Sakura and Hanami

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Hi everyone,

Sakura is the Japanese term for cherry blossoms and this week the sakura made their much anticipated arrival to this part of Japan. It happened very quickly, it feels like I work up on Tuesday morning and the trees were suddenly full of the light pink and white blossoms! I didn´t want to miss out on cherry blosso season because its one of the highlights of the year in Japan so I headed to Himeji Castle, considered one of the most beautiful castles in Japan,on Thursday to take in the sights. Some of you may recognize Himejii from Tom Cruise´ film ´The Last Samurai´which filmed several scenes in the area, as the lady´s at the tourist info center so kindly reminded about 10 times. Perhaps not too shockingly the rest of the movie about a Japanese Samurai was actually filmed in New Zealand!

I knew as soon as I got off the train, that the cherry blossoms must be good at Himeji because hundreds of Japanese people were walking in the same direction as me towards the castle. They came prepared, many had bento (lunch) boxes with them for thier picnic. Himeji castle truly is a beautiful place. Not only does the castle still exist in its original form as it was built in 1580 and it is surrounded by moats and high walls. On the castle grounds there are over 1000 chrry trees, so the scent of sakura filled the air. As I was walking around taking in the flavours of the season I heard a voice say to me in broken English ´Excuse me, may I ask, where you are from´. The kind man asking introduced himself to me as Sinji Miyoshi , a ballroom dance teacher from Himejii who was enjoy a picnic under the blossoms with about 20 of his students. Sinji kindly invited me to join the group for their hanami (which means literally blossom viewing) . I quickly agreed, once again the Japanese have proved to me what a kind and welcoming group they are. Though Sinji was the only one that really spoke much English everyone was eager to feed me. Asaki beer, chicken, noodles, sweets and what felt like an endless supply of sake was placed before me, and anytime I finished anything it was immediately replenished. The average age of the group was about 70 years old, Sinji included. I learned he´s taught ballroom for 30 years and has over 1000 students. He also feels he´s discovered the next national champion and was disowned by his own father as a youngster for competing in ballroom competitions instead of becoming a respected salaryman. I was touched by the kindness of the group and their willingness to share the hanami festivities with me.

After saying sayonara to my new group of ballroom friends I headed to the Himejii zoo, conviently located on the same grounds as Himejii castle. Unfortunately, I can´t report that the animals at the zoo are loving their surroundings. They all looked pretty miserable stuck in small , dark cages. I saw some skinny kangaroos, couped up polar bears and a really bitter elephant, but the penguins seemed cheerful.

Today I took a tour of the local sake brewing company to learn how this Japanese staple is made. For those of you that haven´t tried it sake is worth a taste, but I warn you now it STRONG, the kind I tasted today had a 20% alcohol content! It was interesting to see how sake (which I learned pretty much wine made outta rice) was made for hundreds of years to the full automated process it is now.

Also this week I visited Sorakuen Garden, a traditional Japanese garden about 10 minute walk from my apartment. I have to say I think this is my favorite place I´ve been to yet. I was absolutely beautiful, goregous plants surrounding a pond and waterfalls, it was truly breathtaking and because the batteries in my camera died I´ll definately be going back for photos!

I continue to enjoy my time here, taking in the sights and sounds that make Japan a really remarkable mix of traditional and altramodern. Everyday brings something new...

That´s it for now, but I´ll be bombarding you with sakura pictures soon!

Miss you!
love, Melissa

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Comments

[Katie]

Sounds Great!
Hey Mel, You are so detailed in your descriptions! It almost feels like we are there with you. I am glad to hear you are having a nice time. The people seem so nice, it is such a rewarding experience for you : ) You will have to remember your Sake visit to maybe celebrate your birthday with! I know that is coming up! Talk to you soon, Katie

[ang]

hitting on men twice your age ... tsk tsk ... just jokes fennell