Mt. Gagyuzan & the Murakami Castle Ruins Trip 2

For some crazy reason, I felt like tackling Mt. Gagyuzan again today. It was about 3:30 when I said to myself "Wow, I think I'll go climb Mt. Gagyuzan!" And I did just that!

The trip up was better this time because the temperature has cooled off a little by this time, but I tell you ... the mosquito are a pain in the posterior! That, and they are HUGE!!! Not only that, but it stings really bad when they bite you ... makes me miss Georgia Mosquito, at least they were discrete about taking you blood ...

I promised myself that I would go see the other parts of the Murakami Castle Ruins this trip. So, I took the red path this time. It was down and down, up, and down. Then down some more, and up, up, and up. All this done on a little trail no more than 8 inches wide that is half worn away. Most of the way I wondered if I was actually going the right way. It was beautiful, nonetheless. Along the way I passed this quaint little waterfall, and well, I saw a LOT of trees.

Finally, I saw the light peeking through the trees, and then, right in front of me, were beautiful ivy covered stone walls. I decided to take a picture while lying on the ground, when I met some nice old ladies who thought it might be fun to join me on the ground! How happily random!

Then a path into the castle ...

I walked out into the castle grounds. To my right, stone Shinto tori gates, and to my left, a breathtaking view of Murakami city ... from the mountains all the way to the sea.

There were stairs leading up to a plateau, where you could walk around the perimeter of the castle walls, and look over to the other side of the city.

It really took me back. The ruins were more intact here, and with all the steps and landings I could get to, it was easy to pretend I was a samurai or retainer living within the castle oh so long ago.

At first I thought I was going to have to go back the way I came, but I saw another person walking a different way. So, being me, I followed them - when I'm lost or don't know where to go, I usually just follow the people in front of me, a bad habit I've picked up over the years. It was getting close to sunset, and I wanted to make sure that I would be down the mountain before dark. Low and behold, there was another path ... which was easier than the one I took. The crows laughed in the distance.

I came home, starving, and tried out the broiler in my stove. Thirty minutes later, I had one of the best meals that I have had since coming to Japan. Some gyoza - made with Murakami Beef, from cows that I have YET to see, some Murakami salmon, and Murakami rice. Absolutely delicious!!!

Want to see what I saw? Here are the pictures!

Tanabata Omatsuri! Washoi!

All week I had seen groups of people building and practicing for the Tanabata Omatsuri (festival), and now the day was finally here!

I started out about about 5:50, seeing that festivities were supposed to start around 6pm and last until about 10 at night. It had rained earlier that day, and it was still sprinkling a bit, but otherwise, it was a nice cool night ... perfect for a festival! There were also gloomy clouds hanging around the mountains; it was an eerie sight, but so beautiful!

At this point the streets were nearly empty, the sun was soon to set, and the rain was just about to stop. The vendors came out to tend to their stalls, and the smells of various treats and delicacies drifted in the air. Everything from ikayaki (aka, squid on a stick) to crêpes!

I parked my bike at City Hall, and walked down Ooguni-machi (main street, as I call it). I walked almost down to the station, taking pictures of groups getting their floats ready, and turned around to head back up the street. I didn't get very far when I heard my name being called. In a city like Murakami, I KNOW I am the only "Kurisutei" ... sure enough, it was one of my bosses down at the BOE. They invited me into their garage area to sit down and enjoy the festivities with them.

I think a few of them were already well and drunk. They gave me food ... lots of food ... and told me to try every single kind of drink they had - from Asahi Beer to Murakami Sake. As the sun started to set, I realized that being in a garage was the best place to be during one of these festivals!

Turns out, that the various groups come down the street with their Yatai (heavily decorated floats), stop in front of the garages or homes, and perform the Shishimai (Tiger Dance - some say Lion Dance). They were all based off of the same story, but each group's dance was different. Beautiful to watch, the tiger's emotions are dramatically displayed in dance form. The dancers use the music to incorporate the crowd, snapping at adults and children, bumping into people, and even getting right up in someones face to dance.

--> Shishimai Video to be uploaded when I get home <--

Soon, Sean walked by, they called him in ... fed him and forced drinks on him as well. After about two hours, countless Shishimai, and more than 5 meat sicks later, Joel, Hannah, and Eric (other Murakami ALTs) wandered past, and they too were called in. They had crepes ... so, naturally, I had to go get a crepe of my own! Cream, chocolate, and sprinkles ... so very very good! I crawled back to my bike ... full of food and drink, and made my way home. I hear there is an even bigger festival in July! The first half of the pictures were taken by me, but my camera died halfway through the night, so I stole Sean's pictures. The pictures are wild and blurry, but I assure you that wild and blurry is an accurate representation of tonight!

Pictures, anyone?

Ancient Ruins ... or lack there of ...

