Drokpa Journal

 Dates Traveled: July-August 2008

 Tsuruoka

After my two weeks of traveling around Norway I hopped flights for Tokyo, arriving there on the morning of July 16th. Rhona was able to finagle a couple weeks off work while I was in Japan, so we decided to take advantage of that and head out of the city. We hopped trains the following morning, headed for Tsuruoka. Early on the 18th we set out in less-than-ideal weather for a day hike - it was raining quite heavily. Still, it was a nice 7-hour hike, and the rain did ease up a bit, so it was a good way to get out and stretch the legs. And at least it was cool - much of our time away was characterized by extremely hot and humid weather. In defense we attempted to spend as much time as possible at higher elevations, but invariably had to descend into the furnace from time to time. No fun.

Mt. Fuji

We next made our way, via several trains, to Fuji Yoshida, a town at the base of Mt. Fuji. We found a great little place to stay which was right at the trailhead. Ideal location, beautiful room, laundry facilities, and the food was excellent. Perfect. The following morning we started the trudge. Most people who climb Fuji (3776 meters) do so from the 5th station, which sits at 2305 meters. They catch a bus or drive to that point. I wouldn’t have been able to say I climbed Fuji if I’d done that, so we started from the Sengen Shrine at the base of the mountain - 850 meters. It turns out the portion of the trail from the base to the fifth station is the most interesting, though even that wasn’t overly intriguing. At least it passed through forests and there were numerous shrines along the way. Above the fifth station it was simply a slog up a dusty gravel trail, with no vegetation in sight.

As expected, once we hit the 5th station we were joined by the masses. And masses. And masses. We were climbing it on a Sunday, thinking that many would be heading down and back to their homes. Wrong. We discovered it was a 3-day weekend, so everyone and their brother had decided to climb the mountain. Doh!

After 8 1/2 hours, and 2550 meters of elevation gain, we rocked up to the hut which Rhona had thankfully pre-booked. I say thankfully because it was packed! She had never seen so many people in a hut. There are numerous huts at various stations along the way, but the one where we slept could accommodate something like 400 people. We were literally sleeping one next to another on large platforms. We simply ate, sat around a bit, and then went to bed early.

As expected there wasn’t a lot of sleep to be had that night - I hung off the end of the bed, there were too many snorers, many people were rustling around in packs, and those getting up at 1 AM to be on the summit for sunrise ensured that I’d be bleary-eyed the following day. We’d already decided we didn’t need to be on the summit for sunrise. Each of us have been disappointed more often than not for ‘magnificent’ sunrises from mountain tops, and we quite honestly didn’t want to be stuck in the traffic jam of people all heading up at the same time. Instead, we popped outside around 4:45, looked down on the carpet of clouds, watched the sunrise from our hut at 3400 meters, ate breakfast, and finally started for the summit at 5:30. An hour later we were on the crater rim.

The first order of business was to find a portion of the rim with fewer people loitering about. I then popped the question, Rhona made a phone call home, and we popped the cork on some champagne. Actually, it was more like controlling the cork on some champagne. As expected, as soon as I undid the wire mesh the pent-up pressure due to the 3776 meters of altitude wanted to shoot the cork skyward.

We had perfect weather for the summit - the best Rhona has seen up there. People normally top out on that portion of the crater rim, snap some photos, loiter a bit, and then head down - nobody tends to spend much time up there. However, we walked the entire crater rim, up to the true summit, and made a leisurely morning of it before starting our descent.

The standard descent is also only to the 5th station, from where one can catch a bus back to civilization. We chose that option on the descent - there wasn’t anything on the descent I needed to see a second time. Our original plan was to pick up our gear and hop trains to our next destination, but we opted instead to relax and spend another night in the same ryokan at the base of the mountain - and eat more of their fantastic food. It was a good choice.

My thoughts on Mt. Fuji? Like many mountains it’s far more beautiful to gaze upon from afar than it is to climb. The climb was simply a gradual, tedious, slog to the top, with little of interest along the way. It didn’t help that there were so many people on the volcano that weekend - I am a snob when it comes to sharing my outdoor experiences…I can admit that. Had I been on my own I’d have gone for the crazier option of trying to go from base to summit back to base all in one go. It would have been a long day, but I figure it can be done in 12-14 hours of walking, plus whatever time is spent for pictures, eating, and relaxing on the summit. Hmmmmm……

Kiso-Fukushima and Tsumago

The following morning a bus/train/bus combination had us in Kiso-Fukushima. In summer it’s normally a quiet town as people await the snow and ski season. Suffice it to say it wasn’t going to snow while we were there - it was hot! However, it wasn’t exactly quiet, either, as we happened to catch it on a festival day. We spent the afternoon wandering the quaint alleyways, as well as taking in the festivities - a taiko drum performance,  kids on a float playing instruments, and men dressed in white carrying the mikoshi, or portable shrine, on their shoulders around town.

