Last Day in Japan

November 12

Today is my last full day in Japan.

Nara. Nara actually was the first capital of Japan before Kyoto. It was picked as the first capital because of its abundant amount of resources and basin-like landscape. Nara is famous for its deer and the Big Buddha. And I was able to see both.

The Sacred Animal. Playing with the deer was definitely an exciting part of my trip. Usually deer are either caged, used as bait, or road kill. Most are too scared of everything and run away at any sound or movement. The deer here in Nara are almost domesticated. Without a gated area or cage, the deer roam around freely in a large park in Nara. There are over 1,200 deer in Nara Park and they are so domesticated that they will approach you with ease. In the past, the deer were considered holy animals (the messenger of the shrine) and anyone who hurt or killed a deer in Nara would be executed immediately. Of course, this was an ancient law but they are still valued very much in this small city. These deer will let you pet and hold them. This is mainly because they want your food but it was fun to experience several deer chasing you around especially since they are the ones usually getting chased. They will rub their head on your legs and sometimes nip your butt to get your attention. One actually grabbed at my shirt and wouldn’t let go. Later, he left a huge slobber spot on my shirt that smelled and didn’t dry for a while. I stuck with the younger deer since they were the less aggressive.

 

The Big Buddha. The Big Buddha is a statue created over a thousand years ago to symbolize the Japanese devotion to Buddhism. It sits 45 feet tall and is housed in the Todai-Ji Temple with other sacred monuments and statues. His hand positions convey a significant meaning to his followers. Buddha’s right hand up by his shoulder and faced towards you, tells you he will give you peace. His left hand positioned at his waist and facing upwards, tells you that he will answer your petition. He has been renovated several times since past devastation (his head ended up falling off at one point). In the temple, there is one pillar that had a particularly small hole right through the bottom. They say if you go through it, you will be able to go to paradise. So I got to witness a lot of people trying to fit through it, even those who you wouldn’t believe can fit. It was funny to watch. There was also a figure outside the temple that is supposed to heal your injuries. They say if you touch his specific body part, that same body part of yours will be healed. So I gave him good rubbing, on his back that is.

Unimpressive. During my walk in Nara Park, I was talking to a person in a tour group I was in. After learning of my education and experiences with different cultures, he asked me if I did any research about all the countries I was visiting before I left on my trip. I told him that I didn’t have too much time to research because the Thailand flood and since I booked my trip to Japan two days before I was supposed to leave the country. He then responded by telling me, “I’m actually quite unimpressed by you. Assuming that you are an educated girl and especially since you studied different cultures in the world, I thought you would know more about these countries.” I was very offended and shocked that someone I barely knew would say this to me. I think he assumed all this because I slightly misrepresented the distance between Mongolia and Beijing, China. I guess I assumed that the two destinations were a lot closer than it really was. I was just hoping I would be able to walk the Great Wall all the way to Mongolia. I responded by saying, “I actually know a lot more than you believe. Also, I am still learning.” I do believe that I know a lot about cultures around the world and I am actually pretty good with world geography. But I don’t know everything. A reason why I’m out here in the first place is so that I can learn more. He made it sound like I was an inefficient, uneducated person at the age of 24. This may have been the first time someone has said something so presumptuous like this to me. Not to justify his rude comments but he is actually a travel agent who has traveled to over 50 countries. He probably has high standards for fellow ‘want to be’ travelers. He kind of apologized later and told me that I probably know more than his female co-workers. Man! Tough guy to please.

Sake. I was lucky enough to go to a sake brewing factory and learn how the Japanese make their world-famous sake. The process is definitely different than the process of making wine (I think). I went to a factory located in Kobe, which actually produces 1/3 of Japan’s sake. The rice that is used for sake is longer in length and has a hollow interior (better for absorption). After polishing the rice grain (the more polished the higher the quality), the rice is fermented and liquefied into a unique tasting drink. The Sake Master was the best! He was the cutest elderly man (70 years old) with a high squeaky voice and as much energy as a kid on a sugar spree. He might as well have skipped around the factory as he described the sake making process. He has been working at the factory for over 50 years and has been in several sake documentaries. When tasting the sake, they looked concerned about my age. The drinking age is 20 in Japan and of course they assumed I was younger. I bet they were compelled to card me. The lemon and honey sake was the best! I wanted to bring one with me but I don’t have any more space in my luggage to lug it around Asia.

Kobe. Have you ever heard of the word, Kobe? Usually, one hears it when regarding the delicious, scrumptious, expensive slab of beef. And I was lucky enough to have a teppanaki-style dinner with Kobe steak from Kobe city. It was definitely the best steak I have ever had. Yum! Kobe is also known for their shopping. They say that people go to Kobe to buy shoes, and thus become bankrupt. So I steered away from the shoes. Although my boots were already ripping up from my voyage and I was tempted to buy a new pair. But most were around 20,000 yen (around $240).

The Port of Kobe. I also was able to visit the Port of Kobe, which was one part of Kobe that was destructed during the 1995 earthquake. At least 40,000 people were killed. It was fortunate that the earthquake occurred at 5 am in the morning since it would’ve been a more devastating if people were walking or driving around and about. Many of Kobe’s landmarks and structures were torn apart. The port was severely damaged and is preserved in its demolished state to help those remember what happened. Eerily, the port can still be seen underwater. It was really sad walking around the reconstructed port and reading about what happened a couple decades ago. Especially since Japan just experienced several disasters, it is difficult to think that one small country can be beaten up so badly. But then again, each country has and will continue to have its occasional beat down unfortunately.

Milk Tea Again. I know I’m obsessed. I was worse in high school. The closest milk tea store was about 30 minutes away and everyday after school I would drive to get my daily milk tea. I’ve spent a fortune just on milk tea. I even tried to help start a milk tea company with a friend during my high school years. But anyways, I was determined to get my last milk tea in Japan. I found one shop that sold milk tea but the entire menu was in Japanese. I didn’t know how to say milk tea in Japanese, especially since my first failed attempt a couple days earlier. So I asked a Japanese speaking person to help me order it. When approaching the counter, to my dismay, he said to the employee, “Tapioca Milk-ah Tea”. That was it! Every time I’ve ordered a milk tea, the employees never understood my attempt at the Japanese language or my gesturing. And I’ve ordered it a lot during this trip. All I had to do is add the ‘ah’ sound at the end of the milk and they would’ve recognize it. Can you believe it? Argh!

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Person Highlight

I met Akira on the tour I took in Japan. He is a very established and intelligent tour guide, born and raised right outside of Tokyo. During college, he ventured out to the States as a foreign exchange student and studied at the University of Pennsylvania. This is where he learned most of his English. After graduating college in Japan, he again came back to the States to get his MBA at Yale University. He has had several career paths (insurance, finance, etc.). He is not your typical Japanese working man since he has switched careers multiple times and also because he has started his own bike tour business. He leads you on a rigorous bike ride all across Japan while teaching you of the country’s history, culture, and food. He owns this business with his wife. They have two kids; one girl and one boy. Because the government is desperate to increase the Japanese population, he gets subsidized for having more children (10,000 yen or $120 for each child per month). They live in a 500 square foot condominium which costs a hefty $600,000 for such as small place. This is typical for most Japanese families. Since their place is so small, they all share one bedroom in which they have placed the kid’s bunk bed on top of their own bed ( I still don't understand how that works). He is a very nice and personable person and his English is impeccable. He used vocabulary words I don’t even know and English phrases one only learns about when raised in the States.

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Want to see more pictures from my trip to Japan? Visit https://plus.google.com/photos/103535186598541974109/albums/5679313846336279201?authkey=CN3qvvSBkqfWCQ