Hiroshima

The A-Bomb Dome.

After visiting Kyoto, we took another Shinkansen to Hiroshima.  The train ride was about 1 1/2 hours which gave us a little time left in the day to head to The Hiroshima Peace Park and Memorial Museum before it closed.  From our hotel, we took a streetcar which let us off around the A-Bomb Dome site.  The remains of the building from that tragic day, says it all.  After looking at the A-Bomb Dome, we walked along the river, which was amazing.  Along with the Cherry Blossoms in full-swing, the weather was warm, and comfortable.  This was a nice treat especially since the weather in Kyoto had been cool.

We saw the Children's Memorial, and various other monuments/memorials before heading inside the museum.  We had 1 hour to see the very large museum.  I could have spent a little more time, but am happy to have gone.  I thought the museum was done very well.  It told things from an historical point-of-view, and I didn't feel like it was biased towards the Japanese.  Overall, I felt very welcomed as an American in Hiroshima.

Itsukushima Shrine.

The next day, we decided to take a train and then a ferry ride over to Miyajima Island.   This island had so much to see.  There were deer, temples, an aquarium, boat rides, shopping, hiking, a cable car, ice cream, lodging, and one of the 3 most popular sites to see in Japan..the Itsukushima Shrine.

Again, I would have liked to explore Hiroshima for at least another day.  I've heard really good things about:  Hiroshima Castle and The Futabanosata Historical Walking Trail.

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Kyoto

Geisha in Gion.

Walking to the Kiyomizudera Temple.

Earlier this month we had my brother and another friend from the U.S. visit us in Japan.  They came from different locations in California, but both came over Spring Break.  This was an ideal time to come since I was off work for 8 days, the kids were out of school, and most of all because it was Cherry Blossom season.  Since going to Kyoto and Hiroshima were on our "To Do List" as was taking the Shinkansen (the bullet train), we booked a 4 day, 3 night trip while our visitors were here. 

We took the early departure Shinkansen from Shinagawa (Tokyo) and arrived in Kyoto by 9am.  Our hotel was directly across the street from Kyoto Station which made it convenient to check in our bags so that we could walk around before our afternoon tour.  What I learned about Kyoto is that not only is it popular, it is very spread out.  We covered a lot in the time we were there.  Here are some highlights:

Fushimi Inari-Taisha Shrine.  A must see!!

• We were able to go to the Kyoto Imperial Palace.  Normally you have to be granted permission, but it was open to the public the weekend we were there.  Nice grounds and interesting buildings.
• Kyoto Station is perhaps the coldest train station I have ever been to.  One side of the station is open, so it was creating such a wind-tunnel and was freezing.  I can only imagine how hot it will be in summer.
• Kyoto is an ancient Japanese capital.  It has over 1,000 years worth of history.
• There is a ton of walking.  Bring good shoes.
• The shrines/temples in Kyoto are so vibrant in color.  
• The Sanjusangen-do Temple was fascinating.  I wish I could have taken photos of all the statues.
• I wish we would have stayed one more night.  There's so much to see and do! 

Personalized Japanese Cultural Day

Some of my co-workers, my brother (who was visiting from the US) and I had the opportunity to have a Personalized Japanese Cultural Day a couple weeks ago.  The only knowledge we had of this event was that it was going to be kimono dressing and that we were going to be taught Japanese dancing.

The day turned out very special.  Us ladies were taken to a home where we were dressed in hand-sewn kimonos.  The lady whose house we went to made the kimonos.  They were all very pretty and we got to choose which ones we wanted to wear.  While we were doing kimono dressing, my brother was at a different location learning some Kanji and Calligraphy. 

After kimono dressing, the ladies wanted us to put our hair up with flowers.  Everyone else was fairing well since they had longer, thicker, hair.  I was struggling with getting the bobby pin to stay in my hair.  Someone had to put a small side-ponytail in my hair so that the bobby pin with the flower could attach to something.  It was pretty funny.  The Japanese ladies commented how soft my hair was.

Next, our hostess danced a Japanese dance for us.  We were all entranced by her dance.  When she was finished the furniture was pushed away and she taught us a dance.  It was really fun, and we even made my  brother participate.

Learning a dance.

Last, we had a non-traditional tea ceremony and snacks.  Another neighbor who spoke very good English, joined us for the day and acted as a translator.  We were asked where we were from, how many children we had, how we liked Japan, etc.  We learned that one of our hostesses had to evacuate to Yokosuka (where she was from) after the earthquake because of the radiation.  She only had 2 hours to go into her home to collect belongings before evacuating with her daughter.  Her husband continues to reside in Fukushima area to work at a Nuclear Power Plant.  Her story was very heart-breaking and made all of realize how grateful we are for the things we have.  Survivors of the earthquake/tsunami continue to amaze me at their resilience. 

Arigato gozaimashita to Kyoko-san and her wonderful neighbors.  Thank you for the presents and for making such a memorable day for us Amerika-jin.

Unusual Weather

Storm front affecting Japan.

We've been having the most unusual weather here this spring compared to last year.  It's not only been colder, and wetter, but we have been having a lot of typhoon-like weather patterns.  This is not typical for this time of year since typhoons usually occur in August and September.  In the past week, we've had two storms that have brought hellacious winds and downpours.  The storm today was expected to have extremely high winds of over 65mph.   Many services on base have closed early, after school activities were canceled and people were sent home early from work.  Its better to be safe than sorry.

