Food: Onigiri (Japan)

Photo: Googlesnatched Onigiri

Onigiri, (Kanji 御握り, Hiragana おにぎり), also known as Omusubi, are Japanese rice balls. They are relatively simple to make, especially once you get used to the basic techniques, but you can also buy surprisingly yummy Onigiri in any konbini (convenience store) in Japan.

Onigiri come in many different varieties. The most common shapes are the little triangles, shown in the picture, and disk-shaped Onigiri. Normally, Onigiri are made of plain, white, sticky rice, and have a single filling in the very center. The most popular fillings are Umeboshi (sour pickled plum) and salmon, although any reasonably dry and strong-flavoured ingredient works well... for example, I have made super-American breakfast Onigiri with sausage and egg. There are also Onigiri that have a topping of fish or ginger instead of a filling, and some Onigiri are formed from rice flavoured with sesame, katsuoboshi (fish flakes), or other traditional seasonings.

A little bit of dried seaweed is wrapped around the rice ball just prior to consumption. The idea of eating seaweed may be a little bit frightening to the uninitiated, but don't be afraid! The flavour of the seaweed is very mild - not even my pickiest friends object to it. The main purpose of wrapping Onigiri in seaweed is to allow you to hold it without getting your fingers too sticky. And, it has a delicious crunch!

Onigiri make great breakfasts and packed lunches. Laura and I started each day in Japan with a nice, filling rice ball or two! Onigiri are easy to eat on the go, although remember that in Japan it is considered rude to eat while walking.

A View of Tokyo

We filled our arms with beer and juice and took the elevator to the top of Mayumi's building. Our tour book recommended several places for a good view of Tokyo - from where I was standing, this one was hard to beat.

We were shocked to be able to see Tokyo Tower (think: Japan's Eiffel Tower) from the little rooftop garden. Laura's sharp eyes also picked out two Ferris Wheels, and Rainbow Bridge, which Mayumi hadn't realized she could see before.

We tasted Japanese beer, saw the electric energy of Tokyo shining in the night, listened to the bugs hum and buzz in the bushes around us. And I wondered; those poor, lost bugs - how did they get here? How did we?

- Journal, 07/17/09

Photo: Tokyo by night, as seen from a rooftop in Toranomon.

Photo: Buddhapada in Kamakura (Japan 2009)

Buddhapada in Kamakura

Where: Kamakura, Japan
When: Afternoon, July 16th 2009

I found this decorated stone in Kamakura's Hase-Kannon Temple. It is a stylized depiction of the footprints of Buddha. In early Buddhist art, it was considered taboo to directly depict a being as sacred as the Buddha, so they alluded to his presence by showing his footprints, called Buddhapada in Sanskrit.

These Buddhapada are covered with a variety of symbols. Look at the most prominent one, which looks like a sun or wheel. If it looks familiar to you, you may be thinking of the Flag of India, which has a similar design in the center. The wheel shown on both these footprints and the Indian flag is a dharmacakra, or a "wheel of law", and symbolizes the Buddha's path to enlightenment.

Japan's many sacred places are filled with items and objects that are often laden with symbolism. Knowing even a little bit about the many cultural traditions that make up Japan can add a lot to a trip through the country.

Late Night Okonomiyaki (Miyajima, Japan)

Miyajima shuts down quickly after the bulk of the tourists leave around 4 pm. The majority of those who spend the night on the island eat dinner in their ryokans or hotels, so when 6 o'clock rolled around, Laura and I found that nearly all the town's restaurants had already shuttered for the night. Luckily, the owner of our ryokan told us that a small Okonomiyaki restaurant a few doors down was open until 8.


I ordered yakiudon with shrimp and Laura ordered yakisoba with pork. As usual with okonomiyaki they put just about a whole head of cabbage in each of ours. It boiled down a lot, but there was still more food on our plates than we could possibly eat. It was good, too - the amount and flavour of the sauce was just right. This wasn't the best food we ate in Japan, but it was definitely a solid choice for a 'late night' meal.

