Nara: The First Capital of Japan

billkralovec

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Yesterday we visited the UNESCO world heritage site of Nara Park. Nara is about an hour away from Osaka and is the home of the world’s largest bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana. The temple that houses the statue, Toodai-ji, up until 1998, was the world’s largest wooden structure. The temple is 57 meters long by 50 meters wide.

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There are 8 temples located in the large park in the forested foothills on the edge of the city of Nara. The coolest aspect are the over 1,000 sika deer that roam free in the park. The deer were once regarded as sacred because of an ancient legend that claims the Japanese god of martial arts, Kashima-no-Kami (the Japanese equivalent of Scandinavian Thor or Slavic Perun) came to the site riding a white deer. The deer’s status as sacred was dropped after World War II, when the rightist government lost of the war and moved towards a secular democracy. The deer are protected today. They scared Ocean quite a bit. They are everywhere and many lost fear of humans. You can pet them and admire them up close. We saw wild sika or spotted deer last winter in our trip up to Kinosaki, on the Sea of Japan coast. I blogged about my deer behavior observations in my nature blog here.

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The deer want Ocean’s ice cream!

The buddha statue is massive and worth seeing once. I read of relics of an former emperor (tooth, swords, etc.) are in the knee of the statue. There are many side temples and garden on the grounds. The main temple is called daibutsu and you can’t miss the size of the temple. Impressive how these were built so long ago. Of course through the years they have been rebuilt, with the last major reconstruction taking place in the late 1700s. The temple was actually larger when it was first built.

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Nara was the capital of Japan for almost 100 years about 1, 300 years ago. Japan has had a sophisticated, urban society for a long time! It is certainly worth spending the day at the park. I want to return to hike in the hills near the park. I recommend to bring a picnic lunch and some sports equipment and make a day of it. The park is big enough to avoid the crowds visiting the temples and museums.

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An over 1,000 year inscription of a bodhivastu on the lotus leaf statue in front of the great buddha.

 Here is an excerpt from a BBC documentary series about Japan and the park.

A Day at the Movies

billkralovec

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It was a miserable day of rain and cold yesterday so we did a double feature of movies. Many movies come out around Christmas to take advantage of families having time off together and also to be eligible for awards, which stipulates a movie needs to show for at least one week before the end of the year to be eligible for the Oscars, etc. It has become a Christmas tradition in the USA to go the movies. A new IMAX cinema opened last month in a new shopping mall (and football stadium) in Expo Park, which is very close to our home in Minoh.

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The view of the Expo City courtyard at night

Of course we had to take the kids to Star Wars, the Force Awakens. I’ve read a couple accounts of 40-50 year olds describing their feelings about the going to the new movie, 38 years after the original. I am in the key demographic for this experience, being 10 years old in 1977. I remember going to see the movie. I was never hugely into Star Wars as a kid, but we did have all of the action figures. The media hype for this latest edition has been massive and I was put off by it a bit. In seeing the film in 3D on an IMAX screen in Japan, is a long way away from when I saw it on a smaller screen in Crystal Falls, Michigan. It was very much like the original and I was a bit bored with it. As with many children’s action movies, the heroes escape many close calls against seemingly insurmountable odds time and again. Perhaps I am getting old and cranky…

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Futuristic Japan with welcome robots at the theatre

I loved the second movie we saw that day, Spectre. I am a big fan of the James Bond franchise and it was one of the reasons why I lived a global nomad lifestyle. I remember watching ABC’s Sunday Night at the Movies  with my Dad and the James Bond reruns were on all the time. Spectre didn’t disappoint with some great action scenes, exotic locales (Mexico City, Rome, Tangiers, Moroccan desert, London, etc) and for Nadia, some fashion ideas for me based on Daniel Craig’s wardrobe. I highly recommend it!

Christmas Journal 12/20/2015

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Under the mistletoe at the Osaka German Christmas market

Christmas markets are one of our family Christmas traditions. It started with our first visit to the Budapest, Hungary market, which in my opinion, is the best in the world. Nadia is a huge fan of Christmas markets. One Christmas we went to all the markets in Vienna. Austria and Germany are the most fanatical cultures I have seen about Christmas.

The center piece “tree” at the Osaka Christmas market

Last night we ventured downtown to the Osaka Christmas market in the Umeda Sky Plaza. Cultural public events are held there all year long. The city contracted a German Christmas market company, well, many of the employees doing sales and running the attractions were European. We didn’t choose the best night, a Saturday before Christmas, so it was quite crowded. By the end of our time there, it was clearing out, so it was better. That is one bad thing about Japan – too many people! The depopulation occurring now in my view is a good thing. They need more space here and with an island, you can’t find any. Anyway, we had a lot of laughs with the kids, running through the nearby park, drinking mulled wine, spinning on the carousel, and listening to Christmas carols. It was a nice cold evening and the mulled wines were perfect.

