Tokorozawa Aviation Museum

The last blog post for today (I swear... really, I do) is about our trip to Tokorozawa Aviation Museum. This site is famous for being the "birthplace of Japanese aviation", sorta the Pensacola equivalent. If you know my dad, then you know that coming here was his idea, but it turned out to be pretty interesting!

Everyone knows that in 1903, the Wright Brothers achieved the world's first powered flight, launching the rapid growth of aviation research/technology. Naturally Japan wanted in on that, too, so in 1909, the Provisional Military Balloon Research Association (PMBRA) was established to perform aviation research. The first order of the day? Find a site for an airport. They decided to choose Tokorozawa, hence the location of the museum.

I bet you don't know who performed the first successful flight at an airfield in Japan, do you? Well it was Yoshitoshi Tokugawa, done on April 1, 1911, with a Henri Farman aircraft.

We also got really lucky because there was a *special* exhibit... the only authentic and flyable Japanese Zero left - and also the only one with its original engine! If you're like me and have no clue what the Mitsubishi A6M Zero even is, read on. It was a plane used by the Imperial Japanese Navy during WWII, and quickly garnered a reputation as one of the top dogfighters (kill ratio of 12 to 1) until mid-1943. As the war winded down, the Zero was used in kamikaze operations.

They had a little exhibit where you could look through the cockpit... naturally, the plane was poised to destroy an innocent American pilot. So tricky... 

If you've got some time to kill or can't fall asleep, you watch this instructional video for pilots during WWII on how to recognize the Zero: 

Arashiyama (嵐山) and the Golden Pavilion

The next day was spent at Kyoto, where I have been before (remember the Geisha post?)... but this time, we spent most of our time in a nearby city called Arashiyama. Arashiyama is known for a few things:

1. Sagano Bamboo Forest
2. Togetsukyo bridge
3. Iwatayama Monkey Park

It's your lucky day because we saw ALL of those things! Strap in, cuz you're about to get blown away (figuratively... hopefully not literally).

Our first stop was the bamboo forest, which is basically self-descriptive (a forest... of... bamboo). It's also known for the sound it makes as the wind blows through the bamboo which was voted as one of the must-be-preserved sounds of Japan. Shockingly, jet noise was not on the list -- I know, right?! Below are a few photos to be enjoyed with the imagined sound of bamboo swaying gently in the breeze.

After that, we walked to the "romantic" Togetsukyo bridge. I guess you can define romantic how you will, but apparently it's known as a good viewing spot for the autumn trees and the cherry blossoms.

We then went to to the monkey park... it was an insane hike up Mt Arashiyama to feed some wild Japanese macaque monkeys. The path was filled with little games about monkey trivia, along with signs repeatedly warning us not to incur the wrath of these little buggers. 

Monkeys taking over the viewing station, overlooking Kyoto. Below are the photos of each of us feeding them with little bits of apple we bought for 100 yen.

In this photo, my dad is inciting a fight among the two... you can see how the one of the left is biting the head of the one on the right.

Our journey complete there, we headed off to see the Kinkaku (Golden Pavilion). The building consists of three stories, with the upper two stories covered by gold foil on lacquer. Today it contains Buddhist relics. And that's all I have to say about that:

You can slightly see the crane in front of it... below is a better shot.























Exhausted, dirty, and slightly starving, my family and I made the trek back to Atsugi to regain our strength and prepare for the aviation museum and Mt Fuji.

Miyajima (宮島町)

The next day we made the trek to Miyajima, a little island off the coast of Hiroshima. For those as geographically disinclined as myself, I've attached a little map to orient yourself:

What's so famous about Miyajima that I forced my parents to take a ferry over there and spend half a day? If you've been studying your Japanese, then you would know that Miyajima is Japanese for "Shrine Island". So what, you ask me with a yawn. Why, it's only the Itsukushima Shrine, designated by Confucian scholar Shunsai Hayashi as one of "Three Most Scenic Spots of Japan" AND later designated a World Cultural Heritage site!

