Day 223 - 10th of April

8:37am　普通

天気：晴れ

I’m on the local train to Amagasaki, to change over for 姫路 (Himeji – lit. “Princess Road”); I’m with Rachel, Rachael and Sarah. I got up at 6:30 this morning, showered and had porridge for breakfast; and a very hasty breakfast that was. The four of us left for the Hirakata station at 7 by bus, and then took the train to Kyobashi. There, we went to the JR ticket office and picked up an all day rail pass to Himeji, which was really convenient and saved a bit of money too. We’re at Amagasaki now…

8:58am　新快速

Now we’re on the “special rapid” (never been on one of these before) to Himeji; just got to sit down. It’s a beautiful sunny, warm day today, and it may actually end up being too hot; especially since the line to get into the castle is going to be very long. Oh well, it’s definitely going to be worth it. I’m going to do a bit of study now; well, try too…

5:00pm　新快速

We’re back on the special express now, home bound! My feet are very sore, but it was definitely worth it; I knew it would be. The only problem is I’m too tired to write about it now; I’m going to doze for a bit…

10:51pm　セミナーハウス

Feeling a bit better now that I’ve had a nice hot shower and I’m lying down. Today was… gosh I can’t even describe it, but I know I have to. I just have to say right now that I’m so, so glad that I decided to go; it really was an amazing experience…We arrived in Himeji at about 10, and after I picked up the second volume of Reborn from a book store in the station, we made our way through an underground shopping arcade, and up onto the main street. Already, we could see the castle, standing proudly at the end of the busy main street; I already had both cameras out. Walking there, we past many interesting statues, an information centre with a cool model of the castle, and also got some food from the convenience store to eat when we got into the grounds, since there aren’t any food stalls within; I just got some onigiri, anpan, and a bottle of orange juice. Getting closer, we noticed the remains of the outer walls of the original castle town, now not much more than grassy mounds topped with ancient trees, with stone skirting their bases. Soon enough, we had reached the end of the street, the castle looking increasing grand; a huge moat, and stone walls surrounding the bailey; the “White Heron” proudly standing atop a cloud of pinks and greens ~ it is sometimes referred to as 白鷺城 (shirasakijo – “White Heron Castle”) because of it brilliant white exterior.

We crossed the white arching bridge, and entered the gate to the bailey, and were soon surrounded by 100s of sakura trees. We really had come at the perfect time! Just about all of them were in full bloom, or just past, which meant that we not only got to appreciate them at the height of their glory but also, when the wind blew, the petals would be caught in a flurry, before landing silently on the ground; it was truly a magical sight. And believe me when I say, I got my cherry blossom fill today; there must have been at least a thousand trees on the grounds if not more. Since it was still relatively early in the day, we decided to tour the castle first, before eating lunch. Already, a patchwork of blue tarps skirted the sakura, families and business colleagues enjoying their meals and the shade; it was actually getting quite hot. Waiting in the line-up to purchase tickets proved to be relatively short. Upon entry, Rachel bumped into one of her classmates, and they chatted for a bit with we planned our next move. After passing though another gate, we decided to check out the gardens first, before entering the main keep; cherry blossom heaven. I noticed that the palace was nearby (like the one at Nijo castle, this one was also called Nishi no Maru), and asked if the girls wanted to walk through it. It was free to go in, but when we got to the entrance, we had to take off our shoes and carry them with us in plastic bags; this was understandable, but odd. The interior was all wooden, and at some points very low or narrow; the stairs, which were almost ladders, were especially scary. “Stone throwing holes” were one of the cool features of the castle, which was a long curving structure of interconnecting rooms, almost all of them offering a view of the main keep.

Exiting at the other end, we put our shoes back on, disposed the plastic bags in the designated bins, and then made our way back through the garden; I found some pin dispensers on the way, so now I have two more. Even though they were doing a lot of construction work already, for the most part it didn’t obstruct the beautiful scenery. There was a giant crane set up next to the main keep, but even then you could easily take photos that didn’t include it; they had positioned it at an ideal angle and distance away. Unlike the line to the admission booths, the line to get into the main keep for far from short; our “siege” didn’t seem very dramatic at such a sluggish pace. When we finally found the end of the line, we were in a small courtyard with a well that someone had apparently been thrown into for being “naughty". By this point, it was very hot in the sun, and my bag was feeling heavy, but I endured; we were soon in the shade of the trees and the wall. In the same way that I couldn’t get much study done on the train this morning (because I was too distracted by the scenery), I didn’t have much luck reading Reborn. Even going at that pace, there was so much to see so in the end, while it took about an hour to get into the keep, it was far from boring; incidentally, I noticed Natalie in the exiting lane about halfway up.

