Tea Ceremony
Japan has been excellent so far. It's a shame we're leaving tomorrow. I want to come back some day and experience more of it.
I'll start with today since it's freshest in my mind:
We went to a Japanese tea ceremony. This is something I've always wanted to take part in. The hotel has its own tea garden on the 5th floor. It's a beautiful, serene place.. the perfect setting. We walked across the stones on the ground until we reached the tea house. We removed our shoes at the door and were politely invited in. The room had a floor of tatami and red carpets over the tatami where we sat. In the center was a square opening in the tatami where the charcoal fire was lit; upon it was a kettle of water. My spot was the opposite side of the kettle, from the door. We sat in the seiza position and were immediately greeted with sweets from the assistant. They were absolutely delicious. As we ate, we watched as the tea master performed a ritual cleansing of her utensils and prepared to make the koicha tea. I was the first to be served, as I was the first to arrive, followed by my mom and dad. The assistant placed the first bowl in front of me. I lifted it, raised it in appreciation, and turned it twice, as instructed by the tea master, so that I did not drink from the front. The tea master asked me how it tasted. I told her it was very good... and it was. Everyone else was served in turn and we enjoyed the tea. In addition to my family, there were three japanese women attending. They smiled at us often. It was nice, because I was afraid we would be awkward... never having been to a ceremony before, but everyone was very helpful in guiding us and never making us feel stupid.
After the ceremony concluded, the tea master explained some things to us. She showed us the matcha, and the scoop for the matcha. She explained that matcha was ground tea leaves and that we were drinking the entire leaf, rather than just steeping it and drinking the extract. The container that the matcha was in was adorned with a crane and pine trees.
It was a great experience, one that I hope to reproduce some day. It was very very enjoyable.
Yesterday we finally made it out of the big cities and went up into the mountains. Taking a bus, we were able to see the beautiful mountain landscape and the picturesque rivers. We arrived at our destination (we were hoping to gain a view of Mount Fuji), and began looking for the mountain. Unfortunately, we found that there was another mountain in our way and we would be unable to see it. Regardless, there were lots of little stores in the area. We were in a place called Hakazone. Apparently, a certain type of artwork done with different cuts of wood was invented here, and so all of the shops featured this type of art. When I say this, I do not mean it was a touristy place, in fact, I have yet to see a touristy place in japan. On a tangent, but incredible, none of these shops had locks on their doors. There were no locks.. none at all. These people have no fear of robbery. Can you imagine living in a place like that? A place where there are no locks on the doors? Amazing.
The other day we visited the temple in which the 47 ronin and their Lord Asano are buried. It was a very serene place, the only guests being a few japanese who came to put incense on the graves and pray to the warriors. There was a tiny museum on the grounds that had artifacts from the incident, including the whistle used to call out to the other warriors to tell them that the enemy lord had been found. There was also a letter jointly written by them as well as a few other interesting artifacts. Also on the grounds was the well in which they cleansed the enemy lord's head after killing him, and the stone by which Lord Asano committed seppuku.
While in Japan, we also visited a Zen temple, Tofukuji in Kyoto; founded in 1236. They had a large rock garden. The place was very serene. If I was alone I would have stayed by the rock garden for a while and sat in meditation. I was unable to do this, but I took a second to quiet my mind and have a moment of stillness.
It is of no doubt that the Japanese people are one of a kind. Their helpfulness never ceases to amaze me. Any time a japanese with a spare moment sees us having difficulty, he stops and helps us... often walking us to our destination so that we do not get lost. How many people would do that in America? They even have free tour guides here in Japan. In exchange, they simply ask you to help them practice their english.
Well, I've got to go now, we're about to visit a temple, as is customary on the 1st of the year. I'll try to write more later.
I'll start with today since it's freshest in my mind:
We went to a Japanese tea ceremony. This is something I've always wanted to take part in. The hotel has its own tea garden on the 5th floor. It's a beautiful, serene place.. the perfect setting. We walked across the stones on the ground until we reached the tea house. We removed our shoes at the door and were politely invited in. The room had a floor of tatami and red carpets over the tatami where we sat. In the center was a square opening in the tatami where the charcoal fire was lit; upon it was a kettle of water. My spot was the opposite side of the kettle, from the door. We sat in the seiza position and were immediately greeted with sweets from the assistant. They were absolutely delicious. As we ate, we watched as the tea master performed a ritual cleansing of her utensils and prepared to make the koicha tea. I was the first to be served, as I was the first to arrive, followed by my mom and dad. The assistant placed the first bowl in front of me. I lifted it, raised it in appreciation, and turned it twice, as instructed by the tea master, so that I did not drink from the front. The tea master asked me how it tasted. I told her it was very good... and it was. Everyone else was served in turn and we enjoyed the tea. In addition to my family, there were three japanese women attending. They smiled at us often. It was nice, because I was afraid we would be awkward... never having been to a ceremony before, but everyone was very helpful in guiding us and never making us feel stupid.
After the ceremony concluded, the tea master explained some things to us. She showed us the matcha, and the scoop for the matcha. She explained that matcha was ground tea leaves and that we were drinking the entire leaf, rather than just steeping it and drinking the extract. The container that the matcha was in was adorned with a crane and pine trees.
It was a great experience, one that I hope to reproduce some day. It was very very enjoyable.
Yesterday we finally made it out of the big cities and went up into the mountains. Taking a bus, we were able to see the beautiful mountain landscape and the picturesque rivers. We arrived at our destination (we were hoping to gain a view of Mount Fuji), and began looking for the mountain. Unfortunately, we found that there was another mountain in our way and we would be unable to see it. Regardless, there were lots of little stores in the area. We were in a place called Hakazone. Apparently, a certain type of artwork done with different cuts of wood was invented here, and so all of the shops featured this type of art. When I say this, I do not mean it was a touristy place, in fact, I have yet to see a touristy place in japan. On a tangent, but incredible, none of these shops had locks on their doors. There were no locks.. none at all. These people have no fear of robbery. Can you imagine living in a place like that? A place where there are no locks on the doors? Amazing.
The other day we visited the temple in which the 47 ronin and their Lord Asano are buried. It was a very serene place, the only guests being a few japanese who came to put incense on the graves and pray to the warriors. There was a tiny museum on the grounds that had artifacts from the incident, including the whistle used to call out to the other warriors to tell them that the enemy lord had been found. There was also a letter jointly written by them as well as a few other interesting artifacts. Also on the grounds was the well in which they cleansed the enemy lord's head after killing him, and the stone by which Lord Asano committed seppuku.
While in Japan, we also visited a Zen temple, Tofukuji in Kyoto; founded in 1236. They had a large rock garden. The place was very serene. If I was alone I would have stayed by the rock garden for a while and sat in meditation. I was unable to do this, but I took a second to quiet my mind and have a moment of stillness.
It is of no doubt that the Japanese people are one of a kind. Their helpfulness never ceases to amaze me. Any time a japanese with a spare moment sees us having difficulty, he stops and helps us... often walking us to our destination so that we do not get lost. How many people would do that in America? They even have free tour guides here in Japan. In exchange, they simply ask you to help them practice their english.
Well, I've got to go now, we're about to visit a temple, as is customary on the 1st of the year. I'll try to write more later.