Pockets of Peace

In the early morning hours of August 6th, 1945, an industrial Southwestern Japanese port city was unknowingly prepping itself to bleed its way into the history books. Actually, back up a step, if I'm going to be accurate with my language I suppose "vaporize" is a better operating word. The bomb, dropped by the Enola Gay an American B-29 Bomber, was the first atomic device ever to be used as a weapon. It exploded about 600 meters above the city instantly killing around 80,000 people. That number, according to the Cooperative Japan-US Research Foundation on Radiation Effects, would effectively double by December of the same year. As many as 250,000 people (survivors) were exposed to significant levels of radiation during the atomic bombing of Japan, and every year, subsequent to explosion, some die of a radiation-related cancer.

Sixty six years, four months, and twenty one days after that atomic shit-storm rained from above, at about the same time in the morning, I arrived in Hiroshima. After a quick cup of coffee (night buses aren't the most comfortable place to sleep, especially if your twice the size of the Japanese standard) I headed for the Peace Memorial Park. The park was designed around the Genbaku Dome (原爆ドーム meaning Atomic dome) which was one of the only buildings left standing after the devastation of the bomb. This fact moves from "remarkable" to "oh, I understand....that's kinda shitty" when you find out that this building was pretty much ground zero for where bomb struck. Instead of experiencing the immensely destructive horizontal shock-wave that toppled the rest of the town, the former concert hall was sheltered in an impact shadow. Though the occupiers of the structure didn't fare so well against the heat, almost instantly sublimating into gas.

Hiroshima's Genbaku Dome is a gruesome reminder of the day the sky fell.

All along the river, and throughout the park are many independently financed tributes to those who lost their lives in devastation.

Here two siblings prepare to release the symbolic dove. On Aug 6th every year doves are released in commemoration. 

The Children's Peace Monument features a girl holding a giant origami crane, a symbol of health and longevity.

At the base of this monument are thousands upon thousands of origami cranes. The tradition was started by a young girl, Sasaki Sadako, who fell ill with radiation related leukemia in 1955. After her diagnosis, the 12 year old began folding these cranes in the hopes that if she reached 1000 she'd be cured. She died before reaching her goal but her classmates took it upon themselves to finish the job. Now it's become a tradition and every year school children from all over Japan lay their colorful creations at the foot of this monument. 

Strings of paper cranes at the Children's Peace Monument

Right in the middle of this clever alignment is the eternal Flame of Peace, which will be extinguished on the day the last nuclear weapon on Earth has been destroyed.

Primed with all of the somber information above, I expected this to be one of those "educational excursions" with glaring (and possibly shocking) reminders on every street corner. What I found instead was that Hiroshima (outside of the Peace Park) is a bustling modern city, full of spectacular cuisine, friendly people, a network of canals much akin to a Dutch city, and hardly any trace of being atomically panini-ed in the last 70 years.   

The local baseball team, the Toyo Carps, are the six-time champions of Japan's Central League.

Hiroshima's close proximity to the Inland Sea means the local food is loaded with fresh seafood. Sardines and oysters are the specialty. 

Nothing like 焼き牡蠣 (yaki kaki, grilled oysters) for breakfast!

Just outside Hiroshima, Iwakuni sports this famous bridge which was built without using a single nail.

Hiroshima also plays host to a castle. Although historically is didn't last long- being destroyed only 11 years after it's 1589 construction.

This 5-story pagoda towers proudly over Miyajima's Itsukushima shrine.

In the right light, at sunset Itsukushima is in the running for one of Japan's most beautiful views. Located on an island in Hiroshima bay, high tide here means it's welcoming torii gate is partially submerged below the water-line.

The Delights of Kansai (乾菜 dried vegetables) er....... Kansai (関西 south-western Japan)

From time to time, to lessen the guilt of possessing such a good camera and not using it as much as I should, I plan to use this medium to exhibit interesting photos I've had the chance to shoot here. So without further adiue, here some pics from the three-day-weekend I recently spent in Kyoto and Osaka.

This fox guards the entrance to the Fushimi-Inari-Taisha, a shrine-covered mountain dedicated to the gods of rice and sake. The fox in Japanese folklore is traditionally seen as a sacred and mysterious figure that's capable of possessing humans, by entering them under the fingernails. All of the foxes at Fushimi-Inari are messengers of the god of cereal, often being depicted as holding some key to the rice granary in their mouths.  