I would have been very difficult for besiegers to even get to the main keep; the castle is such an intricate complex of paths and walls. The walls themselves have holes of alternating shapes in them, and each one could potentially have a rifleman on the other side, poised to fire. When we did finally get to the entrance, we went through the same procedure as the palace. Carrying my bagged shoes in one hand and my video camera in the other proved to be a little unruly especially when climbing the stairs. The central tower was six storeys high, and there were a few historical artefacts displayed throughout, including samurai armour, scrolls and rifles and spears; it had a very different feel to the museum-like set ups of Nagoya and Osaka castles. It was lit only by natural light, which meant that it was actually quite dark in many places. Like the palace, it was relatively unfurnished. It was quite crowded and near the beginning, Rachael and I got separated from Rachel and Sarah. We ended up getting to the top first, because the other two got stuck in the crowd at the bottom of the stairs on one of the lower floors, in order to limit the number of people in the top. At the top, we took in the amazing view of the grounds and the city beyond; it was very impressive. Interestingly there was a shrine, 刑部 (Osakabe), on the top floor, which was actually originally situated on the hill that they built the castle. They ended up moving the shrine during construction, and then relocating in inside the tower when they were finished; I think that’s really cool.

Going up the stairs was a bit worrying, but coming down was even worse. Like the palace too, these stairs were precariously steep, and I had to bend over to get under the crossbeam near the top. Going back down though, I had to basically climb under it, which was no easy task, especially when the stairs were slippery and I was in socks; Rachel, tall like me, had a similar struggle. We met up again on the 4^th floor, and then made our way back down, past more interesting artefacts; including a model of the original castle town. Again exiting from a different side, we made our way back out of the main keep, our descent much faster than our climb. Feeling very hungry, after a few more photos we exited out into a park and sat down on a rock for lunch, watching playful pigeons. After a bit of a rest, we continued exploring the grounds coming across 姫路神社 (Himeji Shrine), which was absolutely beautiful; I could understand why I would be a popular location for weddings. We walked through more gardens, and climbed to the top of the wall surrounded by the moat, finding a fiery ginger cat sleeping in the top of a water feature; it wasn’t running. We were now on the east side of the castle, were the construction work was much more obvious. It had gotten cloudy, and subsequently cooled down, so walking back around to the front of the complex was much more comfortable. To the left of us was another park filled with people enjoying the sakura, and to the right, a zoo. Once we got to the south east corner, we took our last few photos of the castle, with two shachi (tiger-headed fish) in the foreground. It was about 3:30 by this point, so we decided to call it a day, and headed back towards the train station; the castle would be closing at 4 anyway. On the way back, we past a market, and went over to a convenience store so Rachel could pick up some food; she hadn’t eaten yet.

Finally, we went to a ダイソー (Daiso), a100 yen store. It was basically three floors of cheap goods, most of them 105円; cause of the tax. Sarah was looking for gyoza press (which she found), and ended up buying a whole heap of other things; reminded me of Mum a discount shop. I found a big teddy bear to cuddle and some children’s books, one of which was kobutorijisan (the story we read in Reading and writing); I didn’t end up buying anything though. Before leaving for the station, both Rachael and I bought bread from the grocery store on the first floor. We made our way back to station, and were soon riding the special rapid back to Amagasaki. I was so sleepy and dozed off a couple of times. Rachel on the other hand, was too intent on seeing the sea to sleep; understandable since she lives in the middle of America. Once we got to Amagasaki, we hoped platforms and took the limited express back to Kyobashi; not that it made much difference since it stops just as frequently as the local. I read a little bit more of Reborn and now I’ve only got about 10 pages left; glad I bought the second volume today. Once we got to Kyobashi we went over to the Keihan side and Rachael suggested that we try to use the all-day passes that we got today on the Keihan line. So, I went up to ask one of the station attendants if we could use the ticket, and he said no. But he directed us around to an office, and said we could exchange the all-day JR ticket for an all-day Keihan ticket; very cool. So we relinquished our JR tickets, which were stamped twice, and then we received the Keihan tickets; so we ended up saving 320円.

