My Japan Adventure18829
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OGJackster private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Byrdibyrd Any cheap Pokemon collectibles? |
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| Post 176 • IP flag post | ||
The yen has tanked so hard that everything is really cheap.
 Where's his Bat-package?
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by OGJackster I'm sure there are some somewhere. They have to be cheaper here than in the States, because you aren't paying import fees buying them here, and like I said, the yen has really tanked. |
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| Post 177 • IP flag post | ||
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Quote:Originally Posted by Byrdibyrd The older graded Japanese cards are hot stuff right now. |
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| Post 178 • IP flag post | ||
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Where's his Bat-package?
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
Today's yummy french toast breakfast with a nice cup of Vienna coffee that was billed as 'wiener coffee' on the menu (which meant I just had to try it). This breakfast set me back about $5. |
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| Post 179 • IP flag post | ||
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| Will there be sushi at some point? | ||
| Post 180 • IP flag post | ||
 I'm waiting.... (tapping fingers).Splotches is gettin old! |
Nuffsaid111 private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I love most any food. However, Sushi & Sashimi is my kryptonite. No no no no no no no no. |
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| Post 181 • IP flag post | ||
 I'd like to say I still turned out alright, but that would be a lie.
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Quote:Originally Posted by Byrdibyrd Haha I hope you get a photo of the menu next time. |
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| Post 182 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by flanders Server grabbed it before I had a chance! If I go there again, there'll be a photo shoot before I order.  |
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| Post 183 • IP flag post | ||
 I have a problem with fattening women up.
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Bronte private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Do you ever collect menus? I know it sounds weird, but in college I collected menus of different establishments. |
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| Post 184 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
I'm in Ōsaka today, doing yet another headless chicken run. I'm at Okutama-jinja Shrine now, enjoying the little garden attached to the shrine.  |
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| Post 185 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Bronte My mother had a few from old places in town that she used to go to in highschool days. I wish I knew where there are now |
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| Post 186 • IP flag post | ||
 It gets old smelling it everytime I go outside my door.
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Nearmint67 private msg quote post Address this user | |
| @Byrdibyrd Looks like the weather is nice. Is it cold? It was about 80 here in Orlando today. Have another great day. I'm off to sleep town. 5:30 comes quick.  |
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| Post 187 • IP flag post | ||
 Miss Chanandler Bong
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Quote:Originally Posted by Bronte I used to collect matchboxes from different establishments. I had bags full. When the kids were born, it became too much of a fire risk, so we threw them in a bonfire. Too bad, some were really nice! |
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| Post 188 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Nearmint67 The weather is very nice here right now. A little warm for what I'm wearing, but that's okay. |
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| Post 189 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
Got giant fishie? Those are big barrels of o-sake, by the way.  |
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| Post 190 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Byrdibyrd Temp-wise, it's in the 60s. |
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| Post 191 • IP flag post | ||
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OMG!! Beautiful little blue merle wiener dog puppy! *Squeeee* |
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| Post 192 • IP flag post | ||
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Gorgeous rufous turtledove on the grounds of Abeno-jinja Shrine. |
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| Post 193 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
After that car gets parked, how does anyone get out? |
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| Post 194 • IP flag post | ||
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Ooooh, the tram station is decorated with, like, Cthulhu. Leaving now.    |
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| Post 195 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Nuffsaid111 We've all got something that's a great big NOPE. Mine is cooked pineapple. 🤢 |
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| Post 196 • IP flag post | ||
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We'll, Louis Vuitton may have Lego, but Godiva Chocolate has Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. |