Fushimi-Inari is home to tens of thousands of orange Torii gates covering the various trials on Inari-san (the mountain).

Merchants and manufacturers can dedicate Torii gates by purchasing them in the hopes that they'll be blessed by success and wealth. The company's Kanji is engraved on the supporting beams. 

Josh Buck tries his hand at lifting the Omokaru-Ishi (literally translated as heavy-light stone). Before attempting to lift the stone you're meant to make a wish and if the weight is lighter than your expectation that wish will come true......apparently.......Forward this to 10 friends in the next hour or you'll have bad luck for a year. SSDD 

Jim Buell walks along one of the tree-lined paths NOT covered by Torii gates at Fushimi-Inari

The Japanese Maples were putting on their final brilliant display before the harsh winter months arrived. This event draws millions of people to Kansai every year. Thankfully, due to our early arrival at the shrine, we pretty much had the entire mountain to ourselves. 

Kiyomizu-dera was original built in 798, however, like many of Japan's famous buildings, the present structure is a reconstruction (dating from 1633, still older than my country!). One of Kyoto's most famous landmarks, this temple houses the Otowa-no-taki waterfall, where visitors drink the sacred water to improve any number of ailments (including poor test scores).

Most Shinto shrines contain a Chouzuya (purifying basin) where you're to clean your hands and mouth before entering the shrine. The etiquette here, like most things Japanese, is very important. One should always begin by ladling water over the right hand before the left, and making sure that the water falls on the ground NOT back in the basin. 

Wandering around the Gion neighborhood in Kyoto we ran into some Maiko-san (apprentice Geisha) who kept insisting that they were genuine. Apparently with Kyoto being such a tourist destination there are young women dressing up in elaborate garb and soliciting money from the people who photograph them. Maiko-san typically have longer sleeves and more pink in their face make-up than Geisha.

Kinkaku-ji (The Golden Pavilion) is one of Japan's best-known sights. Here it is framed by Autumn leaves.

This was my favorite photograph from the trip. To me it is quintessential Japan. 

Here Josh Buck meditates on the intricacies of Ryoan-ji one of the most famous Zen rock gardens. 

This is the reconstructed Osaka-jo, which was burned down in 1583 by the armies of Tokugawa Ieyasu.

The Dotombori arcade is home to a lively collection of bars and restaurants selling every type of Japanese food imaginable. Here a dragon bursts through the wall of a building to proclaim the deliciousness of the restaurant's fare. 

A street vendor expertly turns cooking Tako-yaki (fried octopus balls).

Here is a look at the famed Ebisu-bashi (the main foot bridge over the Dotomburi canal) dedicated by a beer company. As a response a rival (Asahi) has constructed a towering 10 meter glowing neon sign directly over the bridge. 

Casual Rantings Through a Frosty Mug

It was around the 4^th beer that I noticed it, like a soot-faced miner easing off his boots after a long shift underground, our vocabularies were sighing into a more casual realm. It was subtle at first, just the odd drop of an expletive, but as the beers went down so did the politeness. The “here” was a corner table in a three floored izakaya famous for cheep mugs of frosty golden deliciousness. I was occupying a tiny seat at a tiny table, surrounded by three western-sized friends who were having an equally difficult time making sense of sitting side-saddle. As we drank the metaphorical swear-jar began to swell, silvery 50yen coins pierced through the center to start with but finishing with the ominous thump of the heavy gold 500yeners, and all this got me thinking about the reason for such verbally graphic usages. Back in the US, and around other native English speakers that I feel comfortable with, the clever use of a swear word helps to emphasize the bonds I have with these people. I suppose I can’t speak for everyone out there but honestly how often do you find yourself cursing in a conversation with a person you don’t know? With your boss? Or how about with your Grandmother? And equally how likely would you be to choose these same people to be the best man/maid of honor at your wedding? Swearing tells all in the conversation that we’re close enough friends to not be bothered by such depravity. We don’t need the mask of politeness to maintain a positive image in our friends minds, they already know who we are. It’s the ultimate level of casual. But here in Japan the approach is a little different. 

I remember scoffing when I was told that Japanese, when compared to Korean (which is of the same origin), has very few words that we in the west would consider to be swear words. They have words for describing sex organs and fecal matter don’t they? Surely these can be used in a derogatory way. However, that’s not really the case.