After getting back to Hirakatashi, Rachael, Sarah, and I took the bus home, while Rachel decided to walk; she does like to walk. Getting back, I dumped my stuff in my room (Hugo-less) and then went up to make dinner. Ash was there, and I talked with her about her day; she had gone to Shinsaibashi and bought some magazines and a costume of one of her favourite anime characters. Sarah soon joined us, but just as soon left; I hadn’t even started eating dinner. I mixed the leftovers from last night with the rest of my pasta, and it turned out very nicely. It was very quiet in the kitchen (everyone was out), and apart from Ash and I, there were only about 4 other people in there, including Sam. He had wanted to come today, but hadn’t woken up; I wonder if he’ll go tomorrow with Jazz? Katie was next to join us, and she recalled her wonderful day in Kyoto, seeing the Philosopher’s Path and 平安神宮 (Heian Shrine, which I still want to go to), all transformed by the sakura. I think that seeing Himeji castle during sakura season tramps almost everything else, so I’m extremely glad I went; can’t say that enough. Katie soon left, and Rachel replaced her and we continued to chat for a while going our separate ways. To end this post on a rather dramatic note, I found out something from Ash tonight that I couldn’t believe; this was later confirmed in an email from the CIE. One of the students from Kansai Gaidai was arrested for the possession of marijuana!!! Who in their right mind would be stupid enough to think they could get away with something like that, especially in a country like Japan that has zero tolerance of drugs; obviously someone who isn’t in their right mind. Ash and I were speculating who it might be, but it might be someone we don’t even know; so many questions left unanswered. Needless to say, there will be severe repercussions for whoever did it, including detention without bail for up to six months, and deportation from Japan for up to 10 years. Absolutely crazy…

Day 204 - 22nd of March

6:44am　マック

天気：晴れ

I’m sitting in the Makkas in Makino. We’ve been for about 40 minutes, and enjoyed a small breakfast. Karaoke was the best!!! We staying until just after 5, when they finally realised we were still in our room; we were literally the last people there. Getting out, the funniest thing ever happened… we decided to do purikura, and the photos turned our really well. But, as we were embellishing them, the power went out; thinking that everyone was gone, they shut everything down! They soon realised we were still in the booth, and a bit shocked, promptly turned the power back on. We were really worried that the photos would be lost, but after everything loaded back up they were there. We beautified them as quickly as possible before printing them off, and left feeling pretty bad; we had a good laugh about it soon after. Anyway, we’ll be making our way back to the seminar house shortly…

8:34am　枚方市駅

Now we’re in the waiting room at Hirakatashi; going to take the train back to Kyoto. Basically as soon as we got out of Makkas, I decided I would crash at the hotel tonight, so we could spend some more time in Kyoto. So we walked back along the river, enjoying the beautiful cool morning, and got to the Seminar house. Unfortunately, despite my efforts, Alex wasn’t allowed into the Seminar House since it was before visiting hours. So I had to make her wait outside while I quickly got changed and packed a few toiletries for tonight; trying very hard not to disturb Hugo. I emerged feeling a lot better; ready to face the day. We walked over to the uni, so I could show Alex, and I think she was really impressed; we didn’t go in since we just wanted to get back to Kyoto. Catching the bus across the road from the uni, we soon arrived at the station; getting on the train now…

10:44am　ホテル

I just had a bit of a rest in the hotel room (couldn’t sleep). Alex crashed on the bed as soon as we got here, and now we’re waiting for Sandy and Nan to get back from breakfast. Apparently we’ll be going to the imperial palace today, which should be great; ever better because I haven’t been before.

12:09pm　ホテル

Suprisingly, although not so surprisingly, I’m still in the hotel room, waiting. Out of boredom, I made a quick trip around the block and through a shopping centre, before coming back just in time; Nan and Sandy had just gotten in the door, with more clothes. Now they’ve gone back down to reception, because Sandy lost the key. So yeah, hopefully we leave soon, before the whole day has gone…

1:53pm　地下鉄

In the subway; finally!!! We’re making our way to the imperial palace, getting off at 丸太町 (Marutamachi)…