This is the plaque designating Miyajima as one of the most scenic spots in Japan.

To get to Miyajima from Hiroshima, you're required to take a short (10 minute) ferry ride from Miyajima-guchi station or Hiroden-miyajima-guchi station. Once you're on the island, you're greeted by lots of aggressive deer who like to eat your maps, poop, or wait to shop at stores (all of which happened to me):

A short walk later, we came upon the O-torii Gate of Itsukushima Shrine... the reason this isn't your average torii gate is because it was designed so that during high tide it would look as though it's floating. The reason? Miyajima (the island) was considered a sacred island that commoners were not allowed to walk on... so, to circumvent and allow pilgrims to enter the shrine, they built it as a sort of pier somewhat disconnected from the island. Pilgrims were required to enter past the torii gate via boats. 

The gate stays in place because the top rail of the torii is hollow and contains 7 tons of fist-sized stones. This current incarnation is the eighth, erected in 1875. 

Once past the torii gate we were greeted by the actual Itsukushima Shrine, which is dedicated to the three goddess of sea, traffic safety, fortune and accomplishment (Ichikishima-hime, Tagitsu-hime, and Tagori-hime). The shrine itself was built in 593 and then later remodeled in 1168, and its vermilion color is used to keep evil spirits away.

After that, we saw the five storied pagoda that was next to the Toyokuni Shrine (also known as Senjokaku, or the Hall of One Thousand Tatami Mats).

Last but not least, we saw Miyajima O-shakushi... or the World's Largest Wooden Rice Scoop! Miyajima is known as the birth place of the rice scoop. Legend has it that a Buddhist monk named Seishin had a dream where Benzaiten (Goddess of Good Fortune) came to him with a Japanese lute in her hands, the shape of which he traced into a rice scoop. After teaching its design to the locals, it spread like wildfire throughout Japan.

Our time in Hiroshima and Miyajima completed, our next stop was Kyoto's Bamboo Forest and Golden Temple. Don't worry, their magnificence will continue to be undermined by my camera/photographic skill in a  later blog post to appear sometime this week!

Hiroshima (広島市)

Okay, so I've been slacking a little... but I have a slew of blog posts lined up for your bathroom-iPhone-reading pleasure so quit your whining! My parents and little brother came into Japan to visit me for a week, and when we weren't on the trains (approximately 50% of their time here), we were sight seeing!

My family and I all took the bullet train (Shinkansen) to Kyoto and Hiroshima to see the sights...

A picture showing the route we took from Tokyo to Hiroshima

My first post is about Hiroshima -- I think the biggest thing about Hiroshima is... well... y'know... the atomic bomb dropped on 8:15am on August 6, 1945. That morning, the crew of Enola Gay dropped the atomic bomb that exploded 600 meters above Shima Hospital in the Saiku-machi part of Hiroshima, killing 200,000 people and decimating nearly everything below it. The Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall (AKA the A-bomb Dome) was purposely left as a memorial by the city to serve as a reminder of the destruction.

The park was very beautiful and also had several other monuments, such as the "Flame of Peace". The design is meant to suggest two hands pressed together at the wrist with palms pointed upward, symbolizing the condolence for victims "unable to satisfy their thirst for water, as well as the desire for nuclear abolition and enduring world peace." If you look closely, due to my amazing photography skills (obviously), you can see the flame that has burned continuously since August 1, 1964 and will continue to burn until all nuclear weapons no longer exist (so... forever).

Beyond that was the Cenotaph for the A-bomb Victims, built to resemble an arch-shaped house to shelter the souls of the victims. Within it is the registry of the names of the people who died from the bombing (apparently a total of 221,893 victims).

After that, we went into the museum which was incredibly depressing. They had clothing of school children who died from the explosion, and also a depiction of people with their skin melting off. It was very weird to see something like that from an outsider's perspective, where the US wasn't portrayed as the "good guy" and the bombing wasn't seen as necessary to end the war. The memorial park was very powerful and definitely served its message of nuclear disarmament loud and clear.

