Snow at Mount Daisen

Last weekend was a long weekend in Japan (again - he, he) so I went on a road trip with some friends to Matsue, in Shimane prefecture - on the coast north-west of Himeji.

Our first stop on Saturday was Mount Daisen,
about 3 1/2 hours from Himeji

Mount Daisen is an impressive volcanic mountain seen in the skyline from everywhere in the town.

It was snowcapped that day


A little Fuji-san...


...and again!

We drove part of the way up the mountain then parked the car and walked up to the shrine.

An uphill hike


It was about 2 degrees

And as soon as we reached the shrine we found snow!


Me and Bev and matching jackets


Woo! Snow

And to think on Monday we were enjoying the warm sun at the beach! More about the rest of the weekend in the next post!

Until then,
Monica x

Shizutani School

Two weeks ago I was lucky enough to be taken to Okayama to enjoy more autumn beauty. We went to Shizutani school - now a National Treasure - but originally a public educational institution for children of both commoners and the samurai class in the Edo period.

Shizutani means 'quiet valley'


The lecture hall still in pristine condition


The museum on site helps explain the history of the place


The roof tiles were handmade from bizenyaki
by local potters


The view of the famous autumn trees


Bus tours flock here to admire autumn beauty


One kai tree turns yellow ...


Hey, it's me!


...and the other an orange-vermilion


Autumn is all around


Fall


Afterwards, we strolled around the canals of Kurashiki


It has a great historic atmosphere

Autumn is definitely the best season in Japan - despite the chill factor. I love it.

Until more autumn leaves photos,
Monica xx

Ikea adventures and roast

On Sunday, Lauren and I ventured to Kobe for a day of shopping and food - or more accurately, Ikea, meatballs and roast!

We took the free shuttle bus from Sannomiya station in Kobe to Ikea - how べんりis that! It's much like the Ikea at home, of course, with a few "exclusive to Japan" items.

The same, but in Japanese


Ikea is on Port Island in Kobe


Lunch? Swedish meatballs of course -
and I had to have cake... and chips too

But really what we were looking forward to was Sunday Roast. Hobgoblin is an English Pub serving up all the foods we miss from home! And their promise of roast was too irresistible to pass up.

And they delivered the goods! Yum.

The pub is just across the road from the JR Sannomiya station, in the building next to Maccas, on the seventh floor.

Check out the view from the window

You never know what you'll find in Japan!

Until next time,
Monica

Ikebana makes me happy

Last night I took another lesson of Ikebana. It was another wonderful choice of flowers and Eiko had, as always, arranged them beautifully.

Eiko's expert arrangement

We used eucalyptus branches and snapdragons...

...and gorgeous hot pink roses

The longest eucalyptus branch on the left is placed to sprout off to the side and the other, at 70% of its partner, is placed to lean towards your right shoulder. The snapdragons complement the design in a balanced triangle, as do the roses.

Can you see the triangular balance?

With a few tweaks, this is the final product

The photo makes the arrangement look a bit gangly - and with the busy background, it's hard to see the design. After our lesson, we have to dismantle it and rearrange them again at home. I think I've done alright to reproduce it but unfortunately one of the roses is already droopy because I think I damaged the stem trying to stick it in the spike too many times! I think I like the round vase better.

Ikebana's next week too. Until then,
Monica x

Autumn in Kyoto (part one)

Last Sunday, I travelled to Kyoto to see the beautiful autumn leaves in their colour transition. Just like sakura in Spring, the leaves are a truly beautiful sight where ever you look.

The leaves need warm, sunny days and chilly nights to start the colour change process.

This was overlooking the gardens at Tofuku-ji in Kyoto


Brilliant red Japanese maples


I'm fascinated with the colours - stunning!


Red amongst the greenery


Red against the sky


In the raked garden grounds


The shaded trees are still yet to change

I found some autumn sakura!


I tried dorayaki - Doraemon's fave food

Then we journeyed to Fushimi Inari (fox) Shrine, which is the shrine for success in business. It's characterised by 10,000 red torii gates that form a pathway around the hill behind the shrine.

We didn't walk the whole way

The entrance


In the tunnel of torii


From the outside


Torii galore


Wishes of hope, luck and happiness written
on wooden fox shapes


Children dressed for the 7-5-3 festival


A ceremony in the shrine grounds

There are just too many photos of Autumn to share in one post, so I'll upload the rest of this day next time.

Until then,
Monica

Aboshi Lantern Festival

On October 21st, I ventured to Aboshi, about 20 minutes from Himeji, to see this intriguing-sounding festival called the Lantern Festival. A festival of lanterns - what could that possibly entail?

It started with the parade of yatai...


...and flesh


The yatai lit up in the dark

Then we made our way to the shrine's entrance
to see the action.

It was hard to see close up what was happening - you can see from the photo above how far back we stood, but it seemed like 60 or so men carrying bamboo poles with lanterns attached to the top, jostling, circling and chanting. Watch the clip.

The round begins (15 secs)

Then, obviously on someone's say-so, the smashing began - lanterns were flying through the air and were being completely shredded. Then the whistle blew to stop the violent hammering of the lanterns and a new round began. Watch the clip.

Lantern flogging (28 secs)

Some of the lanterns were so painstakingly designed and painted, only to be hammered in seconds. The lanterns kept coming and the men kept smashing them. It lasted for hours. Watch for the man lantern with the dangly detail in the clip below. Brutal!

Someone spent a lot of time painting this one

Smash those lanterns!

Ready, setty, destroy! (46 secs)

In the meantime, we wandered around the food stalls (see earlier post - Festival Foods) and got to look at a yatai on display. It's an impressive structure.

Me, Taube and Taube's visitor
standing by the yatai

Huh, so that's what the festival is all about!

Until next post,
Monica