3:42pm　京都

I’m sitting on the pavement outside of Makkas. Alex and Nan are getting something to eat; I’m not too keen on eating Makkas again today. The palace grounds were amazing, and although we couldn’t enter the main complex (it’s only open on special occasions), the trip was definitely worth it. There were so many massive, old trees, including a huge, weeping cheery blossom in almost full bloom; it was really incredible. After walking a fair way down, we stopped at a small souvenir shop, and Nan and Sandy picked up a few things. After getting a photo of a beautiful young girl dressed in kimono, we exited through a side gate and made our way back down along the main street, looking for somewhere to eat. On the way, we came across the 護王神社 (Goo shrine), dedicated to the 猪 (Inoshishi – boar). Also, it was apparently a shrine for feet protection; something I’ll definitely need after all this walking around. We’re on our way back to the station now…

5:17pm　京都

On the move; walking back to the hotel… They all decided to get Makkas in the end, and I just settled for a few onigiri; I’m really starting to like them. However, it can be a bit of a gamble when it comes to the filling, since I can’t always read it; I got a few weird flavours today. After getting to the entrance of the subway, the girls decided to make their way back to the hotel. I on the other hand, wanted to explore some more, so we separated and I continued down the street. After a bit of videotaping, I stumbled upon the Kyoto International Manga Museum; what luck. I decided I had to check it out, and promptly made my way in. Because of copyright and all that jazz, no photography was allowed, so I’ll try my best to explain what it was like. Basically, it was a huge three storey building packed with manga, which people could look at, and even read at their leisure; so many people were doing just that. They would be sitting at tables, in the stairwell, on the floor, or just standing; there was even an outside area of artificial grass, for people to read and play on. I had a sneaking suspicion that the building was a converted school building, due to the layout and architecture…

5:30pm　京都

I’ve just made it to the intersection in front of Nijo castle; turned left and now heading back towards the station… So yeah, I wandered the corridors, and marvelled at the sheer amount of books. On the second floor, I found chairs set up for something, and decided to sit down. It turned out to be a 紙芝居 (kamishibai – lit. “paper drama”) performance. Basically, it’s a mode of storytelling that uses illustrated boards inserted into the stage. These are withdrawn one by one as a story is being told; it actually originated in the 12^th century in Buddhist temples so the monks could convey stories with moral lessons to a mostly illiterate audience. The storyteller, noticing me, asked if I wanted him to speak in English, and I said no Japanese would be fine. I was really happy that I could understand a lot of what he was saying, and he was speaking really fast; he was a very energetic speaker too, using lots of vocal techniques and hand gestures. He started off with a quiz that involved word play to get the kids (and the adults) involved; while I could understand what he was asking, I couldn’t comprehend the contextual meaning behind it. When they answered correctly, the kids would receive tickets that they could exchange for gifts after the show. After the quiz, he went on to tell a few stories, one about two siblings using their mums “mixer” i.e. blender, to create bubbles and getting in a lot of trouble.

The other stories and illustrations had been devised by primary school children, and admittedly they were very clever and funny. He finished off with a bunch of “countdown sequence” boards (best way to describe it), getting the audience to count down from 5 to 0, showing a consequential sequence of events. My favourite was a piece of toilet paper that ended up pooping out a toilet roll. Others included, a beer bottle that when shook up exploded with bottle caps, and a boy blowing up a huge bubble, with him eventually exploding not the bubble; they were all very dramatic and unexpected. Very satisfied I continued exploring, and confirmed my suspicion, finding a memorial room for the primary school it once was. It made a lot of sense, the floor boards were squeaky, there was a central stairwell, and the doors were very typical of primary schools. After coming out of a room that showed the timeline of manga (with books from every decade of the 20^th century), I had a little look around the gift shop, and not finding anything I liked in particular, collected my bag from the coin locker (well it was free, so I guess you would just call it a locker), and exited feeling very happy. I haven’t really seen anything else of interest yet. Oh well, it’s getting dark and cloudy, so I need to get back anyway…

6:34pm　ホテル

Finally back at the hotel; my feet are killing me!!! I ended up walking past the 西本願寺 (Nishihonganji – the Western equivalent to Higashihonganji) before finally getting to the station. I walked down into the subway, emerging just out the front of the hotel, and dragged myself up to the 6^th floor, to Alex’s and my room, which ended up being right next to Nan’s and Sandy’s. I’m not hungry at all now, but I guess we’ll go out for dinner soon…

Day 140 - 17th of January

10:38pm　セミナーハウス
天気：晴れ、曇り
Today was very active, and really awesome… I got up at 9, and readied myself for today’s outing with Nadezhda. We were out of the seminar house by about 10:30, making our way to Makino. It was, at that point, a beautiful, warm day, so much so, that I decided to wear just a jumper (my new red one); this proved to be a bad move later on. Anyway, we went from Makino to Kuzuha, switched to a rapid express, then onto 三条 (Sanjou). From sanjou, we took the 地下鉄東西線 (chikatetsu touzaisen – Subway “east to west line”), three stops across to 二条城前 (Nijoujoumae). The peculiar thing about this subway was that glass walled off the track from the track, and there were automatic doors in front of the train doors. Nadezhda and I wondered why the walls were needed; were they just for decoration. Indeed, the colour of the automatic doors changed at every station. Also the warning signal in the subway had to be the best I’ve heard yet; it’s a pretty little koto motif.