That evening we walked along a transformed street. Festival booths had sprung up one after the other along both sides of the road - shaved ice stands, kebabs, fried noodles, takoyaki (octopus), as well as numerous gaming booths. Most surprising was a booth where you won whatever prize you could knock over with the light-weight cap shot from a toy gun. What’s that in the upper left corner? Why yes - it appears to be a DVD of porn. The young boys had either tried to win it and had failed miserably, or had realized that the small cap wouldn’t knock the DVD over, as they weren’t even aiming at the porn as we ambled by. Still, it made me laugh to see that it was one of the prizes.

As the appointed time grew nearer we staked out some territory on a railing of a local bridge. From our vantage point we had clear views of a nearby hilltop from which the fireworks would be launched. For the next hour everyone oohed, ahhed, and clapped as the night sky blazed with the pyrotechnics.

Early the following morning we caught a train and bus to the small town of Tsumago. During the Edo period it was an important post town along the Tokyo-Kyoto road. It’s been restored to its original charm, and we immediately liked the ‘feel’ of the quaint town. We also learned that it, too, would be hosting a festival that day - bonus!

After dropping our stuff in our room we set out to wander and photograph the town. We also decided to walk a few hours to another old post town - Magome. It was a hot, sweaty walk, and neither of us liked it as much as Tsumago, but it was still nice to go see another restored post town. After catching a bus back to Tsumago we showered and then hit the street (not plural - I told you it was a small town) for the festival. Once again we saw guys in white carrying the portable shrine. A mikoshi is usually covered in gold, and can weigh hundreds, or even thousands, of kilograms. This particular one was carried by 20-25 guys. At times they would race through the street with the shrine on their shoulders. They’d then stop, set up, and proceed to rock the mikoshi violently back and forth. Hard work to be sure. However, being a mikoshi carrier has it’s up-side, as the clan proceeded between two establishments on that street which would periodically ply them with tea, beer, sake, and food.

We followed the procession up and down the ever-darkening street for several hours. When we needed nourishment we’d street-graze the various festival booths. On a few occasions we were given some of the sake for the mikoshi carriers. Mmmmmm. The festival was actually a lot of fun as it was in a beautifully restored town, on a perfect night, and there were very few non-residents in attendance. It felt like we were being let in on a little secret, which are always the best days while traveling. And the most entertaining moment of the evening? That would have to be when the dignified ‘priest’ of the ceremony, who was standing around drinking a beer with us while the mikoshi was at rest, proceeded to hop like a kangaroo when Rhona mentioned where she was from. Classic.

Sumo Tournament - Nagoya

Around 5:30 the following morning we were out the door to catch a taxi to the train station. Once we arrived in Nagoya we quickly made our way to the stadium to buy sumo tickets for later that day. There are 6 sumo tournaments a year - each lasting 15 days. There are various ‘classes’ of sumo wrestler, with Yokozuna being the top, of which there are currently two wrestlers. One had pulled out of the tournament earlier with a sore elbow, but the other was the only remaining undefeated wrestler in the Nagoya tournament (and would continue that trend, proceed through the entire 15 days undefeated, and be named champion).

After a few hours of internet use to announce our engagement, we went back to the stadium and stole down to some empty seats closer to the action to watch wrestlers in the lower ranks. It was entertaining to watch the pageantry of the tournament, with respect for officials and your opponent an integral part of the ritual. After 4 or 5 hours, those who’d purchased the more expensive seats began arriving to see the top-tier wrestlers, relegating us to our seats near the top of the stadium seating.

There were a few non-Japanese wrestlers, with most of those hailing from Russia or former Russian republics. A Bulgarian was also in the mix, and he had actually won the previous tournament in Tokyo. I couldn’t help but think that some of the offensive linemen in American football would be pretty good at sumo - they’re large, tall, strong, quick, and athletic. However, I’m pretty sure Japan wouldn’t be ready for trash-talking in their national pastime.