Since the tiny okonomiyaki restaurant we ate at isn't shown on the map, the best thing to do would probably be to follow these directions to the Ryokan Kawaguchi, and follow the road it's located on a few storefronts north. If you're going there at night, it should be one of the only places open, so pretty much impossible to miss.


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Photo: A Sushi Feast (Japan 2009)

A Sushi Feast

Where: Tokyo, Japan
When: Evening, July 16th 2009

After a day trip, I returned to Tokyo to find an unbelievably delicious feast waiting at Mayumi's house. The sushi was much better than any I'd ever eaten before. There was sweet eel and egg sushi, chewy squid, flavorful salmon roe, and chewy, translucent squid alongside more familiar varieties. Every bite was amazing.

Food: Japanese Shave Ice

Snow Cones can be refreshing on a hot day, but I'm usually disappointed by hard, course ice that lets all the syrup slide straight to the bottom of the paper cone. In Japan, I found Kakigōri (かき氷), or shave ice - a fabulous dessert which made me reconsider the potential of the snow cone.

Photo: Melon shave ice with ice cream topping. (Kanazawa, Japan)

Served not only at carnivals and roadside stands but also in nice restaurants alongside ice cream and cakes, most of the shaved ice in Japan is similar in texture to American snow cones, if a bit softer and more like, well, fresh snow. But at least once, in Nikko, I found shave ice that seemed to literally have been shaved from a block - it was as smooth as ice cream, and had a delightful crispness.

The syrup that tops Kakigōri is not unlike that used on American snow cones, with familiar flavours like strawberry, lemon, and grape alongside melon, sweet plum and green tea. It is also common to pour condensed milk onto the ice, adding additional sweetness and richness. Many Japanese also like to add mild sweet bean paste, mochi rice cakes, or even ice cream to their shave ice.



Photo: Laura and I found this incredible Kakigōri in Nikko. The texture was totally different than that of an American snowcone, or even the other Kakigōri we had tasted. Served with strawberries in thick syrup and condensed milk, this was the most delicious dessert I have ever eaten in Japan.

Photo: Sunlight Through Tori (Japan 2009)

Sunlight Through Tori
Where: Fushimi Inari-Taisha, Kyoto, Japan
When: Afternoon, July 24th, 2009

We visited Fushimi Inari Shrine's long tunnels of famous tori as the afternoon sun hung low in the sky and shone across the covered paths. I love this picture because the black and sunlit vermilion remind me of the wings of monarch butterflies.

Photo: Rainy Day in Kamakura (Japan 2009)

Rainy Day in Kamakura
Where: Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, Kamakura, Japan
When: Morning, July 16th, 2009

It was raining - it was perfect.

Kyoto's Sanjusangendo

Even one of Sanjusangendo's statues of Kannon, the Buddhist goddess of mercy, is impressive. Each one stands life sized and is covered in gold leaf, has eleven faces, and twenty one sets of arms to symbolize the goddess's thousand. Can you picture one Kannon now? Good.

Now imagine 1001 of them, each one unique and hand carved from Japanese cypress, crowded into Japan's longest wooden building. A giant statue of the Thousand-armed Kannon sits in the middle of the hall, with 500 smaller (merely life sized) Kannons on each side. The youngest of the statues are almost 700 years old. The effect is mind blowing.



As if the Kannons weren't enough, the hall also contains the statues of 28 Guardian deities and of Fujin and Raijin, the terrifying Japanese Gods of Wind and Thunder.


The temple's exterior, painted a striking vermilion, is worth a look as well.











Don't hurry off once you've seen the statues, or you'll miss the fascinating story of the other side of the hall, which has been used for the Tōshiya archery tournament since the 1600's. A small but fascinating display lists the truly awe inspiring records of Japan's best archers.