We soon arrived at Nijoujoumae, and made our way up and out into the fresh air, with the castle wall beckoning us from across the street. We eagerly made our way over, purchased tickets, and took a few pictures out front, before entering the grounds. We firstly came across a gate leading into the 二の丸御殿 (ninomaru goten – Ninomaru Palace) and the detail, though faded, was spectacular. Entering the palace, we had to take our shoes off and don slippers, and no photography was allowed inside. It’s just one of those places you have to actually go into to see, and I really appreciate that. I was by no means disappointed, and while I have no photos to show, I will try to describe it as best as I can. The first thing I noticed was the design on the ceiling. It was made up of squares, and within each square, a detailed motif; many flowery designs. The palace is made up of five connected buildings, and each building had a different design on its ceiling.

The next thing I noticed was a strange squeaking beneath my feet. We were soon to find out that the floors were deliberately designed to produce a noise. This method of construction, 鴬張り (uguisubari – “nightingale flooring”), was used in the wooden corridors to protect the occupants from sneak attacks and assassins; clever thinking. Although I haven’t heard a nightingale call, I definitely hear the likeness to a bird chirp; so cool. And finally, I notice the paintings that cover the walls of all 33 rooms; over 800 tatami mats. Oh my gosh, it was incredible. Each room had a different theme, here pine trees and mountains, there fans and chrysanthemums. Tigers, peacocks, pheasants, horses, cherry blossoms, rivers, ducks, cranes… all backed by gold leaf. It was so beautiful; the outside world was brought inside. The wall paintings are attributed to artists of the 狩野派 (kanouha – Kano School), one of the most famous schools of Japanese painting. Another cool feature was a set of red tasselled doors in some rooms where the shogun’s bodyguards could come out and protect him.

And this was all done over 400 hundred years ago. Incredibly, all of the original paintings (over 3000) survived, and while most in the palace were reproductions, we were assured that they were as close to the originals as possible; using traditional methods, and natural pigments. After exiting, we continued through a beautiful garden, and over the inner moat, to the remains of the 本丸御殿 (honmaru goten – Hommaru Palace). Unfortunately, the interior is only open to the public on special occasions. We made our way through more gardens to the 天守閣 (tenshukaku – keep), well… where it stood at least; it was struck by lightning and burnt to the ground in 1750. So all that’s left now are the stone foundations; provided a good view of the grounds though. We finally circled out and back around to the front, through some many gardens, which will look so impressive, come spring.

We went to the gift shop, and I bought a pin of the palace, then got two more for a machine; couldn’t resist. Further along was a memorial exhibition hall, celebrating the 400th anniversary of the palace (2003). Inside, we got to see the original wall paintings of the 四の間 (yon no ma – 4th Grand Chamber), in the Ninomaru palace. This room featured hawks and pines, and was the where officers were received, and the weapons kept; perfect theme. Being able to see the walls up close, albeit behind glass, was great. The exhibition hall was also set up with the same dimensions as the original room, so we could really get a feel for what it was actually like. More than satisfied, we left the castle, grey clouds not dampening our spirits one bit. Although it wasn’t exactly what I had expected (there was no “castle”), I still found it an incredible experience.

Now very hungry (it was almost 2), we went in search of somewhere to eat, and soon found it down the road; ramen shop. Gosh I’m becoming such a fan of ramen; I love it more and more every time I eat it. I also drank the green tea there. It was cold and so dilute I could hardly taste the tea; quite refreshing. Nadezhda and I were still rearing to explore Kyoto, so after letting our meals go down, we exited and turned left, following the main road, having no destination. We got to a big intersection, and Nadezhda spotted Kyoto tower to the right. Since neither of us had been to the top before, we decided to go for it. But first, since I recognised the area, I took Nadezhda to the 六角堂 (rokkakudou – Hexagonal hall). It was great going back there again; the swans were particularly active today. After that, we continued walking towards the tower, down the main road, before spotting another temple; the 平等時因幡薬師 (Byoudouji Inabayakushi). It was absolutely dead (there was much construction work also), and we felt compelled to whisper; such an amazing atmosphere.

