prize-winning photos

temples & temples etc

2007-02-25T07:42:00.000-08:00

This be Kiramizu, in Kyoto.

This be some statuary in that same place, which is a big place, with great views. (Views not caught on camera.)

This is somewhere else. Japan's biggest bell. Perhaps. No, I think it really is.

One of the two love-rocks, back at Kiramizu, with three schoolgirls giving the peace-sign. The love-rocks are twenty yards or so apart. If you can walk from one to t'other with your eyes firmly shut, then you'll be lucky in love.

That same love-rock, with a girl from the East Midlands giving the peace-sign.

I hope she forgives me for calling her a girl. This is another big bell, I forget where.

A holy waterfall. Those boxes you can see are actually a kind of shower cabinet en plein air. Not a popular shrine this, but charming. You've got to climb a lot of steps to get there. Possibly more popular in the summer, when taking a holy shower might appeal more.

The great market we went to in Kyoto, once again. Would have been nice to have all the market shots together, but you can't have everything.

Hmmm. I think this is at Matsuyama Castle.

Meiji-jingu, the massive Shinto shrine in Tokyo. The gods were being kept busy.

The gravelly grounds of the castle in Kyoto.

Ditto, with big gate.

The bit round the back of the castle in Kyoto.

team pizza

One of the many temples in Nikko.

We saw a couple of these. They are, I think, Zen memorials in memory of the most Zen.

The old trick of writing down your troubles on a fish and dissolving it - along with said troubles - in holy water. Em hasn't looked back.

The holy rabbit, doing a spot of fishing.

people 2

2007-02-22T11:52:00.000-08:00

An international celebration of tea.

Good, gloopy macha, with a sesame sweet.

Emma learns the way of the whisk. She is careful to respect the utensils.

Spot the Buddha on the horizon.

You might think you've seen this one already. You'd be wrong.

Tourism fatigue.

Firemen.

Tree worship.

Ishite-ji

2007-02-20T10:33:00.000-08:00

I didn't realise I'd taken so many photos of Ishite-ji, the temple complex we visited in Matsuyama (the one on the pilgrimage route mentioned in an earlier post). This one, however, is not Ishite-ji, but of something we happened upon en route.

It wasn't entirely clear to us what this gathering of statuary was all about. We briefly - and naively - thought it might be Ishite-ji itself.

It was certainly dilapidated.

When we got to the real Ishite-ji, people were just beginning to arrive. A guy from New Zealand at the hostel recommended that we go as early as possible, before the tour buses show up.

Guaranteed to wake the gods.

Buddhas in their bibs.

Em lit a candle. She's very hands-on, when it comes to temple tourism.

Reminiscent of a millstone.

The Ishite-ji pagoda.

Evidently the big stack of pine branches were going to be burnt later in the day. There were photos of last year's burning.

We were having a peek behind one of the buildings when suddenly a tour group enveloped us. The guide opened a door that was literally set in the mountainside & everyone began to file in. I would have stayed put, but I was glad that Em insisted that we tag on to the end. I had visions of the guide delivering a detailed speech in the bowels of the hill. Happily they didn't come to pass. We marched along a dark corridor lined with barely visible statues and pictures for about five minutes, if that, and then emerged in a different part of Ishite-ji.

postcards

2007-02-19T10:54:00.000-08:00

On Shikoku there are 88 temples that you can visit in the course of a mammoth pilgrimage, picking up a stamp at each one. On foot, it's a considerable investment of time. Our hostel was a mile or so from one of these temples & on the day we left Matsuyama we went and had a look at it a visit directly after breakfast. I don't think any photos of the temple itself have gone up yet (they will!) - in the meantime, you can admire this enormous Buddha (bigger than he looks) keeping an eye on things from his vantage-point atop the hillside.

I like this photo a lot, if I do say so myself. It's Matsuyama again. The hostel, which we made quite a meal of finding, was up on a hill in Dogo, where the onsen is. Dogo is right on the edge of Matsuyama and this view looks back towards the city. In the distance you can just make out Matsuyama castle, on its hill.

The 'A-Bomb Dome' in Hiroshima. The frame of this building - I think it was a bank - survived because it was directly beneath the epicentre of the blast. It's been kept as a memorial.

Kyoto, as seen from one its many temples, nestled in the hills to the east of the city.

