Japan - Day 1

Friday, May 13, 2005 :::
 
Reasonably full day to get things started. After coffee in the apartment, Chris and I headed down the block to the SuperSento, or public baths. As a real American, I am off course horrified at the thought of public nudity. Thankfully, the Japanese have no such qualms. For a mere 550 yen, we got the pleasure of soaking in the fantastic hot baths for the better part an hour. Especially nice was the outdoor tubs, which gave us the opportunity to sit out in the sun after soaking like a boiled lobster. Very nice.

After a quick breakfast, it was out to the temples. A bus ride took us out to Kiyomizu temple. An offshoot of this temple is the Jishu Shrine, better known as the Love Shrine. 3 years ago, we went here and paid our respects to the spirits, and we were both richly rewarded. It seemed only fair to come back for a thank you, and to ask for perhaps a little more assistence. I purchased a charm that supposedly ensures a long and enjoyable marriage. I figure I'll take any luck I can get. Cold soba noodles for lunch, and a sip of water from the wisdom springs, and we were off to our next temple. We were delayed by an overwhelming craving for green tea ice cream. Mmmm....

Kodiji was a very peaceful, relaxing place, if somewhat under construction. We spent a good long time sitting by the rock garden and meditating or chilling out, or whatever it was we were doing. Next door was the Ryonzen Kwan-on, or War Memorial Shrine. Huge buddha, and a Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. In the tomb was a collention of urns from every major military semetary in the world, including Arlington, Virginia.

Dinner was Italian in the Shinjo neighborhood, topped off by my favorite drink of all time - the Green Tea Frapachino. Just as good as I remembered it. With jet lag finally settling in, we stopped by the Rocking Ing Bar for some sake, fried octopus and Led Zeppelin on the stero. We've been sort of chilling out at the apartment, and tomorrow looks to be an easy day. Sunday is going to be a tour of the Sapporo brewery and maybe hanging around Osaka.

Later, Dear Faithful Reader.

::: posted by Chris at 10:36 AM

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