Shortly after, we come across another wondrous complex; the 東本願寺 (higashi honganji – “East temple of the original vow”). Such a grand name certainly fit the enormity of the buildings. The gate itself was impressive enough, but the temple within rivalled that of the todaiji in Nara. The building next to it, the Amida hall, is currently decked out scaffolding, but will be opening in 2011; another thing to come back and see). The complex is 99,000m2 and is one of the dominant sub sects in Shin Buddhism. The other, as we were soon to find out, is the 西本願寺 (nishi honganji – “West temple of the original vow”). We didn’t look around too much as it was getting late, and very cold. It was very close to the tower, so we were soon inside, and shot up the elevator to the top observation deck of the 131m tall building; 100m at observation deck.

The views of Kyoto were spectacular. We had come at a good time, when the sun was setting, and the mountains turned to gold. Surprisingly, the binoculars were free, and we spied a number of sites, including Kiyomizu temple, Toji Pagoda, and the Momoyama castle. One problem with the binoculars, for me at least, was that they were too short, so I had to basically squat to see through them. Supposedly, we were able to see Osaka castle from the top too, but we couldn’t find it. We stayed up there till dark, watching the colours of the sky slowly change, and the lights of the city come on; it was equally beautiful at night. The mountains in the background were so black, and we noted that south of the tower was much brighter, in terms of lights, than the north. I guess it’s because all the historical sites aren’t lit up, and they make up the majority of the area; seriously. You can never see enough it Kyoto!

At about 6, we left the tower, and walked over to Kyoto station, taking some photos of the tower from various angles and heights; I took Nadezhda all the way up the sky garden. Getting out of the cold (and yes, I was really feeling it in my just jumper), we found our way over to the Kitetsu line, and got a train to Tambabashi, before hoping on a local back to Makino. The trip back was so nice, and warm, and restful, and when we did get to Makino, I really didn’t want to get up. Both needing some groceries, we went over to life. I just got some meat, cereal, and these great little buns filled with red bean that Jo had offered us one time; Nadezhda spotted them. Finally getting back home (what a relief), I set about making dinner; shepherd’s pie. It wasn’t until after 9 that I sat down and ate; peeling potatoes is time consuming, lolz. I was very happy with the meal though; got a bit left over for tomorrow too. After dinner, I had milk and a bun, and then went down to my room, and did a quick little tidy up.

As I was making dinner, Yuji explained that he needed to come down to my room to talk about the inspection this Friday! Since I took so long, he’d left the kitchen and went to do homework, so I had to go find him in his room and drag him away from it. He cautioned that this inspection would be more thorough than the last and, since everyone will have their inspection on the same day, there is no room for mistakes. He also showed concern for Ryan’s absence, and asked me to inform Ryan as soon as he gets back, to go see Aki to get the information from her. We also went up to check my kitchen box, and then the fridge, and Yuji was impressed by how clean it was; I only have to wipe it down. It helps when I’m practically the only one using it; there’s like two things in there of Ryan’s, and no one’s in the other room that shares our fridge. And talk about being in the right place at the right time, we both got cake from Aki; it was absolutely delicious. Finally, got to have a shower… Well better get some sleep now, going to animate in Hirakata, and then onto Umeda with Ash and Peter tomorrow!

Day 28 - 26th of September

8:13am　特急電車

天気：暑い

On the train to Tanbabashi (limited express). Woke up at 6:50, got out by 7:30, but had to wait till 7:52 for the bus to Hirakata station. I'm with Joanna and Dustin at the moment.

8:48am　丹波橋
It's not a cow!!! Kelly just pointed out that the kanji on my shirt isn't cow (牛) it's the sign of the horse (午). It can't believe I didn't realise that. So yeah, it reads 美午 (bigo - beautiful horse). But yeah you have to admit, they are very similar kanji. We're now on the train and should be getting to Asuka in about an hour.

9:55am　橿原神宮前駅

We're in kashiharajingumae station now, and will be transfering to another train shortly...