In all it was an entertaining day and provided me a glimpse into something which the Japanese hold dear.

Takayama

Once the tournament finished at 6 PM we high-tailed it back to the train station, freed our luggage from the storage locker, and hopped a train for Takayama. We spent a few days wandering around Takayama - popping into traditional homes, checking out some of the large floats which are wheeled through the streets during festivals, and sampling a bit of sake at a brewery. We also ate a lot of ‘blobs’ - a type of candy which you’d think I’d be able to describe after eating so many of them, but words fail me. Suffice it to say they were gooooood. I’d heard a lot of good things about Takayama from Rhona, so it was nice to finally be able to put an image to the descriptions, and to follow her into some of her favorite little hideaways.

Shirakawa-go

From Takayama we jumped on a bus for the Shirakawa-go region of World Heritage villages. The villages are known for their gassho-zukuri, or ‘prayer hands’ construction. The thick, steeply sloped thatch roofs which characterize the construction allow the homes to quickly shed the winter snow. We made our way to three of the Unesco World Heritage villages - Ainokura, Suganuma, and Ogimachi. We were fortunate enough to stay in a traditional home in Ogimachi, as well as being able to tour several ‘museum’ homes to see construction techniques and implements used for general living. We also hiked above a few of the villages for overall views down to the thatch roofs below. There were certainly a lot of day-trippers to the villages, but once night rolled around peace prevailed and you could get a sense for how serene village life would have been in the past.

Osaka

Call our stop in Osaka ‘research’. Everyone has heard of Japan’s ‘Love Hotels’ - those gaudy, themed, over-the-top rooms which serve as a hideaway for couples who all-too-often still live at home with their parents. Well, we had to see what they were all about. The hotels themselves generally aren’t too hard to spot, as the outside can be quite ostentatious - faux Roman statues and fountains, anyone? However, a surprising number of them look like any other hotel - albeit with a sign out front which lists prices for ‘rests’ and ’stays’. Walking into an unattended lobby one is confronted with a wall of monitors - one for each room. Those still lit are available, the darkened screens indicate rooms already occupied. The monitors show the interior ‘decor’ of each of the rooms - mirrors, disco balls, slot machines, etc. You could also see those rooms with ‘themes’ - office, church, prison cell, merry-go-round, and Hello Kitty S&M…complete with chained arm/leg restraints. However, a majority of the rooms were ‘normal’. In fact, and a quick bit of research online proves the point, most establishments are actually going with more up-scale, tasteful rooms, rather than the kitschy rooms of only a few years ago.

Once you see a room you like you press a button and a key-card pops out of the wall. Everything is geared towards preserving privacy, including a small hatch that can be opened near the main door of your room - I guess in case you order room-service pizza and don’t want to show your face to the delivery person. The room itself was probably the best value-for-money we had in our 2 weeks. We’d paid twice as much for some rooms in traditional ryokans in which we slept on futons on the tatami-mat floors and had to go down the hall for the toilet/shower. The room in the love hotel was enormous, and also had a huge bathroom. There was even a large-screen tv.

That first experience went so well that when we couldn’t find a hotel a few nights later in Kyoto, we opted to take the train back to Osaka for another stay. The second time illustrated another selling point of the hotels - check out time. Many hotels in Japan won’t let you check in before 3 PM, and you have to be out the following day by 10 AM. Now granted, if you want to spend an overnight in a love hotel you can’t check in until after 10 PM - anything before that is considered a ‘rest’ and you’re only allowed to stay 3 hours. However, if you arrive after 10 for the overnight stay you don’t have to check out until noon the following day. We made sure to optimize our time and found ourselves rushing downstairs to the lobby right at noon, only to be confronted with 4 or 5 young Japanese couples standing in line, waiting to pay. It seems we weren’t the only couple with plans for a lazy start to their Sunday. Too funny.

Koyasan

From Osaka we made our way to the top of Mt. Koya - Koyasan, which is a World Heritage site and center of Japanese Shingon Esoteric Buddhism. Koyasan was established in the 9th century and now contains over 100 temples. Many of the temples have lodging for pilgrims, so we spent one night on the mountain. Along with the room and two vegetarian meals, we were encouraged to sit in on the 45-minute meditation session the night we arrived, as well as the 45-minute early-morning ceremony the following day. It was an interesting glimpse into a different form of Buddhism than I’d encountered in Tibet.

