When you take the time to sort out alternative ways to get to airports it’s amazing how easy it can be. The train from Central Station in Sydney to the International Terminal took all of 10 minutes, and cost a third of what a taxi would’ve. The fact that it was 5:15AM meant it was still dark, but I loved how easy it was! My flight on JAL was delightful and not at all crowded, and as one might expect in Tokyo, immigration and customs was fast and efficient. I had been told that the easiest way to get to Shinjuku was to take the Limousine Bus (an oxymoron I know), but sure enough the ticket counter was right near the exit and a bus to take me to my hotel was boarding in 3 minutes. And 90 minutes later I had arrived.
After weeks in a very accessible, English-speaking, large and uncrowded country, Japan is a bit of a culture shock — back to the Asian crowds and indecipherable signage and unpronounceable street names. It will take a little adjustment, but what won’t is remembering which way to look for traffic in crossing the street, as they drive on the wrong side here too! We got a late start this morning since Karen had a bit of jet lag to overcome, but headed out this morning for our first excursion.
We walked towards the Harajuku neighborhood, which is a mash-up of all the most eccentric things you are likely to run into in Tokyo — roads both great and small, peppered with interesting buildings, the almost-profane culture of the Harajuku Bridge right next to the Meiji-jingu shrine. We were headed for the shrine, and didn’t see the activity that supposedly takes places on the bridge, but it’s worth noting. Every weekend young girls between the ages of 15-20 gather here, dressed up according to whichever particular subculture they have espoused: rock group look, costume role play, manga or anime characters, gothic Lolita, etc. Some even dress up as their avatars. I’m sorry to have missed it!
The Meiji Emperor Mutsuhito and his wife, the Empress Shoken, are honored at this Shinto shrine. It’s one of the holiest shrines in a beautiful park with lovely tree-lined paths and an inner garden that had been the garden of Lord Karo of Kumamoto during the Edo period (1603-1867). It includes an iris section, planted in a winding stream form, an azalea garden and a teahouse built by the Emperor for his bride. It is said that both the Emperor and Empress wrote poetry in this lovely space. Emperor Meiji was the 122nd Emperor of Japan, and ascended to the throne in 1867. He is revered for his efforts to promote friendship with other countries and to introduce Western Civilization while preserving Japanese identity.
At the entrance to the area there was a torii gate, and the purification fountain with bamboo ladles. The most well known of the gates was carved out of 1,500-year-old cypress trees and is the largest of it’s kind in Japan. The shrine itself was undergoing some renovations, so some areas were covered, but one could still buy a votive tablet (ema) on which to write a wish to be conveyed to higher beings by the priests. And while we were there we were surprised by a wedding procession. Ushered to the sides of the central “aisle”, the bride and groom, attendants and family all filed passed the tourists with cameras!
Along one of the avenues leading to the shrine were dozens of barrels across from each other — one of French wines, the other of Sake barrels. The wine, all from the Bourgogne region were representative of Emperor Meiji’s efforts towards “Japanese Spirit and Western Knowledge”. The sake barrels are offered every year to the enshrined deities to show deep respect to the souls of the Emperor and Empress. The juxtaposition of the two rows do suggest support for the embrace of a way through Japanese culture to Western ideas.
And then it rained, and we stopped for our first Japanese meal. Found our way to a subway station and took the first one that came along; thankfully it was headed in the right direction!
And that was day 1 in the land of the rising sun.
