Sweat, Sumo and Stew

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The sumo seasons come around quickly in Japan, and Spring is one of the times to catch these salt throwing giants in all their glory.

I set off to the Tokyo sumo stables early one Spring morning, hoping to get a cheap seat and work my way up to the front. Luckily, all went to plan. It helps when you're a little gaigin (foreigner), alone amongst a sea of Japanese - pleading ignorance becomes so easy! I had been advised as long as I was in early I could take any seat so long as there weren't any tea sets placed on the pillow.

So finding my way into the massive stables I snuck to the front, and found a seat one back from the front row, so close I could literally feel the sweat dripping off the top knots.

Sumo is an interesting sport and I learned quite a bit about it from reading the little pack I was given on entry. There's plenty of time to read, chat, drink beer and generally have a good time as there's a fair share of arm swinging (so the opponent can check there are no weapons hidden in your arms pits), salt throwing (to purify the ring), and stamping (to drive evil from the ring), before both wrestlers have had enough glaring and stamping (there's a four minute time limit) and decide it's time and lunge forward, grunting and swaying. I managed to catch a few big throws and many episodes where the judges would all step into the ring to confer the finer points. It's all very serious.

Lunch time was fast approaching and I don't know if it was all the exertion but I was feeling mighty hungry. Time for some sumo stew. I was taken under the wing by a sweet elderly couple who didn't want me to eat alone, and while we were waiting I smiled and nodded to their chattering Japanese, occaisionally interjecting with my kindy level Japanese when I recognised a word or two.

As with most things in Japan, the sumo style lunch was managed with military precision. At 12.10pm on the dot the first forty or so patrons were herded upstairs to a kind of makeshift cafeteria, where our money was taken and we were handed a tray with a bowl of steaming broth. Sitting beside my new/old friends I tried my hardest to slurp as loud as possible to show my appreciation. All in all, a great morning and an inside into the traditional world of the sumo wrestler. Next time I would definately take a group of friends, a picnic and some beer and settle in for the final show down.

After I'd had my fill of sumo I walked over to the Edo museum, an amazing museum showcasing Tokyo's early life during the Edo period. The displays are fantastic and I would recommend it for a rainy day in Tokyo activity.

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Comments

[Lorraine]

obviously they eat very well
Thankyou for your blog on sumo wrestlers, very funny and interesting. How is it going in Tokyo? We just said goodbye to a student from Germany, your age. Babsie stayed one month with us, we became very close and we already miss her. Babsie is going to NZ sometime so I said to pop in and maybe stay at your house, maybe you will be home then Beautiful weather here today, start of pool weather. Take care Love Lorraine