Ehhhhhhhhh? 嘘！I don't believe it!
It’s true that some do exist, but when contrasted against swearing in Spanish, for example, you almost want to tuck their cuteness into bed before 9. Really, it’s like child’s attempt at playing daddy. In fact, I’ve only come across one word that’s banned from use on television; 真婿 (manko), which is little more than a crude reference to vagina. The more I learn about this lack of expletive expression the more I become convinced that it’s the result of the country's pre-industrial caste system. Here instead of slinging vocal mud, when insults are levied, the offenses are more commonly the consequence of a failure to observe politeness. Whether intentional or not, this can range anywhere from using the improper suffix on one’s name (-chan for children, -san for equals, and –sama for those above you) to the depth of your bow not being sufficient. Furthermore, rather than individual words marking the distinction between polite and casual speech, there’s a whole different level of grammar, 敬語(keigo), one uses when wanting to be formal. For more than 1000 years and as recent as 138 years ago in Japan a Samurai 侍 (derived from a verb meaning to serve) could kill any commoner who showed them disrespect. Meaning that the peasant class had to be incredibly careful with their language and conduct. So, in a sense, Darwin’s survival of the fittest applied itself to the language and the inoffensive were allowed to keep their heads on their shoulders and keep breeding.

Flash forward to modern times and this legacy of politeness is still burning strong in all the Japanese I’ve come across. However the older generations sometimes raise an interesting point, they complain that youngsters are phasing this formality out and losing the more traditional forms of speech. It makes me wonder that if the trend continues, will the distinction between polite and casual fade, and if this is the case, will Japanese develop harsher forms of profanity to fill in the gap? We’ll just have to wait and see. 

Yet Another Trek 'Round the Sun

Well, it's gone and happened again; another year has crept up noiselessly and established itself before anyone could even think to ease off of the accelerator. Here we are more than three quarters of the way through the year, 2012 knocking on Autumn's doorstep, and I haven't yet gotten used to writing 2011 on the date column. I suppose at some point you learn to stop struggling at the brake and enjoy the whooshing sound the years make as the train of life gathers speed. But with every new year comes another birthday week, and this year's proved to be a fantastic mix of chaos and delicious.

A woman navigates through the bustle of a Shibuya street
while talking on her phone

It was interesting from the start. As it turns out my birthday in Japan is celebrated as a national holiday. Don't ask me why these East Asians stop all business on behalf of little old me, but the result is such that the day before is alight with social activity. Aside from the workers of chain-restaurants no one has to get up on the 19th day of the 9th month. So, planning accordingly, I was all set to go on a 2 hour cruise in Tokyo bay, scoping the skyline and having a few drinks with friends. I finished work around 5 and, as luck would have it, the first train after work would get me there just in time for departure. Everything was going smoothly until, 10 minutes before arrival, someone jumped in front of my train. The "personal accident" (as it's directly translated) delayed me just enough to miss the boat. It felt just like a crappy made-for-tv-movie; me, dressed in a ridiculous pirate costume (did I mention it was international talk like a pirate day?), sprinting to the dock only to witness the boat slipping away a mere seconds ahead of me. If they'd have let me onto the departure pier I could have easily long-jumped onto the boat as it was pulling away....dramatic indeed. But not all was bad. I had my camera and got the opportunity to try my hand at capturing to energy of the Tokyo nightlife.

Two days later an unbelievable typhoon hit Tokyo. When I got the call from work that the schools were closing for the day I felt like a celebratory beer was in order. However, I made it just two steps out the front door before the elation was (literally) blown off my face. Winds in excess of 100 mph and torrential rain also seem like something from a bad disaster movie. I even witnessed the trailer for it: A man in a black business suit walking towards the station during the peak of the storm. His balance-point is artificially shifted forward against the wind giving him the appearance of a swimmer perpetually primed to launch into the pool. In his raised arms he carries the shredded taters of what was once an umbrella. Through some storm-induced delusion he is still trying to deflect the frenzied raindrops, though his tool is about as effective as using a fork to eat miso soup. I had to admire the man’s perseverance. He was trekkin it to a station where the trains were likely not running, self-saturating and risking sight from the whirling debris, all for a JOB? Hard workers these folks are indeed! Though from a very young age they're conditioned to give full commitment to the society/group they're included in, this even extends to the company they work for. So when a worker takes a vacation away from his job, it's a common practice to bring back omiyage (souvenirs, usually edible) from the place he's just been to. The significance is that he is offering his sincerest apologies for straining his coworkers with his share of the work. As a token of this gesture, he offers up the tasty treats so that he may be absolved of guilt. 