You'll perhaps need quite a generous definition of postcard for this last one. Look carefully and you might be able to see some people playing tennis in Matsuyama.

miscellaneous 2

2007-02-19T10:25:00.000-08:00

Baseball is really big in Japan. They've been playing it since the 1880s.

I was sorely tempted by these, but it would have been hard to get them home in one piece. (This and the above photo are of the same market in Kyoto where Emma is seen somewhere below buying a turquoise housecoat.)

This clocktower in Matsuyama is a relatively recent addition to the city. Every hour it celebrates the novella Bochan by Natsume Soseki (set in Matsuyama, and rather down on the place) with moving parts and music.

Here is the clock moments before it burst into life. The guy with the yellow jersey is a very excited tour-guide.

Matsuyama again. An extraordinary collection of stuff arranged on the Youth Hostel reception desk.

I was trying to capture exotic vegetables.

The Ryokan Hiraiwa in Kyoto in darkness. We stayed there two nights.

Our room at Hiraiwa.

Diagonal zebra-crossing! And part of Kyoto station.

Lawson rides again! In Takayama, I think.

Walking the Path of Philosophy, Kyoto.

hi-tech, mid-tech, lo-tech (plus street scenes, some unremarkable)

2007-02-16T09:12:00.000-08:00

On the Path of Philosophy, Kyoto.

Whole lotta building going on.

Picking up a metrocard ...

... in order to gad about a Tokyo a bit ...

... and forget which photos you took where. Is this Shibuya?

Shaky.

Roppongi. Round the corner from Hannah's diggings.

I rotated this photo, but it has turned itself back round.

Intensive smoking (one response to the hi-tech).

Gargantuan new train station in Kyoto. Reputed to have an entire city inside it.

The Kyoto tower, from the roof of the new station, with some municipal art. And, in shadow, one of municipal art's biggest fans. (I kid you not.)

Industry! On Shikoku. There was a lot more of it, even more industrial, but I didn't get the camera primed in time.

There are many good-looking skyscrapers in Japan. They gleam. Somehow I ended up with this rather bleak photo.

Super expressway in Roppongi, taken from Hannah's balcony. Granted, here it looks a bit like it's just a road. But it is striding along forever on stilts, as if the Hammersmith Flyover had made a bid to get to Bethnal Green. Or Bognor.

I forget what kind of tickets these were spitting out, but they're a nice colour.

Bus station, Matsuyama.

Tramline, Hiroshima.

Vend! Vend! Vend!

A whopper! Whopping inter-island rail-and-road bridge. You think that it's over, and then you get another whopping stretch of it.

people 1

2007-02-14T23:50:00.000-08:00

Ginza, Tokyo. Our wonderful host, Hannah, is surrounded on all sides by the world's largest department stores, except to her immediate left, where Em provides valiant protection.

Emma at Helsinki airport on a slightly unusual seat. She's on her way!

And she's just arrived! Quick - must phone Hannah. Such dynamism!

Emma sporting a yukata in Kyoto.

In between their heads you can just make out our camera. (In their hands: cans of Nescafe coffee.)

Shoppers at a Kyoto market.

Shopper at Kyoto market.

In the background: Matsuyama Castle. In the middleground: green tea ice-cream. Not sure who that is in the foreground.

Glamorous coffee break, Hiroshima.

miscellaneous 1

2007-02-13T13:27:00.000-08:00

A slightly blurry shot of the onsen in Matsuyama (I have some more, don't you worry) - it's the oldest in Japan, don't you know? Bathing here was one of the highlights of the holiday.

Em in Hiroshima.

Unidentified glimpse of the urban, from a train.

Togs for dogs. I was quite taken aback by just how many Japanese dogs wear clothes. In this shop you could buy your puppy a bee outfit.

Shelves for shoes. Where you park your sneakers when you pop into a temple.

Harajuku, Tokyo.