10:22pm　セミナーハウス

Wow!!! Today, was incredible. It was so much fun riding around on bikes, and seeing some amazing historical sites. Asuka is such a rich area for archaeological discoveries, and as I was to find, some very significant characters in Japanese history were based in this area. Getting off the train, we were so far out of the built up city area. Because of building restrictions, Asuka has remained largely undeveloped, and thus its historical sites have been left relatively pristine. As both Dustin and I had no money left (I had to borrow money from Joanna) we immediately went in search for an ATM machine. Unfortunately, like the one we had tried in Tanbabashi station, it would not except our cards. So, unperturbed, we went to the bike hire place to meet with the others.

We were soon on our way. There was 27 of us, including the professor, and it would have been quite a sight to see. Many Japanese were very friendly along the way, and we exchanged greetings. The first site we stopped at was the supposed tomb of 欽明天皇 (Emperor Kinmei) the 29th emperor of Japan. I say "supposed" because as I was to find out, a lot of the time the person who was actually buried at a sight is not 100% confirmed, so it's the Imperial Household Agency's job to decide who was buried where. And they get the final say, whether the facts are scientifically sound or not! Anyway, his 古墳 (kofun - tomb) was typical of the time having a large keyhole-shaped mound (前方後円墳 - zempokoenfun). This style is unique to ancient Japan and was prominent between the 3rd and 6th centuries, before the act of cremation was employed through the influence of Buddhist teachings. The strange thing is, you can't really appreciate the shape of the mound unless you view it from the air. So the question is, why did the ancient Japanese people build the mounds this shape; maybe the gods could appreciate them?

A short walk from the tomb was the supposed burial site of a princess I can't remember the name of; it was a lot to take in. I tried to find a photo of the information that I took, but for some strange reason, photos that I took at the start of the day were erased. This happened to Joanna too!!! So weird. Anyway yeah, present at the site were 猿石 (saruishi - Monkey stones). There were four, one of which was clearly male, xD. The professor told us that it could only be speculated what they were used for; they were very ancient. Popular belief held that they were signs of fertility, and if a woman was having trouble having a baby she would stroke the statue, in some fashion or another, to aid in fertility, lol.

So after that, we got back onto our bikes and sped up the hill to the site of the 鬼の俎 (oni no manaita - demon's cutting board) and 鬼の雪隠 (oni no secchin - Demon's toilet). The Folklore tells of demons that lived on the mountain, and on misty nights they would snatch passing people off the road and chop them up and eat them on a boulder up top, before relieving themselves on another boulder a bit further down; very colourful tale indeed. In fact, the boulders are supposed to be part of a tomb building project that was never completed. An unnamed family who wanted to be seen as powerful was trying to find a loophole in the restrictions surrounding tomb dimensions by using a boulder. For some reason or another it was never completed. The boulder higher on the mountain had chips in it, and the professor explained, that in the latter centuries, when castles were being built, people had to bring stones from all over to aid in construction. They weren't able to break this one, so it stays as a monument.

11:18pm　セミナーハウス

Yay, Deigo just recovered my photos. He's such a computer whiz. Anyway back to today...

We got back on our bikes once more and travelled to the 亀石 (kameishi - turtle stone). It's so cool, it's been curved into the shape of a turtle. Well, it's not complete; the project was never finished. One belief surrounding the stone is that, when the turtle faces due west the whole of Japan will sink under water. This is derived from the fact that in the ancient times it was though that Earth rested upon the back of a giant sea creature, swimming through the cosmos. The farmland was beautiful and throughout the day we saw huge fields of rice, and those beautiful red flowers, I think I've mentioned before. I found out that they are called 彼岸花 (higanbana - red spider lily). There was also a white variety.

We headed further along the paths, across streets, through houses, until we reached the site of 川原寺 (Kawahara temple). Only the foundation stones remained and in fact, many were replicas made of fibre glass. Weird hey; replicating ruin. But I guess it gives us a good idea of the size; and it's way cheaper than rebuilding the whole thing. The Professor talked about the names of Asuka. At present, it actually has two different sets of kanji that represent it. 飛鳥 ("flying bird") and 明日香 ("tomorrow's fragrance"); and indeed I saw both sets being interchangeably. There's even a third set derived from the Korean name 安直 (which means peaceful abode, but can be read in Japanese as cheap). That was very interesting to learn.