The streets in the aftermath of the typhoon.
All of this was flying debris only hours before

Speaking of guilty. The night of my birthday a few friends and I visited one of Tokyo's most famous Sushi houses 美登利寿司 (Midorizushi). I won't blather on about how great the food was, but take a look at the photos and decide for yourself. Enjoy.   

The credit for this shot goes to my friend Jim Buell. A mouthwatering work indeed

mmmmmm, negitoro....

The Best and Brightest of Summer

Over a year ago I decided that one of the things I wanted to do while here in Japan was to climb Mt. Fuji. So in September of 2010 I put some serious planning into making this desire a reality. Unfortunately, when I went to book bus tickets my less than perfect Japanese was not the only thing standing in my way. Apparently the climbing season runs from the beginning of July to the end of August and after that bus and mountain service are greatly reduced. Not having the time or money to make it into a two day affair I resigned myself to attempting it again next year. Well that year has passed and this summer vacation I came prepared with the memories of last year's defeat and more importantly, friends with a car.

Respectfully named Fujisan in Japanese, the summit rises a sky-scraping 12,389ft above sea level. Traditionally climbers hike up to the 8th (of 10) station during the night, catch a quick sleep, and see the sunrise from the top, but since I left directly after work (around 10pm) the night before I had to be content with viewing the morning sun from the parking lot at the bottom. I'd say it was still a pretty rewarding way to start the 12 hour hike. 

Finally, after about 7,500 ft of vertical increase, a thunder storm, $7 bottles of water, and geriatric climbers causing colorful snaking queues, we made it to the top. Up here the air is thin and accordingly Japanese climbers take fast pulls from aerosol-style oxygen bottles every few steps. However, the view is spectacular and even those not a little lifted by the oxygen feel like they're on top of the world.  

Far above tree-line any construction materials used at the top of the mountain have to be packed in. So, logically the buildings are constructed almost entirely of the abundant volcanic rock surrounding the crater. Up close they make for an interesting texture, but they're also a nasty thing to snag your eyeball on.

Here I am, not too exhausted, demonstrating the express lane down the mountain. 

After getting so high on the beautifully symmetrical mountain, I decided the remainder of my summer vacation should be spent relaxing by the seaside. So I jumped on the train and in just under 2 hours arrived at a fantastic Ryokan (Traditional Japanese Inn) in Ito, on Izu's north eastern coast. Izu is an arrowhead shaped peninsula jutting southward off of Japan's Honshu Island. It is most famous for it's brilliant onsen  (hot springs) boasting well over 2,000 springs. In fact, our Ryokan had an onsen available for use at any time day or night right inside the premises. Can you say 2am cannonball into boiling water?

Just south of Ito lies the stunning Jogasaki coast, a beautiful section of seaside with crystal blue water and jagged cliffs.

Jogasaki is a popular place to film both TV and movie productions, especially ones about suicide. Here my friend Nick Erickson contemplates the 2 second rush one would have plunging into a watery grave below. SPOILERS: He didn't end up jumping.

The Eternal Buddha watches over all at Shimoda's Gyokusen-ji temple.

Here the sky lit up in a fireball at the cemetery home to the graves of sailors from Commodore Perry's infamous Black Ship Fleet.   

After a long day of beers and beach we stumbled back into town only to run head-on into a procession of Taiko (Japanese drum) karts. Marching to the cadence of whistles and to the melody of flutes, they paraded their way through the packed streets.

Even the spectators were dressed in traditional garb. Here two yukata (light cotton kimono worn in the summer) clad onlookers follow a kart as a man furiously thumps at his drum. 

While searching out a place to eat we came across these men hoisting a Dashi (festival float) practicing for the final evening's event; to create enough crowd-pleasing hoopla and momentum in order to gain the judges approval. Once this happens they'll be allowed entrance into the shrine where the now powered-up dashi float will reside for the rest of the year.