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| Post 197 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Today I stayed in Osaka and tracked down some shrines I've been needing to get to. A friend (my usual traveling companion) and I are working to complete the Shinbutsu Pilgrimage. The Shinbutsu is a pilgrimage to 150 (One. Hundred. Fifty.) shrines and temples in the Kansai region, which is comprised of Osaka, Kyōto, Nara, Wakayama, Shiga, and Hyōgo prefectures. The 'Shin' in Shinbutsu is from 'Shintō' and 'butsu' is from 'Bukkyō/Butsukyō,' which means Buddhism. The pilgrimage book for it is so massive that security pulled me aside when I was headed to my gate because they thought I was carrying a block of drugs (Seriously. This happened on December 1st at LAX). Thanks to a misunderstanding, my traveling companion (TC) went to a number of pilgrimage stops thinking that I had been there already, when in fact I had not. Now I'm fixing the discrepancy and I have some shrines and temples to visit and drag this enormous book to. Yesterday I did four in Kyōto, and today I did four more in Osaka. This is why some of the places I'm going to seem a little underwhelming: I'm just going because the pilgrimage tells me to. So why are we doing this? Because a lot of the stops on this pilgrimage are ones we might never have considered going to in the first place and quite a few of them are either hella cool or very historically significant or both. For every head-scratcher we get at least two or three winners, and even the head-scratchers aren't necessarily a waste of time. Anyway, I was mostly on the subway today which meant lots of stairs, so my feet may be unhappy, but my fitbit is ecstatic. My first stop was Kōzu-gu Shrine, which has nothing to do with the Shinbutsu. It's just a shrine I saw once a few years back and didn't have time to visit, but because one of my Shinbutsu stops is nearby, I decided to finally check it out. It was a pleasant shrine and the atmosphere was very relaxing, which is something I've noticed that shrines seem capable of providing even when in a heavily urbanised area like the city of Osaka.  My first Shinbutsu stop for the day was Ikutama-jinja Shrine. It was formerly an Imperial shrine of the highest ranking. Despite the modernised exterior of the main building, the shrine still had that same feeling of tranquility.  Ikutama-jinja has a number of small shrines off to one side in a little garden area that's very pretty. I took a break there for a while and enjoyed some camellias in bloom and a bit of fall colour. Next was Ikasuri-jinja, which was a pill to deal with because a restoration project was starting and construction was going on. The regular entrance/exit was not in use and I wound up walking around the block to find a way to get in. I'm sure the shrine is a nice one, but it was a bit loud and messy while I was there. Ikasuri-jinja was once the protective shrine for the entire region.  Next was Osaka Tenman-gu. This shrine was originally founded in 949, and venerates Tenjin, who is going to need a bit of explanation. Tenjin was originally a Heian Period (794 ~ 1185) poet, scholar, and court official named Sugawara-no-Michizane. He gained the favour of Emperor Uda and rose in the ranks, but with the abdication of Emperor Uda, he became vulnerable and he was eventually banished to Dazaifu on Kyushu island, where he eventually died. Yesterday, I talked about Prince Sawara and how he became an onryō - a vengeful spirit. Sugawara-no-Michizane became one of the most powerful onryō Japan has ever had the misfortune to be cursed by. Plagues, droughts, and famine were interspersed with massive rainstorms and catastrophic flooding. In the meantime, the sons of then-Emperor Daigo died one by one. Things came to a head when lightning struck the Imperial Palace in Kyōto during a procession. The lightning killed a number of court officials - including at least one who was instrumental in exiling Michizane - and another of the emperor's heirs. Emperor Daigo finally acknowledged that perhaps errors had been made, and he restored Michizane's titles and status posthumously. He also ordered the construction of Kitano Tenman-gu, a shrine to deify Michizane, who became Tenmantenjin (Tenjin), god of scholarship, calligraphy, and poetry. A sister shrine was constructed at the same time in Dazaifu, on Kyushu island, where Michizane had died in exile. Kitano Tenman-gu has since become the head shrine of hundreds of shrines venerating Tenjin across the country. Students flock to Tenjin shrines when it comes time to apply for college, and they pray to pass their entrance exams. Osaka Tenmen-gu is the main Tenjin shrine in Osaka, and it sees a lot of activity from scholars, writers, artists and poets. The shrine itself is pretty big for a shrine in the middle of a huge city. This is one of the stops on the Shinbutsu that I had always wanted to visit.  Literally thousands of votive tablets (ema) left at the shrine bearing the prayers of students who hope to pass their exams.  Next I took a little tram out into the boonies to visit Abeno-jinja. This shrine is very notable for its charming Inari sub-shrine. Known as Hataage Inari (Flag-Raising Inari), the little shrine is set up like Fushimi Inari Taisha, with its tunnels of red torii gates leading to small effigies and miniature shrines.    After Abeno-jinja I didn't have enough time to do anything but head back and have a yummy dinner of chicken karaage (boneless fried chicken lumps) before going to my hotel. Tomorrow I hope to wake up at the ass-crack of dawn so I can take a long train ride out to the Sea of Japan side of Japan. It's a train route I've never been on before, and I have high hopes for some gorgeous scenery. |