In the Oyakazu competition, for example, archers shoot as many arrows as they can within a 24 hour period, hoping to 'clear' - shoot the length of the hall without hitting the roof, floor, or pillars - as many arrows as possible.

In 1686, Wasa Daihachiro shot 13,053 arrows in Oyakazu, clearing 8,133 of them. This averages out to nearly 6 arrows a minute for twenty four hours straight.

Sanjusangendo is in Kyoto, Japan.

Kamakura's Daibutsu

No visitor to Kamakura, or even to Tokyo, should miss this Great Buddha. Housed in the temple Kōtoku-in (高徳院), it is a popular destination and so easy to reach on foot or by bus. Most maps of Kamakura depict the Daibutsu visually, so you need not read Japanese to find your way.

Cast in 1252, this Buddha was originally housed in a wooden temple. Notably, it was built completely with donations - no government funding whatsoever. A 1498 tsunami destroyed this building, and crushed hundreds of Samurai who were taking refuge inside, but left the huge bronze statue standing. Some repairs were done in 1960, particularly to strengthen the statue's neck, but otherwise it has been standing out in the open, in it's present form, for more than five hundred years.

The statue is made primarily of copper, with a large component of lead and tin. Even today we are not one hundred percent sure how it was put together. Originally the statue was covered in brilliant, shining gilt, but over the course of 700 years it has worn almost completely off. Specialists have said that that statue's balance, intelligence, powerfulness, and dignity surpass that of the Todaiji Buddha in Nara.

Among those impressed by the statue's longevity and serene demeanor are Richard Cocks, who after visiting in 1616 said that the Daibutsu must be larger than the Colossus of Rhodes, and Rudyard Kipling, who, after seeing the Daibutsu in 1892, mentions it repeatedly in verses throughout his novel Kim.

O ye who treated the Narrow Way
By Tophet-flare to Judgment Day,
Be gentle when "the heathen" pray
To Buddha at Kamakura!

If you go around to the back, you can see that this Buddha in fact has windows! It is hollow inside and in fact for a time it was a den for gamblers and the homeless.

Now you can go inside for only 20¥ - about 20 cents.








Mentioned in: Japan's Daibutsu

Sources:
http://themargins.net/anth/19thc/kipling.html
http://www.kamakuratoday.com/e/sightseeing/daibutsu.html

Japan's Daibutsu

Japan is home to a number of fabulous Daibutsu, literally, 'Big Buddhas'. These statues vary widely in terms of size, material, personality, and style, from the 120 meter tall Ushiku Amida Buddha, shown on the right, to the Kamagaya Daibutsu, called "Japan's Smallest Big Buddha," which in my mind borders on the oxymoronic.


The first Daibutsu I'd like to showcase is the Ushiku Amida Buddha. At 110 meters tall, it is the third largest statue in the world, and more than three times the size of Brazil's Christ the Redeemer. Although I haven't seen it myself, it certainly looks impressive in this Googlesnatched photo.

However, the Ushiku Amida Buddha has two things going against it. Firstly, it's somewhat out of the way, compared to many of the Daibutsu which are in famous cultural centers. Secondly, and this one's a killer, the Ushiku Amida Buddha was completed in 1995, making it a whopping 14 years old.





Next up, The Great Buddha of Nara. This is the world's largest Buddha Vairocana. Work began on this bronze Daibutsu in 747, however, it has been repaired numerous times and had it's head replaced in 1692. It's nice and shiny, but it loses some of it's grandeur since it's crowded inside of a building.

Still, it's a must see if only for the sake of this building: Todaiji's Great Buddha Hall. It is, as it stands today, the largest wooden building in the world - and it's only 2/3 it's original size.









Last but not least, here's The Great Buddha of Kamakura. Although he can make no superlative claims, he is listed among Japan's official top 3 Daibutsu for good reason. Cast in 1252, this Daibutsu is more than 750 years old. He towers over the buildings around him while retaining a peaceful, otherworldly presence. Originally covered by a building like the Nara Buddha's Todaiji, his temple washed away in a tsunami long ago, leaving only the Daibutsu.