Today I had a day with the boys. Ocean has a sleepover at her friend’s tonight and they are going to Star Wars tomorrow. Nadia is still not feeling well, so the two Os and I went and played basketball. After watching the Pistons dramatic 4OT win over the Bulls, the boys are even more enthusiastic about hoops! I love it. They insist on going to the gym everyday, and I am happy to oblige (video above). After making some lunch for everyone, we then went for a hike up trail #8 in the Minoh quasi national park. We drove to the Katsuo-ji temple and parked the car in the entrance area to the hike. The trail goes over a high ridge to follow a creek through a valley to to another paved road in the park. We made it most of the way and turned around. The best part of hiking with my sons is our talks while we are walking. We played charades and had loads of laughs.

Oliver on trail #8

The forests in Japan are not diverse and much of the trees are planted. We saw tsubaki (tea family) trees in flower (‘the rose of winter’) and the ubiquitous sugi  (Japanese cedar), although it is not a cedar but a single-species genus of conifer. It is the national tree of Japan. We also heard the call of the brown-eared bulbul.

Cool path markers in Japan

I finished the day with a pleasant dinner with Nadia at our favorite local sushi restaurant. I love seafood and have a new appreciation for sushi. A blog post is coming soon.

Winter Holiday Journal: 12/19/2015

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Lunch with Ocean in Shin Osaka

We are not going anywhere for the Christmas holidays this year, but staying in Japan and enjoying time together as a family.

Yesterday was our first day off from school and I always find it takes a few days to unwind from work. We do not own a car here, instead we rent a car on the occasional weekend and during the holidays. Since we live only a couple of blocks away from school and with most shops that we need within walking or biking distance, we find that we get along without a car just fine. It causes us to bike and walk more which is a good thing! I always try to live close to our work as in my opinion, commuting cuts down one’s quality of life. I would rather have the extra time to do things I enjoy rather than devoting it to transport.

Ocean picks autumn leaves for Mom

Ocean and I went to pick up the rental car mid morning. We rode to the Senri Chuo station (10 minute bike ride) and took the train 5 stops (13 minutes) to the Shin-Osaka station. When we got to the rental place, I realized I forgot my international drivers license and so Nadia had to come down with it. She has a severe cold and it was tough for her to get out of bed, but she is always supportive of me. We had some time to kill so we stopped at Family Mart for something to eat. In the ubiquitous convenience stores in Japan, one can pay bills, get cash, buy tickets, make photocopies, passport photos, etc. the list goes on and on, hence the term convenient. It was kind of like a mini-lunch date as we ate underneath the skyscrapers and the bustling street life. Ocean is so beautiful and cute that she always receives gifts from store attendants. This time it was a series of postcards with characters from the popular manga/anime series One Piece.

Oasis supermarket

After picking up the car we stopped at a new supermarket, Oasis, on the way home. Supermarkets here are at the same level of quality as in the US, although they are not as large. I was impressed with the selection of craft beers and wines, and the girls loved the bakery, deli and fruits and vegetables.

In the afternoon the kids and I went to the school gym and played basketball. Owen is totally into the sport after his season and wants to play all the time. We had many laughs and we use creative ways to make the game fun with Oliver and Ocean. In the evening I did some things around the house and finally got around to replacing all the burnt out light bulbs. Nadia was still under the weather so we just spent time watching television. I made mini-pizzas for the kids. Children are up, will write again tomorrow.

 

Owen Finishes Basketball Season

billkralovec

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Owen is defending the inbounds pass against the Hokkaido International School.

Owen completed his basketball season this weekend at the Western Japan Athletics Association (WJAA) middle school boys tournament. Marist Brothers IS hosted the games in Suma Beach, located on the western side of Kobe. The Senri & Osaka International Schools “Sabers”, Owen’s team, lost a tough semifinal game 42-44 to the Sons of The Light, an international Christian school from Kobe. They were trying to avenge their only loss from the regular season, but just didn’t have enough. Owen made two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to bring the Sabers back. The Sabers went on defeat the Hokkaido IS in the consolation game to finish in third place. A disappointing finish for the team, because we thought they had the best team in the tournament. But that is the nature of the knockout format. The Sabers finished 11 wins and 2 losses, with wins over Kansai University International Academy, Marist Brothers, Nagoya IS, Canadian Academy, among others.

