Day 160 - 6th of February

11:18pm　セミナーハウス
天気：雪
Today was absolutely wonderful. Not only did I get to see Beauty and the Beast, the Broadway musical, but I also got to wander around Kyoto in the snow… I got up at about 9, and readied myself for the musical; I decided to dress nice, but practical. Katie on the other hand, decided to get dressed up in her kimono, and when she came down at 10:30, she went straight to Okaasan to make sure she had everything okay. 15 minutes later, and we were ready to go. Katie told me Okaasan re-did the whole thing, every though she’d done it fine to begin with; still, a good learning experience. So yeah, I don’t know who was colder walking to Makino. Probably me, just because I’m not used to it; it was freezing. When we got to Kuzuha, it was snowing finely. Unfortunately, the ground was too warm still, so it melted as soon as it landed. We bought a snack at Tambabashi, and then continued to Kyoto station, getting there with ample time.

It was snowing heavier in Kyoto; it entered liberally into the open station. We made our way straight to the theatre, and after a few photos, and a look in the souvenir shop, from which I bought an Astro Boy pin, and Kimba the White Lion Badge, we made our way to our seats. We were a little off centre, but I couldn’t complain about the leg room; we were in the aisle. Since we had about 20 minutes before it started, we went out (separately) to have a look at the merchandise. Katie came back with a very shiny program, and I settled for another pin; so cool. And then… it started. What can I say; it was absolutely spectacular. The singing, the sets, the costumes… everything was so well done. The fact that it was all in Japanese didn’t complicate things at all. I know the story well enough, and I could understand much of what they were saying anyway. When they were singing it was a bit harder admittedly, but it did have an oddly restful effect; I didn’t have to focus on the words, just feel it I guess.

My first time seeing a professional stage show, and I was absolutely blown away. There were many new songs that didn’t feature in the movie, which made sense since it is a Broadway musical. I loved watching the set changes; they were seamless. And some of the effects; wow!!! Right at the beginning, when the old hag transforms into the beautiful witch after the Prince turns her away; that was incredible. She literally flew up into the air and this huge dress came cascading down from her as she cast the spell on the Prince; it looked like a firework was coming out of her wand. And the transformation scene at the end was perfect; just like the movie. Somehow (I’m guessin some sort of harness), he was drawn up in the air and spun around and somehow went from the Beast back to the Prince. Far out I don’t know how they made it look so good. So yeah, I thoroughly enjoyed myself, and came out feeling awestruck.

It was still snowing quite steadily, and I decided that I’d do some exploring around Kyoto. Katie opted out, which was completely understandable considering her attire. So I set off, making my way to the subway before coming to the conclusion that the bus would be better; I wanted to go to Kiyomizu. So, I went up to ground level again, and was soon on a bus. Getting off at the bus stop, I noticed there was something temple-looking nearby, called 大谷本廟 (Ootani Honbyou). Since the complex was closing shortly, I had a quick browse, and made my way out another gate, and soon found myself in a huge cemetery. It was eerily beautiful, walking among the silent gravestones with the snow falling softly and the sun setting over Kyoto tower, soon to be blocked by the impending grey clouds. Out of the cemetery, I found myself at the bottom of Kiyomizu-dera. I decided against going into the main section, since it was getting dark, and my batteries were dying; they did die while I was there.

Instead, I just walked around the skirting buildings, and then made my way back down the hill, going past all the shops. The snow was falling heavier, and I eventually took refuge in a Studio Ghibli shop I spied; didn’t buy anything though. I continued on, and found myself in familiar territory once more; I had stumbled upon Kodaiji. I willed my camera to work, and got a few more photos of the heavy snowfall. Unfortunately, the ground was still too warm; it did settle on the plants and rooves though. I continued down the hill, and bought some batteries at Lawsons, before taking a final few pictures of Yasaka shrine. I called it a day when it got too dark, and made my way back to Gion station. I caught the limited express to Makino, and after a quick stop at Life (for more groceries), I made my way home in the freezing cold; it was snowing a little. You can imagine how happy I was when I got back inside; and warm. I made dinner soon after returning (yakisoba), and caught up with Katie. We watched an interesting quiz show on tv for a while; it had us quite absorbed actually.

Finally I went back downstairs, to find Rachael and Sarah in the lounge watching Blazing Saddles. It was quite funny, and completely daft; it’s directed by Mel Brooks so what more do I need to say. That finished at around 10, by which point I was very tired. I had a shower then got settled in bed. Tomorrow’s going to be very interesting I think. We’re going to a fertility festival in Nara. And when I say we, I don’t know who exactly yet. I’ve convinced Hugo to come, and he’s asked his speaking partner to join also. I also persuaded Rachael to come. She didn’t want to at first because of the nature of the event; being British means she’s a prude, or so she tells me. But she finally came around, and supplied me with a very useful piece of paper, with all the travel information on it; her professor had supplied this to the class. So, armed with this information, we should be able to get there no problem. The festival starts at 2, so we’re going to leave at around 11. I hope it’s snowing…