He is located in Kamakura, just a short train ride from Tokyo. This town features dozens of temples and makes a great day trip.

Still, the best thing about the Kamakura Buddha is that it's hollow in the middle, with windows on the back... and for 20¥, or about 22 cents, you can go inside.

Find out more in: Kamakura's Daibutsu

The Culture of Japanese Warning Signs

First, for comparative purposes, your good, old fashioned, everyday CAUTION sign:

I think most American's would agree that this is a fairly standard, unextraordinary CAUTION sign. A simple stick figure, a very abstract representation of a human being. It is genderless, faceless, emotionless. Devoid of all context, he trips and falls in a vacuum.

The signs I saw in Japan were noticeably different. They seemed to say, "You are not the only person in the world - take care not to forget it". From etiquette signs to warning signs, attention is drawn to the human situation, to the emotions involved. Emotional bystanders are depicted as almost as important, if not as important, as the central figure, who failed to heed the warning. This figure, too, takes on a persona: in the case of coming into some harm, he looks horrified, embarrassed. In the case of being a nuisance, he looks self absorbed or wicked.

I spent a lot of time on subways and trains, staring at advertisements, people watching (as carefully as I could), and trying to puzzle out the Japanese writing on various things. But my eyes kept coming back to these posters, to what they seemed to say about Japanese values.

Exhibit One:

I didn't take this shot myself. I actually took regrettably few shots of these signs, considering the awkward implications of using flash photography on a crowded train. Still, this serves as an excellent example.

The central figure here is a young woman who, being in a rush, decides to try and dash onto a train that is leaving. Well, this is discouraged for a number of reasons. It may delay the train, and it's not very safe for anyone involved. Predictably, the woman gets her foot stuck. As she screams, those in and outside of the train look horrified, anxious, embarrassed, and a wide range of other negative emotions.

The message: You are not the only person in the world. If you do something stupid, you will get hurt, you will cause a commotion, and you will draw attention to yourself. Are you sure you're in that big of a hurry?

I am not the world's most graceful person. I've lost track of the times that I've missed a step, or slipped, or otherwise embarrassed myself by not being careful enough. Most of these times, I turned bright red when it happened. The pain on the bottoms of my hands or even a skinned knee couldn't compare to my shame at having drawn attention to myself. When people came to ask me whether I was okay, I knew that they meant well, but I wanted to disappear.



Exhibit Two:

Sadly, this is the only one of the three pictures here that I took myself. It was a bad choice, too, as this is the one that popped up most often when I tried to do a Google Search for others I remembered! But it's a classic for a reason.

Uh oh, looks like someone didn't set their phone to manner mode. If the central characters phone was merely ringing, he might merely have been cast as the thoughtless, forgetful half victim. As it is, he is shamelessly, no, wickedly talking loudly into his phone on the crowded train! This goes beyond disregard for others as he seems to be taking pleasure in assaulting their ears. I for one wouldn't want to be sitting next to someone like that, especially with the red lightening bolts coming out of his shoulders!

The message: You are not the only person in the world. Only evil people who hate old women and pretty girls would talk on their phone in the subway. Are you evil?

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Exhibit Three:


I saw this sign many times while in Tokyo, but I did take this photograph of it off of Google.

Two women have been out shopping. They simply can't help themselves and start chatting and comparing purchases on the subway, with their things strewn out around them. Although they are very obviously bothering those around them, as evidenced by the huge white eyes of the bystanders, they evidently are living in their own little bubble and don't care.

The message: You are not the only person in the world. Don't take up more space than you're entitled to.

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Exhibit Four:

This exhibit, unfortunately, exists only in my memory and your imagination. If someone has an image of this sign, please let me know! I would love to have it.