Here are a couple links about the storms we've been having here: 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-03/japan-s-strongest-storm-since-1959-forecast-to-slam-into-tokyo.html

http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/03/world/asia/japan-severe-weather/index.html

What I've been really wanting to blog about are the Sakura (Cherry Blossoms) trees.  I've been putting it off because the trees are taking longer to bloom because of the weather.  Today, I noticed more Sakura blossoming on base.  I'm just hoping the storm doesn't wreak havoc on them too much.

Favorite Places To Shop in Japan

Japan has a ton of places to shop.  They have a good variety of both chain stores and privately owned businesses and superb customer service.  Here are some of our favorite places:

You can't miss the big green and white sign.

Nitori  ニトリ

The closest store we have to us is located in Kurihama.  Its about a 20 minute drive, is easy to find, and has a lot of parking.  This store has decent prices and reminds me a lot of Target in the U.S.  The store has a good selection of housewares, bedding, curtains, and furniture.  We ended up buying all the boys' desks here and they were reasonably priced compared to other places in town.  This has been a bonus for us because the yen rate has been pretty low since we arrived in Japan.  Many people I've talked to in Yokosuka still don't know about this store.  Check it out if you get a chance.  You'll be happy you did.

They just opened a 5-story store up in Ginza in Tokyo.

Uniqlo ユニクロ

This clothing store is popular and has locations in Asia, Europe and The United States.  It has very simple clothes and reminds me of The Gap.  They have good sales, many locations, "some" clothes that fit Amerika-jin and best of all, they take credit cards (Visa and Mastercard....no American Express).

My favorite purchase from Uniqlo this winter!

100 Yen Shop 100円ショップ

The 100 Yen Stores here are the best.  They have many where we live.  The other day Justin took me to one on Blue Street that I'd never been to.  You can find similar items like at The Dollar Tree back home, but I think that some of the dollar stores here have nicer products.....especially if you go to Daiso next to The Mercure Hotel.  They have some great dishes, treats, baking supplies, party supplies, curtains, etc.  These stores are worth going to especially if you're a visitor to Japan.  If you want to go on a fun field trip, there is a 5 story 100 Yen Store in Machida.  You'll usually never leave these stores empty-handed.

Remembering March 11th

Last weekend was the 1st Anniversary of Japan's earthquake and tsunami.  Everyone took a moment of silence at 2:46p.m. to remember all those lost and affected by this natural disaster.  While I feel like our lives were full of uncertainty and unknown for days and weeks following the earthquake, my heart truly goes out to the Japanese who lost everything on March 11th.

We recently watched the documentary called Japan Tsunami:  Tales of Terror.  This documentary showed amateur videos of survivors filming the tsunami.  These people literally saw the tsunami sweep their towns away before their own eyes.  It was completely devastating to watch on film, and cannot imagine seeing it in person.  I commend the Japanese survivors who lived to tell their stories, and for trying to move forward with their lives.

The survivors could not begin to move forward without the help from their own countrymen, and other concerned parties around the world.  I am thoroughly impressed by the people we know in our own local community who have taken part in clothing drives, fundraisers, and forming their own group to help support people affected in Tohoku.  I've blogged before that I am part of a group called Helping Hands for Tohoku.  This group was started by a Japanese lady who I met after the earthquake.  Her commitment to helping people affected by the disaster is on-going.  The group's original members were wives of the military community, but the group has branched out and now has members outside of Japan.  Providing even the basic necessities (soap, shampoo, towel, etc) means so much to survivors who had few, or no belongings when they were forced to relocate.  I am so proud to be a part of this group.  Thank you Masako-san for being such a tireless leader. 

Book about the military's mission post earthquake/tsunami.

I also want to say thank you to all the people who were concerned about us last year.  We do appreciate your emails and Facebook messages.  Just know that new friendships and other support systems were available to us during the crisis.  We continue to be happy to call Japan our home.  We look forward to being involved at some point in the cleanup efforts up north.  This is one of our family's goals for 2012.

Girls Day or Hinamatsuri

A collection of Hina Ningyo (Girls Day dolls).

Japan celebrates Girls Day, or Hinamatsuri on March 3rd each year.  Although its not a national holiday, its meaning is significant.  As infants, girls are given Hina dolls as a custom to promote health, growth and happiness.  This year, I was invited to Tokyo to have brunch and attend a Hinamatusuri exhibit at Meguro Gajoen with some American and Japanese ladies. 

Sunday Brunch at The New Sanno Hotel.

The company, food and doll exhibit were wonderful. We went up some 100 stairs (total) at  the exhibit with our slippers on to see the various doll collections.  Because taking pictures wasn't allowed, its hard to express the detail and beauty in these dolls.  Traditionally, the dolls are displayed in a 7 tiered fashion atop a red covering called hi-mōsen with the Emperor and Empress on the top tier and musicians, and other attendants on the subsequent tiers.  Everyone is displayed in traditional clothing dating from the Heian period which was from 794-1185.

I learned that each region in Japan has different looking dolls, and some regions display their dolls in a different order.  Some dolls were also dressed very ornately, while others were dressed simple.  It was very nice to have the Japanese ladies with us to translate and explain the various types of dolls and their significance.  I had another great day, and experience in Japan

Keepsakes from Hinamatsuri.