FunBlog

Mt. Misen, the tallest mountain on the island, has been considered sacred since ancient times. The easiest way to get to the top is to take the ropeway that runs up the side.
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The Daishoin Temple on the lower slopes of Mt. Misen was founded by Kobodaishi in 806 and is the headquarters of the Omuro Branch of Shingon Buddhism.

The temple can be reached by climbing a very long staircase.
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Itsukushima Shrine is the largest shrine on Miyajima and the place most people want to see first. It dates back to the 6th century, though it was built in its present form in 1168.
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Miyajima (Shrine Island) is, as the name implies, the site of a number of striking shrines and temples. It claims to be “one of Japan’s Three Most Scenic Spots” (the others being the Amanohashidate sandbar and Matsushima Bay, neither of which I have seen.)

The island was visited by Kobodaishi in they year 806 and has a number of Shingon Buddhist temples. Because of the island’s sacred status, no one is allowed to die or be born there. I don’t know what the penalty is for breaking this rule.
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The Kokoen, located a short walk from the castle, consists of 9 formal gardens, some of them very beautiful.
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The city of Himeji boasts Japan’s most impressive-looking surviving castle. A castle was first built on the site in 1333 but was largely destroyed in the subsequent civil wars. The present form was built in 1601.

Even though it is made mostly of wood and plaster it has not burned down since, even when the city was bombed to rubble during the Second World War. However much of the original wood was replaced in a restoration project begun in the 1950s.
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Doutonbori Street is Osaka’s primary entertainment district. It comes to life at night: bright, noisy and crowded.
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An interesting cluster of temples is located near the center of Koya-san, where Kobodaishi first established his monastery.
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We leave the cemetery by the “corporate monuments path,” along which major corporations have built monuments for the spiritual benefit of their workers (and also possibly for the advertising value.)
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Many years ago, in a time when the land was wracked by famine, a baby girl was abandoned by her desperate parents. An elderly couple found the child and decided to raise her themselves. They were poor but good-hearted, and many were the nights that they went hungry so that the little girl could have food.
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At the heart of the cemetery lies the Okunoin, a temple or mausoleum built over the cave where Kobodaishi, the founder of Shingon Buddhism, has spent the last 1,100 years in deep meditation to save this world. This is a big job and he is expected to finish it in approximately 5.7 billion years, just in time for the Miroku (Maitreya) Buddha to come to Earth and take everyone to Heaven.
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On the eastern side of the plateau there is a gigantic cemetery, centuries old, where monuments for half a million people sit beneath towering 700-year-old trees.
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There are no hotels in Koya-san itself, but there are about 50 temples that will accommodate overnight guests for a reasonable fee. The Shojoshinin is one of the few that will accept Westerners.
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Koya-san is an alpine basin located in the mountains south of Osaka. It is the headquarters of the Shingon sect of esoteric Buddhism. It was first settled in the year 816 by the monk Kukai, who usually referred to today by the name Kobodaishi.
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A ryokan is a traditional Japanese inn, but “traditional” does not necessarily mean “primitive” or “austere.” Often they are equipped with all the latest modern conveniences.

For example the toilet in my bathroom had a complicated control panel with numerous buttons, all labeled in Japanese. This was intimidating since my Japanese is pretty limited and I can’t read kanji at all.
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The Asunaro Ryokan (traditional Japanese inn) is similar to most such establishments. It has an old-fashioned look but provides most modern conveniences.
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Takayama is noted for its spectacular Spring and Autumn Festivals which feature huge wooden floats: centuries old, brightly painted and intricately carved. Between festivals the floats can be seen in this museum.
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The Hida Folk Village (Hida no Sato) is a collection of traditional village houses dating from the 18th through the early 20th centuries. Many of them were moved here to preserve them when waters from a nearby hydroelectric dam eliminated a number of old villages.
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In 1692 the region was placed under the direct rule of the Tokugawa Shogunate. The Jinya served as the official residence and headquarters of the Shogon’s governor, as well as a warehouse for storing taxes (which were paid in sacks of rice.) The building was actually used for government offices right though the 1960s, but has now been converted into a museum.

At one time there were 55 such Jinyas located around Japan. This is the only one that survives.
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Takayama is an ancient city in the mountains of central Honshu. Its present form dates back to the 16th Century, but the area has been settled for much longer than that. Because of its relative isolation the area has a distinctive culture.

The region is known for fine woodworking and for the expensive Hida beef, which is extremely tender and very high in fat content.
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Below, a shinkansen (bullet train) pulls into Tokyo Station.
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Iemitsu, the third Tokugawa Shogun, was not content with building the world’s most elaborately decorated shrine for his grandfather. He also build an elaborate mausoleum for himself, located a short distance away. This is the Taiyuinbyo, which also serves as a functioning Buddhist temple.
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Before he died Ieyasu Tokugawa, the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, requested that a simple shrine be built for him so that he could serve as a guardian kami for the Japanese nation. The shrine was eventually built by his grandson Iemitsu, the third Tokugawa Shogun, but it was anything but simple. Most Shinto shrines are unpretentious, even austere. This is the most ornate Shinto shrine in Japan.

Ieyasu is still revered because he brought an end to a long series of bloody civil wars and began a period of peace an prosperity that lasted more than 250 years.
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Nikko is a small city located about 140 km from Tokyo. It is an easy day trip, and well worth it since it contains some of the most impressive temples and shrines in Japan.
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This is the place to go to find electronics (not to mention manga and anime.) It is packed with a wide range of retail establishments, ranging from seedy little shops to giant megamarts.
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The Ginza district is full of fancy upscale stores.
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Sensouji is the oldest and most famous Buddhist temple in Tokyo. Its origins date back to the year 628 when two guys were fishing in the Sumida River…
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Tsukiji is the largest fish market in the world. It dates back to the Edo period and now processes about 20% of the world’s catch. Don’t read further if you don’t want to see big, dead fish.
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My daughter and I just got back from the Black Ships Festival in Newport, Rhode Island, commemorating the 150th anniversary of the opening of Japan by Commodore Perry’s “black ships.”

Photos below the fold.
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