Geisha Girl

My friends and I wandered down to Kyoto this weekend... the trip was a little short to fully see everything Kyoto had to offer, but we had what I like to call, "The Geisha Experience."

Admit it, the first thing you thought of when I said Geisha was either "expensive prostitute" or "Memoirs of a Geisha"... If I was wrong about those two, you were probably thinking about about food or wondering where I was going with this. I'll tell you where, dear reader! I'm about to learn you some Geisha facts.

Becoming a geisha (or "geiko"... no, not Gecko...) is actually a very difficult process. For one thing, geisha are required to master dancing, singing and playing musical instruments. They are considered to be top entertainers and the training can take up to 5-6 years. Young women (usually between the ages of 15-18) who become apprentice geisha (called maiko, pronounced like my-ko) have to be interviewed and accepted by an Okiya (sorta like a boarding school for geisha).

You can tell the difference between maiko and geisha based off their makeup... and you can also tell the difference between the girls pretending to be geisha and the real deal allegedly off of makeup/attire, but I had trouble figuring it out. It seems like someone with money to burn could imitate the real deal quite well but what do I know! At any rate, some of the differences are:

1. Maiko make up their own hair and geisha use wigs  (also their hair pieces are informative to their status)
2. Experience = sophistication. Thus, a more sophisticated (i.e. less gaudy) look means they're more senior. I found this fairly difficult to ascertain.
3. Their hair pieces are usually seasonal (so right now, it'd be cherry blossoms)
4. There are a ton of random people chasing them taking their photos, a la the papz!

To be entertained by a geisha requires an introduction by someone else who is already established with the particular geisha community. That means more selective clientele, and if you act like an ass, they can complain to the person who recommended you and that just creates a whole ton of embarrassment that no one wants to deal with. As a result, I will probably never be able to see a private show with a geisha.

As a side note, geisha are not considered prostitutes...this was propagated during WW2 when Japanese prostitutes would call themselves "geisha girls" to the soldiers, who obviously can't tell the difference.

On to MY adventure, the most important part!

My friend was smart enough to find out that there was a special performance put on during the month of April called "The Cherry Dance" (Miyako Odori in Japanese), performed by real live geisha and maiko! We bought the ticket that also included a viewing of the tea ceremony, a free snack and a free plate. It was pretty awesome to see a real geisha (?maiko) doing it in person, since you normally require the ever evasive "connections" to see it.

I also took a picture of my food, per Colin's request (it was green tea and a small pastry filled with bean paste). We got to keep the plate!

After that, we were ushered into the theater to watch a play (Miyako Odori). It was composed of 8 scenes all portraying different seasons (and a myth to go along with it). Despite being in Japanese, it was very impressive... though the music was at times a little jarring for my Western ears, but it was beautiful in its own way. We weren't allowed to take photos, so none for you!

After that, we went on a Geisha Walking Tour, done by a white guy who frequents geisha establishments (and at one point was married to one... the geisha, not the establishment). Though it might seem sketchy at first, it was actually pretty interesting. He was one of the advisers for the movie Memoirs of a Geisha, so we got to see some of the places they used in the movie.

This was in front of one of their tea houses.

Supposedly the most expensive tea house in Kyoto.

Walkway for some of the tea houses or places the geisha entertained. 

On to the actual street-geisha pictures! Unfortunately, we were like the paparazzi so they didn't really let us stop them to take good photos. In fact, they actually started picking up the pace when our cameras came out! I don't think I could ever be a pap... too freaking weird and invasive.

Yeah, that picture isn't creepy at all... 

That was it for the geisha experience, but it was definitely informative!

The other fun facts I learned on the tour (not related to geisha) were related to dog pee. Yup.

 The little torii gate is placed there to discourage people from letting their dogs pee on a sacred symbol. I guess this only works if you believe in it though.

The bamboo was there so that if a dog did decide to pee, it would ruin the bamboo and not the nice wood wall. I guess they still decided to use the right side of the real wall though...

You now know more than most people about the secret world of geisha... you should feel special!