The central figure in this image is riding a long distance train. She neglected to sit securely enough - perhaps she wasn't leaning back, perhaps she wasn't wearing a seatbelt. At any rate, when the train stops suddenly, she goes flying forwards.

This being about one week into our trip to Japan, I turned to my friend Laura and said,

"You see? The girl coming out of her seat looks frightened and anxious enough, but also look at the reactions of those around her."

The passengers in the other seats, who had been more careful, looked similar to the bystanders in Exhibit One.

"Even the seat is reacting," said Laura, and I realized it was true. Each seat had been personified with eyes, eyebrows, and a little mouth. They were all looking towards the hapless girl, and they, too, looked horrified, anxious, embarassed.

The message: You are not the only person in the world. Fasten your seatbelt... for everyone's sake.

Photo: The Smallest Corner (Japan 2009)

,The Smallest Corner
Where: Kamakura, Japan
When: Evening, July 16th, 2009

A small city, a small street, a small corner beside a shop. What do you find there? In the United States I would expect maybe beer bottles and cigarette butts, maybe a trash can, maybe, at best, a potted plant or a bit of a store window.

With about four square feet of ground space, there is a lovely cabinet displaying some art, some ubiquitous and frighteningly realistic Japanese plastic food models for the restaurant behind, and the smallest bit of landscaping I think I've ever seen. The ground cuts away swiftly into a tiny pond, and a tiny tree rises above.

I almost don't know which impresses me more: the scale, or the flawless blending of practical, artistic, and introduced natural beauty.

Photo: MakuDonarudo's (Japan 2009)

Makudonarudo's

Where: Kamakura, Japan
When: Morning, July 16th 2009

This was the first Japanese McDonald's (Pronounced Makudonarudo's) that I saw on the trip, and one of my first glimpses of culture blending. I liked the juxtaposition between the woman standing there in the more traditional print clothing, looking slightly bewildered, and the advertisements surrounding her. Take a closer look at these advertisements and you'll realize they're a bit confusing for an English speaker. The poster directly behind the woman identifies three different visible products as Chicken, Juicy Chicken, and Juicy Chicken. I'd like to note that all three names are quite different in Japanese. I also enjoy the wrapper around the 'Chicken' that just says 'Chicken'. Good stuff.

Photo: The Night Before (Japan 2009)

The Night Before

Where: Kansas City, Missouri
When: Midnight, July 14th 2009

I took this picture right before I fell asleep on the night before our trip to Japan. What you see in this pile is our grand experiment in packing light - everything, down to the shoes - that Laura and I will bring to Japan with us.

You might guess that we came home with a bit more!

A Single Photo From Japan

Laura, Myself, and our lovely hosts, Mitsuki and Mayumi. Thanks guys, we're having a wonderful time in your beautiful country! :)

Coming Up First: Japan

I will not always, especially as I go back into trips I took before this blog was made, write following my itineraries in chronological order, or present entire trips en bloc. However, in a little over a week I will be departing for a three week trip through Japan, and I thought it would be nice to open the blog with some tales from the Land of the Rising Sun.

I've always been interested in Japan. Video games, sushi, manga, samurai, and most recently the Japanese language have all held my fascination at one point or another in my life. Growing up, I lived across the street from a wonderful Japanese woman, and we used to get together to drink tea and discuss cultural differences. And finally, last year, I was fortunate enough to be assigned a Japanese roommate. Actually, my dorm housed no fewer than seven Japanese students. So, before the year was out, my friend Laura and I had resolved to travel to Japan, visit our friends, and see for ourselves the multifaceted wonders of this easternmost country.