Day 124 - 1st of January

12:59am　祇園
天気：雪
Happy New Year!!! We’re in the line (more like the mass), waiting to get into the Yasaka shrine; only one way to enter. Chionin was amazing. We were at the bell for New Years; we got to hear it ring about 30 times. Apart from the yelling of the security guards, beckoning us to advance, it was a truly magical event. At New Years, a lot of foreigners cheered, but I was against that; it’s not the right thing to do at a temple. We got to spend about half an hour at the bell, which was more than ample, before we were swept away by the tide of people. I gave the girls hugs and congratulations, and watched in awe as it snowed lightly; I was so happy that, although I didn’t get a white Christmas, I got a white New Years. We walked down into 円山公園 (Maruyama Koen – Maruyama Park), and the girls bought some 甘酒 (amazake – sweet sake). I got a sip from Katie’s cup; it was… interesting. Nadezhda brought mocha, and we shared that, and my coconut sable. We thought we could get into the shrine through the park, but we ended up having to walk all the way around and back onto Gion, the main street…

1:26am　祇園
Still waiting…

2:26am　祇園
Almost there… We’ve been occupying ourselves with songs, riddles, and jokes. It’s snowing pretty heavily now…

3:34am　普通
We’ve just gotten on the local train back to Makino. Yasaka shrine was really beautiful, so I guess it was worth the wait; wow, I can say I’ve done hatsumode!!! I bought a burger which looked really nice, and it was huge, but it was also stone cold. I think the girls made a better choice getting takoyaki; oh well. We gave our offerings, made our New Years wishes, and then made our way out, and back around to the station. Jo’s going to go shrine hopping until 4pm, when she can check-in to her hostel in Osaka. I was game to join her at first, but now I just want sleep…

11:41pm　
After getting back from Kyoto, I found Ryan to be awake still, but managed to get to sleep just fine. I didn’t wake up again until 2:30. I made pancakes, something I haven’t done in a while, and watched some traditional performances on TV. At one point I was watching a traditional instrument ensemble consisting of three koto players and a shamisen player. They were all elderly women, dressed in the formal 黒留袖 (kurotomesode) kimono; it was a very enchanting performance. After that I talked with Carly for a while before watching Labyrinth with Alex, India and Nadezhda; it was so funny watching that movie again. We took a break, so I could go make some dinner (shepherd’s pie), before sitting down for Watchmen; we were joined by Jeremy. I can’t say it was one of the better movies I’ve ever seen, but it was certainly different. And that was my New Years. I was really glad I got to participate in hatsumode; certainly a unique-to-Japan experience. Walking back from Makino station this morning, I realised there was a solar eclipse. I looked it up online to find that it was only a partial lunar eclipse but still very rare. That and the fact that it coincided with a blue moon last night makes 2010 seem a very auspicious year to me; I certainly welcome it…

Day 123 - 31st of December

10:05pm　牧野駅
天気：寒い、風が吹いて
We’re in Makino station in the waiting room…

10:16pm　特急
I’m with Katie, Jo, and Nadezhda and now we’re on a limited express to Gion Shijo; switched over at Kuzuha. We’re going to the Chionin temple first, and then Yasaka shrine. Today was lazy… I got up at about 10:30, had breakfast and caught up with Ash and Katie; they had just arrived back from Tokyo via night bus. I was able to see the pictures of their trip on Ash’s camera; she then explained to me she wouldn’t be coming tonight because she felt under the weather. I made a quick trip to Sanko to pick up some meat and milk; since basically everything is closed on New Years. I got back and watched Ghostbusters on TV with Jo, Nadezhda, and Alex, and planned our night. I had a late lunch (very late) at about 4, and watched a bit of Lost with Vince on his laptop. I talked with my family on Skype for a while, before chatting with Alex and Carly.

At about 8, I went and had dinner (leftover yakisoba), and talked with Katie and Ash while watching a New Years singing competition; I saw Angela Aki in the ensemble performance! Susan Boyle was also on as a guest singer, and sung I Dreamed a Dream; how predictable. Since Jo was a guest, and she wanted to watch the program, she set up a chair in the corridor just outside the dining room door, and got me to prepare her cup noodles; it was rather funny. She ended up going back down to the lounge to eat however, and it was then I discovered there wasn’t much time left before we had to leave. So I rushed to get ready, and we made it out just past 9:30. The walk to Makino was freezing, and it was windy. Hopefully we’ll be more sheltered in Kyoto…

Day 122 - 30th of December

10:14pm　セミナーハウス
天気：晴れ
Well today was a big lot of not much. Mind you, I only experienced half of it in waking hours; didn't get up till 12:40. I really can't do this anymore; I'm definitely going to get up at a regular time tomorrow. So what did I do today... well, basically as soon as I got up, I looked at the time, and though "I'm late for talking with family," so I quickly got Skype set up in the lounge; Ryan was still asleep. Talked with Mum and Ben mostly; Dad had to head out unfortunately. After an hour I had to eat, so I said goodbye and made lunch; avocado and rice on toast. It was really nice to get a really good avocado; I haven't had much luck with them for a while now. Anyway, ate and watched the ice skating; it was the champions' last performances, really cool. After that, spent the rest of the afternoon, uploading photos to deviant art, and reading Misfile (the webcomic).