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| Post 198 • IP flag post | ||
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Since I visited a bunch of shrines today, I'm thinking about showing how to read a shrine goshuin. The average shrine goshuin is less involved than a temple goshuin, so they're a better place to start. Virtually all goshuin will have two elements: calligraphy and stamps. Everything on a traditional goshuin is there to provide a pilgrim with proof of their activities and movements should it become necessary for the pilgrim to show their intentions are benign. Goshuin will have calligraphy/stamps on the right side, middle, and left side. What goes in these areas is pretty standardised, though there will always be exceptions here and there. This is the goshuin I received today after paying my respects at Kōzu-gu Shrine:  Calligraphy first: on the right you see 'hōhai,' which translates as 'prayer/respectful prayer.' This is what the pilgrim was doing. Not meeting with thieves or hiring an assassin to bump off a court official, but praying. In the middle is the name of the shrine, where the pilgrim went to pray. Some shrine goshuin will not have calligraphy in the middle, but this one does. On the left is today's date, when the praying took place. Stamps next: The stamp on the right is the name of the shrine and just emphasises the location of where the praying happened. Some shrine goshuin will not have a stamp on the right, but this one does. The stamp in the centre is the official stamp of the shrine, proving that the praying happened at the shrine and that the person who wrote this goshuin is an official of the shrine. Even a fancier goshuin will have the necessary information: what was the pilgrim doing, where were they doing it, when were they doing it. This is a lovely 'eda' (zodiac) goshuin from Ikutama-jinja. This is a special goshuin that is only available at the beginning of the year and at the end. This is the Year of the Tiger, hence the tiger. This particular goshuin is available in January - beginning of the Year of the Tiger - and in December, to mark the end of that year. Next month, there will be a new special with a rabbit design.  The 'hōhai' is on the right in calligraphy, showing what the pilgrim was doing (praying/paying respects). The date is on the left in calligraphy. The stamp, for all its drama, is still an official stamp of the shrine, so that's where the pilgrim prayed and it's proof that the person who provided the goshuin is officially permitted to do so. Here's a real stunner and set up a little differently, but the elements are still there. This is a 'kirie,' a stencil-cut goshuin, from Osaka Tenman-gu. The stencil cut sits on top of the coloured page.   For this goshuin, the date has been moved to the far right. The 'hōhai' is still to the right of the stamps. On the left is calligraphy with the shrine's name and two stamps. One is the official stamp of the shrine - that's the stamp on the bottom. The other is the plum blossom insignia of the Sugawara, Sugawara-no-Michizane's family. Obviously, this goshuin also has a portrait of Michizane, and it also incorporates the plum blossom - his favourite flower - and the ox that would have pulled his ox cart. The ox is what you find as shrine guardian at Tenjin shrines in place of the traditional komainu (lion-dogs). The information in shrine goshuin is also present in temple goshuin, but things get more complex. I'll see about going into that at another time.  |
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| Post 199 • IP flag post | ||
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I have a problem with fattening women up.
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Bronte private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Thank you for taking the time to explain and the mini history lessons. | ||
| Post 200 • IP flag post | ||
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Where's his Bat-package?
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Byrdibyrd private msg quote post Address this user | |
| On a train now that will take me to the Sea of Japan side of Japan once it leaves the station. My goal is Amanohashidate, and it's a waaaaaaaays out there, so this will be a rest-my-feet day. I have never been on this route to Amanohashidate from Ōsaka before, and I'm hoping for some pretty country to look at along the way. | ||
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Tiger on a train? I'll take that. |
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| Post 202 • IP flag post | ||
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Who says you can't have dessert for breakfast? This is my mandarin orange sandwich from... 7/11. |
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| Post 203 • IP flag post | ||
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It gets old smelling it everytime I go outside my door.
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Nearmint67 private msg quote post Address this user | |
| @Byrdibyrd You go girl. You adventurer you. The whipped cream on the Mandarin looks yummy... |
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| Post 204 • IP flag post | ||
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| The whipped cream was yummy. I cannot lie. Also yummy was my shrimp & veggie wrap that went with it. 🤤 | ||
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