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Tip-off against the Sons of the Light (Owen is on the left side of the picture)

It was a breakthrough season for my son. He is enthused about basketball and is now following NBA games online and practices outside of the team practices and games. It would be nice to get him on a club team here and to get him to play in a basketball camp this summer in the USA. He was a part-time starter / sixth man on the middle school “A” team as a seventh grader. He is improving as he plays more and getting more comfortable with the game.

It is funny in the photos of this blog post the differences of the sizes of the boys. Grade 8 boys hit puberty and with growth spurts occurring at different times, you can really see young men playing against boys. Owen is still a little boy but is on the verge of onset of puberty.

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I was the assistant coach for the team this year, helping out head coach Rodney Ray. I worked more with the developmental squads (“B” and “C” teams) but got to spend some quality time with my son. Just getting the experience of playing on a competitive sports team and learning how to handle victory and defeat and be a part of a team is so valuable for boys. I would like to thank coach Ray for his dedication to the team and his work with Owen.

I am looking forward to follow his soccer season which starts in January. Go Sabers!

 

 

 

Yuzu: The Fruit of Minoh

billkralovec

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Late November / early December is the harvest of the yuzu, a type of citrus fruit. The yuzu is a hybrid, a cross between the sour mandarin (Citrus reticulata) and the Ichang papeda (Citrus ichangensis). The size ranges from the golf ball size (photo above) to grapefruit size (photo below). It has a tart taste and is used as a seasoning like lemon juice or the zest is used in many recipes. It can also be used to flavor vinegar or honey or fermented into an alcoholic drink on its own. It is unique in the citrus world in that it is frost tolerant and quite hardy.

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The fruit is also one of the symbols of our suburb of Minoh. The city has adopted the fruit as its mascot, the cute Yuzuru, the samurai with a tender heart. (below) The Japanese love mascots, as comedian John Oliver describes in this excerpt from his show. He is seen everywhere and he even has the bumpy skins of the yuzu.

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We have some around the house this week and I’ll try to use them and see what they taste like.

Viewing the White Egret

billkralovec

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On the way home from Tottori we stopped at the famous Himeji Castle in the Hyogo prefecture. It is an UNESCO world heritage site and the finest example of the classic Japanese feudal period architecture. We arrived too late in the day to enter, but we did admire it from the substantial grounds surrounding it. It is called the “white heron” or “white egret” because with the roof gables give it the appearance of the white bird taking off in flight.

Castles are always funny to me in that people don’t realize all the awful things that took place on the site. They are usually the sites of great battles where men died and if the raid successful, the women and children enslaved. Because it happened so long ago however, people look at them for the architecture and history, but not the tragic human story. Himeji is no exception to this rule and since it was originally built in the 1300s, probably many people died fighting for control of the castle and the town. It is built on a hill and dominates the city.

It is remarkable that it is still standing. During World War II, a bomb landed on the roof but failed to detonate, meanwhile the entire city was destroyed by the allies. It survived the Great Hanshin earthquake of 1995, while once again, many buildings in the city were destroyed. Earlier, it was almost demolished and developed by the locals, but the expense of tearing it down, prevented various parties throughout history from doing so.

I am glad that it remained standing and perhaps if we are in the area, we will return to go inside. We found several geocaches around the castle and despite the rainy night, it was a good time. I want to thank the Tsubaki and Marce families for coming with us!

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Daisen National Park

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During the fall break we took a few days to visit the prefecture of Tottori and the Daisen-Oki national park. It is my favorite place in Japan (so far) and it was our second visit to the area. We went with two other families from the school community. The kids had a blast, and the adults too!

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photo – Evan, Owen, Bill and Noah at Misen Peak

The highlight for me was the hike on Tuesday. We walked to the 1,709  (5,608 feet) meter high Misen Peak, in the Mount Daisen National Park. Despite fog, rain and cold winds, I had a wonderful day with my family and friends. Much of the pleasure of the hike was taken away by the clouds and fog obscuring the spectacular views to the nearby Sea of Japan. It was made up for me by spending the day outdoors and with my family. Highlights included walking through the gloomy beech forests near the town, with the falling leaves and then leaving the forest past the tree line to the summit. The winds whipping up the face of the mountain and going over at low points on the ridge were amazing to walk through! They were interspersed by quiet areas protected by rocks and bushes. It was a difficult hike with rocky steps mostly going straight up for the 6 miles up and down the trail. Nadia and the rest of the mothers and children made it to the turnaround point, close to the end of the beech forest. Owen and I and the three others went on from there to make the summit. The next day we saw snow on the mountain, so overnight, the icy winds and rain must have turned to snow, shortly after we left the summit. It was about 3 hours walk up and 2 hours walk back. The hot bath at our pension was just what the doctor ordered upon return, and a 2 hour nap!