The following day we made our way through Japan’s largest cemetery, Okunoin, to the mausoleum of the founder of Koyasan. The cemetery itself was fascinating, with some of Japan’s most notable historical figures buried among the stone monuments. We also wandered through various temples, pagodas, and buildings of Koyasan. Again, there were quite a few people up there, but it still maintained a sense of calm - of purpose. I enjoyed my time on Koyasan, and would like to go back in the winter when it must be extremely peaceful.

Kyoto

And then we were bound for Japan’s former imperial capital, Kyoto. For as long as I can remember Kyoto has been the one place in Japan I’ve been anxious to see. Unfortunately, we saw it in the heat and humidity of summer, and towards the tail-end of our trip, so my enthusiasm was waning. With 2000 Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines in and around the city it’s impossible to see everything, so we concentrated on several of those declared as Unesco World Heritage sites. My biggest disappointment was seeing Kyoto’s most famous rock garden. I’d envisioned Zen-like rock gardens all over Kyoto, and I was looking forward to seeing their minimalist beauty. However, the garden at Ryoan Ji simply left me scratching my head. Rhona assures me she knows of a better, lesser-known garden which we’ll check out when we’re back in Kyoto next March.

Most entertaining were the 1200 rakan statues at Otagi Nenbutsu-ji. Rakan represent the disciples of Buddha, and are most often of a humorous nature. True to that idea, the carvings at Otagi Nenbutsu-ji showed disciples laughing, holding a cat, playing a guitar, wearing glasses/sunglasses, holding flowers, reading a book, and boxing - among other things. Every time you thought you’d seen all the bizarre statues one area had to offer, something new would catch your eye.

Late one afternoon we found ourselves in the Gion district - famous for geishas and maikos (apprentice geishas). Unfortunately, ‘geisha-stalking’ seems to have become a sport in Kyoto, and there were far too many camera-toting tourists around, hoping to snap a photo while a geisha or maiko headed off to work for the night. I couldn’t even bring myself to take my camera out of the case in such an environment - it felt too voyeuristic for my liking. I did happen to be standing on the main road when a maiko got out of a taxi, walked towards me (on the other side of the road) for about 30 meters, and then past me for another 20 or so. She was certainly beautiful in her painted face and beautiful kimono, but the ‘paparazzi’ tourists sapped the magic from the moment. Many were simply walking backwards in front of her to shoot as many photos as possible, with no respect for her whatsoever. Others walked beside her and hammed it up while one of their friends shot video of the encounter. I’d had enough, and didn’t want to be part of the zoo atmosphere, and so we left.

As we left Gion we picked up some fruits, crackers, cheese, wine, and other snacks and made our way to the riverbank for a picnic. A nice way to spend an evening in Kyoto.

One day we made our way out of town to the Fushimi Inari-taisha. I’d been looking forward to this side-trip as well - not for the shrine itself, but for the thousands of red torii gates escorting one ever higher up the mountain. It was great to walk below the tunnel of torii’s, though it was extremely hot that day, and I was dripping sweat by the time we made it to the viewpoint.

I’m looking forward to heading back to Kyoto in March when it will be considerably cooler, at which time I can wander around some of the places I missed out on this time around. It should also be beautiful with some of the cherry trees in blossom.

Tokyo

On August 5th our mini Japanese adventure came to an end and we headed back to Tokyo. Rhona had to lead a single passenger through Tokyo the following two days, and I spent the time in air-conditioned comfort getting caught up on e-mails and writing my Norwegian travelogue. On Friday we met a friend of ours, who had also started leading trips in China the same time we did, at a pub to watch the Olympic opening ceremony. The weekend was spent hitting a few of our favorite spots in Tokyo, as well as trying a few new restaurants.

And then all too quickly my break was over - it was Tuesday the 12th, and I was flying back to Norway for work on the 13th. As I type this we’re actually back in port in Kristiansund, as we’re having some engine troubles. However, we expect to be back out on the prospect soon and we’ll work until crew change on September 24th. My next break I’m hoping to head into Tibet to check on some friends, though I have to see what is possible regarding visas. I also have to see if the Chinese government will be letting foreigners into Tibet now that the Olympics are over, or if they’ll be doling out ‘discipline’ and will close down the region for awhile.

I’ll keep you posted….

Japan Photos

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