Questions With No Answer

Last day of classes we went out to Meiji Jingu, a shrine to the last emperor of Japan and a popular spot in Tokyo.

Last time I went it was sunny, humid, and generally gross. This time, we had a light cool drizzle. And walking through the great forest around Meiji Jingu was soothing and a whole different experience. It really felt like you were entering a sacred space.

By the time we got there the rain had slowed to a slight misty drizzle.

The whole middle courtyard was slick with rain, as the tsuyu (rainy season) had begun. The main part of the shrine, where the treasure of the shrine is kept, is offlimits for photography. There were several monks out and about, cleaning, greeting visitors, and tending to the inner shrine.

These are ema. They're wooden plaques with wishes written on them. At Meiji Jingu, you can see lots of ema in different languages. We saw Japanese, Korean, Chinese, English, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese, French, Dutch, and German. Most of them were well-wishes for Japan as they recover from the earthquake and tsunami. Some were from Japanese students asking the kami (gods) to give them scholarships or to help with entrance exams.

Afterwards we walked back to have classes.

That night the whole group, including our teachers, went out for okonomiyaki, a sort of Japanese pancake containing batter, cabbage, a meat of choice, and a few other vegetables topped with tonkatsu sauce and mayonnaise. Not my thing, but man did they feed the hell out of us.

What I learned...
- Japanese businessmen can smell your fear. (forgot to put this in my last entry, oops.)
- My favorite sign ever is still there.
- Mayonnaise. Mayonnaise everywhere.