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photo – Although it Daisen looks like Michigan, you don’t get Buddhist shrines in the forest like in Japan.

Daisen mountain has that classic volcano look from the west, but it has not erupted for the past 10,000 years. It has long been the center of worship, with the Daisen-ji temple founded almost 1,300 years ago. Shugendo, an ancient Japanese religion adapting shinto, taoism, buddhism and other beliefs, is practiced here. Adherents seek awakening through understanding the relationship between humans and nature and practitioners do this through denying themselves worldly pleasures and spending a lot of time on the mountain.

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photo – The kids heading up the stairs of the Daisen-ji temple.

It is pretty close to Osaka (2-4 hours) and is a relatively remote, unpopulated part of Japan. The area around the mountain reminds me of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, so that might be one of the reasons why I love going there.

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On the other side of the prefecture(state) are the Tottori sand dunes, which we visited the day before. Kids love them! It made for a perfect sunny afternoon. The weather was so nice that a couple of us even went for a swim. The huge dunes were a blast to climb up and sprint down. The crashing waves of the sea were relaxing. It might have been our last warm day of the season, as it is getting cold with the onset of winter.

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The dunes were shaped by winds bringing sand up from the sea. Over 100,000 years of this formed the only large dunes in Japan. Since World War II however, they have been shrinking due to a government reforestation program and tsunami walls further up the coast, changing wind patterns. Today they are 16 kilometers long and 2 kilometers wide.

A wonderful autumn break!

Quirky Japan: Children at Play Signs

billkralovec

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(photo – A sign at a nearby park cautions drivers that children are near)

This is another in my continuing series of “quirky Japan” which covers the little things about life in Japan that makes it distinct.

My brother and I used to joke about the “Slow Children at Play” (see below) that why are government authorities criticizing the speed of kids in a particular park. Did they take 40-yard dash times like in the NFL and deem them slow? I don’t think we consciously realized that they were meant as a warning for drivers to slow down because there is a high probability of children crossing streets or riding their bicycles in the vicinity. As a parent I am now very aware of the purpose of the signs.

 

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Japan takes these signs to a new level as you can see in the lead photo of this post. Mascots and cartoon figures are very popular here so it makes sense that they could be used instead of the traditional sign in the USA. I think it is much more effective that a street sign because it is so different. There are many different styles of these signs depending on the municipality or school. Below are warning signs at a pedestrian path in my neighborhood.

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The other aspect I want to feature is the ubiquitousness of vending machines. They are everywhere! There must be thousands of beverage vending machines in the Osaka metropolitan area. I will pay more attention to them and later do a more in depth blog post. I am curious about the economics behind them. How much money do they make? How often do they need to be re-stocked? Do they malfunction often?

My children cannot pass one with out asking me for change. They feature both hot and cold drinks and there seems to be a vast number of different drinks to choose from ranging from teas and coffees, to water, sports drinks, energy drinks, etc. The machine below is on a corner across from the park in our neighborhood. On the other side are rice paddies. They can’t have that many people patronizing the machine. Where does it get electricity from? So many questions…

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Brotherhood

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It was a delight to get spend some time with my brother again when he visited me earlier this month. We haven’t seen each other in person since my dad’s funeral in February of 2012.  We talk on  regular basis, but living far away from each other and my family not spending summers in  Michigan anymore, means that we don’t spend time together.

Growing up five years apart meant that I was always on the next stage of childhood or adolescence. When I was in high school, he was in elementary, when I went off to college, he was in high school, etc.  We have become closer in adulthood. It is special that I can maintain a close relationship with him and hope to continue to do so. Brothers have so many common memories and shared stories, that it got me reflecting a lot during his visit on my family. We had a nice childhood and my parents did a good job of raising us, including my other brother Jim.

It is also a chance to see my dad again, in a way. I am adopted and do not share any physical traits with my Kralovec family, but Andy is not adopted and has my Dad’s voice, eyes and some of his mannerisms. It made me sad that my father is gone and I wish he and my mom could see their grandchildren grow up and see us as middle aged men.

The old axiom is true that your brothers and sisters are the people in life you have the longest relationship with. They are there from the start, and even though we marry and have children of our own, there is a special bond between siblings that is always there because of growing up together.

Thanks Andy and Chantal for coming to visit us! The kids really enjoyed having you stay with us. You are welcome anytime!