Today, Jo came back from her trip to Hokkaido, but I didn't really get a chance to catch up with her because she was practically going back out the door; she's gone to Kyoto tonight, and will be there for New Years. We got each others contact details, so hopefully we can meet up tomorrow night sometime. I have a bit of an idea of what I want to do... For New Years Eve, there's a ritual called the 除夜の鐘 (joya no kane), involving the temple bell being rung 108 times, to purge humanity of the 108 Buddhist sins. I'd like to go the the 知恩院 (Chionin temple), which has the largest bell in Japan. Then, on New Years day, I want to go to Yasaka shrine for the 初詣 (hatsumode - first shrine visit of the year). It's only a short walk from Choinin. The biggest problem will be the fact that I'll be stranded there for the night, which I'm sure won't be that bad; there will be so much to do. So actually, the biggest problem will be having the energy to do it all.

Anyway, I saw Jo just before making dinner; yakisoba. I turned out really, really tasty tonight, and I don't know why. It wasn't as salty as it usually is. I guess I didn't put in as much soy sauce as I usually do, but it really didn't seem that way. Had some mandarin, came back down, and been talking with Alex. I went up a bit later and had some chocolate (thanks Nanny) and Milo; haven't done that in a long while. I'm really tired now (thanks to not doing anything today). I feel pretty bad about that. Well, I'm going to get up early tomorrow, make pancakes for breakfast, do my laundry, and maybe do some cleaning. Then get ready for Kyoto in the evening. Shower, then sleep...

Day 35 - 3rd of October

11:45pm　セミナーハウス

天気：晴れ

Today was really great! I got up at about 9:30, had breakfast, washed my clothes, and cleaned the room. I hand washed my yukata and overalls. The overalls were great; didn't run at all. The yukata on the other hand, bled like mad, so I think I'm going to have to continue to hand wash it separately for a little while. I found out that tonight was one of three nights of the 月見祭 (tsukimi matsuri - moon-viewing festival) and temples and shrines in Kyoto would be holding events. A group of people were also going to Mount Hiei. Diego decided to join, but I declined as I'll be going there on a field trip with the history class in November. Instead I went out with Amber and met up with her speaking partner at the uni.

We walked to Midori, and Amber got her electronic dictionary, while I played on the pianos there, xD. We then went into "Raifu" (Life), the grocery store, and I got some supplies. We then walked over to McDonalds for lunch. I know, I know, it's no good, but... it won't kill me every now and then. Then we walked all the way back to the dorms, and I took a nap. I talked to Ash about where she was going for tsukimi, and she suggested we go to the 八坂神社 (Yasaka shrine), as it was the cheapest and easiest to get to; can't argue with that. So we finally got going at 10 past five. It was Ash, and Jeremy (from America), and I. Ash had donned her yukata, as did a few other girls, who were going with separate groups to other temples.

We walked to Makino station, to save the 220円 bus fare to Hirakata station. I took about 20 mins. Ash was having a little bit of trouble in her 下駄 (geta - traditional Japanese scandals), which was fair enough; they look pretty awkward. We switched to the limited-express at Tambabashi and then got off at Gion-shijo. At this point I realised which shrine we were going to, as I'd been there before on my previous trip, and indeed, gone past it several times since being here. It was dark by this time, about 6:30. We walked the block, and got there. It was quieter than we had expected but soon after arriving, the ceremony began. I got pretty much all of it on video. It involved a lot of bowing, and chanting, in celebration of the harvest moon. That lasted for about an hour, and then came the music.

First, a traditional orchestra played, accompanied two dancers. Then, a koto ensemble played two pieces. As my video camera's batteries died, I had to use my camera to record which was a bit of a pain, as I can only take 3 minute blocks. I'm really glad that I recorded it though, because I'll be able to use it in my research project. Finally the Taiko drummers came out; they looked like they were having so much fun. It was very energised, and the choreography was really cool. This wrapped up the festival, and then we all received a stalk of芒 (susuki - Japanese pampas grass) from the priests. It's resting at my desk in my room right now! Ash and I bought an omamori for victory, and then we headed back to the train station. On the way we bought 団子 (dango - Japanese dumpling). This particular type was held by a skewer. It's related to mochi, and soooo yummy. I'm going to miss mochi sooo much when I get back to Australia!

Finally got back here at about 10:30. I had a bowl of rice with soy sauce. I was really hungry today for some reason; I still am, lolz. Diego got back soon after. He said he had a really good time going to Mount Hiei, and showed me some pics. After that, the group was supposed to go to Daikakuji temple to see the festival there. Unfortunately, due to indecisiveness, they wasted an hour figuring out where to go. Deigo, Jessica, and Carly decided to split from the main group and try for daikakuji anyway, but didn't make it in time. What a bummer. I'm really glad I went tonight, and with the right group of people! Tomorrow, is study...