Living Life to its Fullest: 10/5/10 – Day 10 – WELCOME TO JAPAN: Zao Mountains & My Birthday

Today was indeed a wonderful day. We had our first stop in Japan at the port of Sendai. I was awaken this morning as we were pulling into the dock by drum beating and chanting. I went out on our balcony in my PJ’s and sure enough, it was the Japanese welcome crew. There were about 20 people in traditional Japanese dress; the men were dancing and beating on drums while the women were dancing with fans. All were chanting a beautiful harmony. I then went back into my cabin and got dressed and ready for our first day in Japan. The Japanese officials boarded our boat. We each had to be seen by them for a passport check, fingerprinting, and photograph. It was quite an operation, but went smoothly. My parents and I got off of the ship about 8:30 this morning, were greeted by our tour guides, and boarded a bus for Mt. Zao.

We were quickly taught how to say “good morning” in Japanese, which is quite easy to remember. I’m not sure how to spell it, but it’s pronounced just like the state of “Ohio” with emphasis on the 2^nd syllable. We also learned that our port city of Sendai was on the same latitude as Washington D.C, which gave us an understanding of the time of year in relation to the weather. As we snaked our way up to the top of the mountain in the bus, the autumn colors shown more and more vibrantly. It was a beautiful two-hour drive. Our tour guide, “Itsy”, was very kind, knowledgeable, and fluent in English.

Upon arriving on the mountain, we learned that Zao really wasn’t the name of the mountain. Instead, it was the name of the whole mountain range. The actual name of the mountain was Okama, which literally means cauldron or crater. This was appropriate because of the large crater lake that was on top of the mountain. It was beautiful. Also atop this mountain was a religious shrine, which are located all throughout the country. Everywhere you see a “torii gate” there will be a shrine present somewhere close by. The main religions of Japan are Shinto (worship of nature) and Buddhism. These are not competing religions. Instead, most practice both in unison and harmony together. Upon crossing through the “torii gate” an individual is said to be blessed. Then they go forth to the shrine to leave their prayers. At the top of Mt. Okama, there was a small store in which to purchase a variety of items that were said to provide you with certain protection, healing, or blessings.

After leaving the mountain, we went to a restaurant for a traditional Japanese box lunch. This was a wooden box, split into four sections. Each section contained different types of traditional foods. Of course there was Sashimi, or raw fish, in one section. Another section contained sliced vegetables and a shrimp that were fried in a tempura batter. A third section contained some other vegetables that were unique. And, the last section had a piece of cooked breaded fish with two other random things. Accompanying our box meal was a bowl of soup, another bowl with rice, a cup of tea and a dessert of cut pears and pineapple. I ate it all except the pieces of raw tuna and salmon, and a small chunk of vegetable that I didn’t care much for.

After lunch, we headed to a Kokeshi doll museum. These dolls are individually handmade and are decorated with paint patterns unique to the given city or prefecture (their country divisions similar to “states”). The many dolls on display were pretty remarkable. And, even more impressive was watching individuals hand craft and/or paint these dolls. Also at the doll factory, we were able to walk around a bit on the adjacent trails, which strolled through gardens and by a beautiful river.

During the two hour bus ride back home, the tour guide presented me with a birthday gift, a pack of origami paper, and had the group sing “Happy Birthday” to me. It was very nice. Earlier in the day, my parents had given me a birthday card with some Japanese Yen to have as spending money (100 Yen is equal to $1.20). After arriving back to the ship, we set sail. The dancers and drummers were there, once again, to give us a nice send off. At dinner this evening, some of the wait staff brought me a cake for desert and sang “Happy Birthday” as well as an Indonesian “happy song”. Now, it’s time for bed. Overall, it was a pretty incredible day. The Japanese people are very kind, proper, and exact. I’m rather excited to spend 3 more days in the country. Tomorrow, we take the train into Tokyo and will venture out on our own using public transportation to see the sights. I’m sure it will prove to be quite an adventure as Tokyo is a massive metropolitan area, of which I’ve heard can be quite overwhelming to the visitor. But, I’m sure all will go well, and I’ll have lots to blog about.