I loved the colourful Tokyo taxis. They all seemed to be bright green or bright orange. And you have to remember not to close the door behind you - it happens automatically.

signs / wonders 2

2007-02-12T13:07:00.000-08:00

"Sekizo Yugama (Stone Hot Spring Water Receptacle)
Ehime Prefecture Designated Tangible Cultural Property (Building)
A 'yugama' is a stone receptacle set up at the outlet of a hot spring. This yugama was used until 1894, when the present Dogo Spa main building was completed.
It is 166.7cm in diameter, 157.6cm in height, and is made of granite.
It is said to have been made around the middle of the Nara Period (8th century). The six Chinese characters 'na-mu-a-mi-da-butsu' ('Hail Amida Buddha') were carved in the upper part of the stone.
It is said that the high priest Ippen engraved this upon the request of Kono Michiari.
The main body of the receptacle bears an inscription about the effects of the hot spring. It was composed by the Zen priest Tokuno of Tentoku-ji Temple, and carved by a carpenter Kono Michinau, of the powerful Kono clan, invited from Onomichi, Hiroshima Prefecture.
Matsuyama Municipal Government - Matsuyama Board of Education.'
(NB This is a sign rather than a wonder.)

This monk, for a small fee, did some great calligraphy in my notebook.

In Takayama, we whiled away some pleasant moments wandering the near-empty street and wondering where everyone could be. They were all in the Pachinko.

We were very pleased to discover that the Japanese equivalent of Spar is called Lawson. This was the first one we spotted - the picture taken from a tram in Matsuyama. They're all over the place.

How to make your own 'nightingale floors' (they'll protect you, in the words of Paul Muldoon, from wide-boys and would-be assassins).

I learnt these kanji: 'iri' and 'guchi'. (Confusingly, they are mirror-written here.) Put them together, and what have you got? That's right: 'iriguchi'. It means 'entrance'.

Do you know what I heard? I heard that the elephant fancies the cat.

signs / wonders 1

2007-02-07T11:29:00.000-08:00

Panda at Helsinki airport, inviting us eastwards.

And when you get there, loads of barrels of sake. (I think that's what they are, anyway.)

Where does cheese come from? The Book Nook in Hiroshima.

Take out your magnifying glass and you might be able to make out the following (bakery at the train station in Matsuyama):
'We feel the joy in can help of customer's "health care" through bread of a good quality combustion setting up and a fresh sandwich.'
'We try for the shop-making to obtain safety and trust in appreciation for "Meet" with the customer.'
'We answer customer's "Needs", contribute to "Improvement of the gastronomic culture", and aim at the company that can contribute to the region indefinitely.'

One of the temples we visited in Kyoto, 2D.

Two of my favourite photographic subjects. The castle garden in Matsuyama - it had closed minutes before we arrived.

This was in our bedroom at the ryokan in Kyoto. 'GENTLE BUNNY. Hello, my good friend! Are you free this coming weekend? To tell the truth, some months ago, in a suite at the Bonn Plaza Hotel an extraordinary meeting took place among a small group of gentlemen. Mr THOMAS.' It's a bin.

Zen

2007-02-06T10:28:00.000-08:00

Kyoto, where most of the Zen happened. Some moss is very important. If you can't quite read it, that's what the sign says: 'Very Important Moss (Like VIP)'. Out of shot, to the left, some less important moss, some of it referred to as 'The Interrupter'.

Good raking.

Before you enter, you must be calm.

While you're there, you should become calmer.

Some more great raking & an excellent example of 'borrowed scenery'. (For those not in the know, 'borrowed scenery' is the Zen effect created when you can see some natural beauty beyond the confines of your Zen garden.)

Never before had I witnessed such a feat of raking.

The Zen mound in context. (Note the 'borrowed scenery'.)

Strictly speaking this might not be Zen at all, but it feels right.

Last but not least, may I present the most Zen of fish: the carp.

food

2007-02-05T10:51:00.000-08:00

Bought this little fellow at a famous bakery in Ginza, Tokyo (see below for famous bakery shots). It was full of red bean paste. I love red bean paste.

A crab in Hiroshima. We're on a tram.

Kyoto. A huge market that takes place once a month. You can't quite see how amazing this guy's sweets look. They look amazing.

Plastic food, to give you an idea of what you'll be getting. I particularly liked the eggs.

Organic produce outside an organic restaurant that we organically went to (good for vegetarians) the night we arrived. They served lemon-and-radish vinegar drink. I can recommend it.

Vending machines: all over the shop. Ones with food in: very rare. Usually it's drinks, sometimes batteries, or cigarettes.

Are these lotus? The market in Kyoto again.

Cafe 'Otis' in Hiroshima. Lentil curry.

Melonade float in Kyoto. Yes, that's right, melonade.

That famous bakery. It was heaving.

The famous bakery again. My policy is not to weed out the boring photos. They may improve with time.

Bento box, on a train.

Orange trees in Matsuyama, outside the prefectural offices.