As the trip approaches we have been putting the last finishing touches on our itenerary. We built our plans around visiting friends and utilising the unlimited rail travel afforded us by the Japan Rail Pass. Luckily, Laura and I had similar interests concerning Japan and what we would like to get out of the trip. Japan is a large country, and one could easily spend a month or more exploring a single one of it's many different aspects: the bustling, chaotic metropolises, the painfully beautiful countryside, the traditional culture of geisha and samurai, the modern one of technological wonders, manga, and kawaii (cute). And is it better to go go go, packing as much as you can into a few short weeks, or to relax and enjoy the decadence of hot springs and fantastic views of Mount Fuji?

Laura and I decided to try for a balance, and I think our itenerary reflects that quite well. On the other hand, our itenerary has certain weaknesses, mostly in the form of lengthy train rides and our budget limitations. We're staying on Japan's main island, Honshu, the entire time, but reaching almost to the furthest ends of it. I am intensely excited.

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We'll leave the U.S. on July 15th, and arrive in Tokyo on the 16th. We're staying with a friend there, my old roommate, for the next three days. On one day, Laura and I are taking a day trip to Kamakura (big Buddha, temples), and the rest of the time we're doing whatever our host wants to do - she has mentioned a sort of anime museum, and cute stores and restaurants. We'll also simply experience the size and speed of Tokyo, and have fun hanging out with our Japanese friends.

On the 19th, we'll leave Tokyo fairly early for northern Japan. We'll reach Shimokita Hanto, the peninsula at the northern tip of Honshu, where we'll lodge in the city of Mutsu for two nights. If we have any extra time at all, we'll head west to see Hotokegaura (crazy rock formations), or go to a hot spring in the barely settled nearby valleys. Our main point in going to Shimokita Hanto, however, will be to visit sulpherous, ash covered Osore-zan (Fear Mountain), the traditional Japanese gateway to hell and place of lost souls. We'll actually be there for the Itako Taisai festival, where blind mediums summon spirits of the dead.

Then, on the 21st, we'll leave early again for the longest train rides of our trip. We go back south, and through the mountains, to Takayama. Takayama has areas full of old, preserved wooden houses, an interesting history museum, and the ruins of a castle, and we'll experience the well known morning market as well. The next day we'll go to Kanazawa, home to one of Japan's three best gardens, as well as old samurai, ninja, and geisha houses.

From Kanazawa it's on to Kyoto, the cultural capital of Japan. This is where Memoirs of a Geisha was filmed, and it has an overwhelming number of temples, gardens, shrines, and all those other things tourists go crazy about. We'll spend all of the 23rd in Kyoto, take a day trip to Nara (tame deer, bamboo forests, world's biggest wooden buildings), and then spend another day in Kyoto.

On the 26th we'll head to Hiroshima and visit Peace Memorial Park and the Atomic Dome. This is by far the most sobering part of our trip. We'll move on to nearby Miyajima by ferry, wait out the tour groups, and then watch the sunset over the 'floating' tori and spend the night in a ryokan.

The 27th to the 30th mark the least certain part of our itenerary. We have a few friends in Osaka we will want to see, and we'll visit Himeji castle, but we may also explore the city of Kobe and some natural areas in the vicinity before we go there. On the 29th we're going down to Koyasan, a mountain covered in temples, and actually spending the night in one. We'll have to wake up at 6 for morning prayers, and eat shōjin ryōri, traditional Buddhist cuisine. On the 30th we'll either go back to Osaka, or perhaps go back towards Tokyo in the general direction of Mount Fuji. We won't climb it, but it's maybe nice to get a closer look.

On the 31st we head to Nikko for the most relaxing part of our trip. Nikko is home to a few beautiful and elaborate shrines, as well as the original 'see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil' monkeys. It's also very near a number of hot spring resorts and some fantastic nature, so we'll hike and relax and have some time to breathe.

On August 2nd we return to Tokyo for the final days of our trip. We're staying with another Japanese friend, who has asked us to save some energy for her! So we're experiencing Tokyo a bit more, especially whatever our friend has planned (she has mentioned a huge indoor water park), and also visiting Tokyo Disney Sea, before leaving on the 5th.