It was very hot today, so after Kawahara temple, we rode to a park for lunch. The ride there was awesome; through a beautiful forest. In the park there was what seemed to be some sort of play going on; however we stopped further up. I had my packed lunch so I was happy. Soon after eating, Joanna and I went exploring; not very far. We went to the site that we would be visiting next, which was just across the road. It was funny, because we walked right in without paying for a ticket; it was okay though, because we were payed for later as a group. When we realised though we still felt bad. Anyway we got to take a few pictures before the rest of class came and it got really crowded. This was the 石舞台 (ishibudai - lit. stone dancing platform), which could be the burial place of Soga no Umako, a very powerful figure in the 7th century. The structure itself was amazing; huge stones that were moved on sleds forming a tomb. We could all fit in there at once, so you can imagine how large it is.

We continued on to 板葺の宮 (itabuki no miya - lit. Shingled roof palace). I was in the second half of the group, and we ended up falling behind a bit and getting lost. We quickly found our way though, after ringing the professor. Again, just the foundations of the palace remained. In actual fact what we saw was entirely replicated. The original stones have been covered with earth and lie beneath. Well, I guess that's one way of preserving them. The professor retold the story (that we had heard in history) of the meeting of Prince Naka no Oe and Nakatomi no Kamatari (I love old Japanese names, they're so long). Apparently, at a football game (that was being played in a field right near us) Prince Naka lost his shoe. Showing his loyalty, Nakatomo no Kamatari rushed out from the crowd, recovered the shoe, and presented it to the Prince. As their eyes met, they immediately were of the same mindset, and conspired to bring down the Soga clan (Umako's line). At this point there was already much opposition towards the clan, but through their acts it was brought down. Right in front of the reigning Empress (Kogyoku), Soga no Iruka was badly wounded by the Prince. They rushed to plead their cases to the Empress but she left the room in great distress. Iruka was then killed. The day after, realising that the opposition against the Soga clan was too great, Soga no Emishi, Iruka's father, committed suicide, burning the fort and with it documents containing history of Japan. Some pages were recovered, but it was almost completely destroyed. And that was the end of the Soga clan!

We rode on, through the rice fields, to Asuka temple. We caught up with three people who had also got lost but gone ahead. It was a beautiful temple, but only a 3rd of the size of it's original glory. We went inside the main building, and the history of the temple was explained to us; the professor translated. Asuka temple, at least from what the monk was saying, is the oldest in Japan!!! I don't know if that's true or not (I suppose no one does), but it's a cool thought. I went to the oldest temple in Japan today! It displays one of the oldest images of Buddha; Shaka. It was burnt in a fire, so it isn't as spectacular is it would have been. It sad that so many things are ruined by natural, or indeed, unnatural disasters; human disruption. Outside there were three other small statues near the pond. On the first one (from the right), you pour one cup of water to ensure traffic safety; on the second one, you pour two cups to ensure safety at home and; on the third one, you pour three cups to gain luck in love. I didn't have time to try it as the professor was eager to leave.

After about 15 more minutes, we made it to our final destination for the day; Asuka historical museum. That was very cool, to see both the originals and replicas, of artifacts found in the area. By that time, a lot of people were really red with sunburn; I'm hardly burnt at all, lol. They had replicas of the stone monkeys and turtle in the garden. Some of the faces were so weird. It was about 4 o'clock as we made our way back. We all got back, safe in one piece, then boarded the train (Joanna had to pay for me again). We finally arrived back in Hirakata at about 6:30, and immediately Joanna and I went to the ATM that she knew would work. I payed her back, then she went and got McDonald's and, as she rode her bike there this morning, I left her and went to the bus.

Got home, made dinner (rice, scrambled eggs, and salad). At 8 there was this really cool show on. Basically, a group of contestants had to survive an hour in Universal Studios Japan, without getting caught by the "hunters" (like the agents from the Matrix). Lol, it was soooo cool. I caught the last half an hour of it. They where playing for a cash prize of 960, 000 yen (about 10, 000 dollars). They also had to complete missions, like turning off "lasers" that blocked off the parade. If they failed a mission, they would be limited to the area that they could hide in. Towards the end of it the "long leg men" came out; they were so cool. They had really long prosthetic legs, and would, in a literal sense, blow the whistle on contestants if they saw them, drawing the hunters to them. It was really intense; they could run so fast. We were all screaming and shouting, and hoping the last contestant could win; He did!!! I so want to watch it again next week. Anyway it's quarter to 1, so I'd better wrap this up. Probably won't do very much tomorrow. Just go into Hirakata, send my postcards, go to the police station, and then study. That's not much right?