osaka-jo (osaka castle), so naturally, the view is breathtaking, while the “project x” (that's the name, actually) i now work on as a translator is just painstaking. one morning, i looked at 大阪城 from the office windows. i noticed blue plastic sheets spread out under the cherry blossoms along the river near 大阪城. then i noticed people sitting and having お花見 on the plastic-sheets when i was about to leave my office.

traditionally, poor freshmen would have to go and find an ideal place for お花見 to seize it by spreading plastic sheets early in the morning before their colleagues go to work. when a hard-working day is over, it is a party time. they rush to the place all together. this is a typical way for office workers to enjoy their “after 5” in 桜 season. they are lucky to work near 大阪城, which is famous for 桜. i’m not particularly attracted to samurai culture or castles themselves. still, i am loving the majestic view of 大阪城, with fresh green and powder pink patches and surrounded moats as the project is reaching the peak.

what's happening in nara in march

“unless お水取り o-mizutori is finished, we won’t have mild weather yet” -- my mother always tells me so, just like other people in 関西 kansai (the southern-central region). 修二会 shunie, known as　お水取り, is the 2 week-long ceremony of fire and water that has been practiced by buddhist monks in 二月堂 nigatsu-do (hall) of 東大寺 todai-ji (temple) in 奈良 nara prefecture for more than 1200 years. it is said that spring comes to the region as the service is completed. お水取り, drawing sacred water, the climax of 修二会, takes place on march 12th every year.

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a year ago yesterday, when my daughter stayed with me, she and I visited 奈良. 奈良 was the capital of japan in the 8th century before 京都 kyoto. 大仏 daibutsu, the great buddha, is housed in 金堂 kon-do (hall) that lies the huge compound of 東大寺, which is now 奈良公園 (park). the park is also popular for deer roaming around and following tourists for 鹿せんべいshika senbei (deer biscuits). the temples in 奈良 feel quite ancient. they are indeed old. i liked it there because its atmosphere is less formal than 京都 – it’s quieter, more rural and relaxing, while its scale is grander.


once you enter 金堂, 大仏 will take you aback. it’s magnificent. the architecture of the wooden hall also will take you breath away if you are from countries where buildings are made of bricks or stone. it was her first time for shion, my daughter, to visit 奈良. i’d been there a few times before, but every time i look up at the giant buddha statue, the vast scale and the sense of eternity amaze me. our next destination after 大仏 was 二月堂. walking up and down the hills in the park covered with moss to 二月堂 was worth sweating. when reached the hilltop, we had a panorama of the peaceful city from 二月堂.

yesterday, i went to my mother’s home and spent the whole afternoon cleaning. i couldn’t ignore the clutter in her bedroom. she just can’t damp things like empty cardboard boxes and carrier bags. so there were tons everywhere in her flat being waiting to tidy up. my mother is hopeless believer in a “this one can be useful one day” -sort of thing. she didn’t allow me to even hoover her living room. i did throughout. because, she is most likely to get back home from her hospital some time this week, if her blood test turns out as best as it shows in the last few weeks.

after all, the cause of her disease was unfound. it was not caused by any virus, which is certain. we are relieved to hear that she is now out of danger, even though there is no further medication or treatment for her other than being in bed. when she is home, she is still a hepatitis patient, i will have to take care of her. i fact, i have an appointment with a hospital dietician this afternoon. obviously, she will be staying in bed at home longer than before. this must’ve been a good timing to dust her bedroom corners, it seems. i hope my mother will not mind me having done that.

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this year’s お水取り of 東大寺 is taking place in 二月堂 on 12th as usual. by midnight there will be tens of thousands of prayers to gather, or tourists just to say goodbye to the winter blues.

p.s.

thank you so much for your warm words and get-well-soon wishes for my mother!!