I set off this morning to find the Ancient Ruins of Iwagasaki, but to my dissapointment, I never found them. Stupid tourist map ...

On the way there, I found another Kuhonbutsu statue. For some reason they are really hard to find (o_o)!

Anyway, back to my trip to the ruins ... I traveled along this long bridge going towards Sanpoku. I turned off where the map marked, but going all the way down, I couldn't find it! I found Taki Jinja, but no ruins! I would have gone to Taki, but much like with the Buddhist Temples, I don't want to make a fool of myself ... so, I am waiting until I have access to the internet to review various rituals.

At one point I thought that the ruins might be up this steep hill, but after lugging my bike all the way up, I was rewarded with a narrow highway to Sanpoku ... the crows were laughing at me. Yeah ... it was sad ... really sad.

I did stop to take some pictures of the sea, though.

So, I rode my bike along the narrow highway, trying to avoid cars until the sidewalk opened up. Oh well, the ruins will have to wait for another day! Or a better map ...

Photo Set of this trip!

About Sports ...

I never realized how much I actually like sports. Okay, I wouldn't actually seek out sports, but when I have nothing to do, and there is nothing else on TV, I don't mind watching sports.

On Friday I watched the J-East vs. J-West soccer match because it was raining, and I had nothing better to do. I was cheering for J-West because they were very good, and they like to use their heads - literally. They ended up winning 3 - 2, and while J-East put up an awesome fight with some fancy footwork, they were no match!

I'm still surprised how much I got into it ...

I've also been watching baseball. This is no ordinary baseball, though! It's the Koshien Summer Tournament! This competition is very important, and apparently, very difficult. Teams from all 47 prefectures of Japan battle it out all year for the Spring and Summer Koshien, and it all leads up to one team! Loose one game and you're out! It's all highly fascinating!

One tradition that I'm very fond of is the gathering of dirt from the field. After a team looses, the 3rd years (those getting ready to graduate ... therefore this is their last chance) take their draw-string bags and fill them with dirt from the playing field. I've been told they do this for two reasons, 1) it's their last time on the field as a high schooler, and it is a momentum of their journey, 2) it is a reminder of their failure, and they take the dirt as as a literal burden. It's really strange, but so much fun to watch ... especially when they cry.

The last sport I've gotten into is volleyball. Right now the Women's World Volleyball Championship is going on, and these girls are amazing! I've never seen volleyball like this before (o_o)!!!

Why do I like sports all of the sudden? It's amazing what you get into when you have nothing else to do at night ...

Biking About Town in the HOT!

I ended up sleeping late today (if 9 am is actually late), so I decided to punish myself by going to the beach. Doesn't sound like much of a punishment, but it being as hot as it is ... yeah, it really is harsh!

Taking my not-so-handy tourist map, I set out for the beach, which is over by Senami Onsen. The road I ended up taking was long and hot, and I thought it would never end. At one point I thought I might die, but I made it. Since I didn't have a bathing suit, there was no point for me to go to the actual beach, so I looked around at the souviner shops, and tried to locate the Onsen with free wi-fi, to which I never actually found.

I decided it was time to head home, as their isn't much to do at a beach when you can't play. I took a different way back - hoping it would be shorter. It wasn't, but it took me all along the coast, and it gave me the chance to not only ride under this cool pedestrian underpass, but see my first Kuhonbutsu statue!!!

There are several Kuhonbutsu statues all over the city, and my goal is to see them all. Despite living fairly close to many of them, I haven't actually seen any of them until today!

Go see the pictures!

Boring Sundays

I was just sitting at my desk, working on my introduction activities, when I head music outside. I ran out my front door to find a small parade going up and down my street!

--> Video to come when I get home <--

It is really neat to see such things on such a pleasant but oh so horrifically boring Sunday afternoon ...

Mt. Gagyuzan & Murakami Castle Ruins [1]

Maybe it was ambitious for my first real day in Murakami, but since Mt. Gyagyuzan is practically in my backyard, I decided to climb it to see the castle ruins.

In reality, the path entrance to the top of the mountain is about a 3 - 4 minute bike ride away. Before starting up the mountain, I said a little prayer to the huge Buddha statue that protects the mountain and its visitors, and then it was up, up, up, up, up, and up the mountain. The path itself consists of dirt, rocks, and stairs - not a fun combination. I could have done without the stairs entirely, a nice slope would be much better! Anyway, you zigzag your way up to the top, and there are benches to rest at every zag or so.

At one bench, there was an opening in the trees and I could see a glimpse of Murakami city all the way to the ocean. Even though it was hot outside, the sky was clear and beautiful!

A thousand or so steps later, I was finally at the top of the mountain, and could see a bit of the ruins - a real sight for sore legs! As I wondered through the castle, I couldn't help trying to picture what it must've looked like when complete. Unfortunately, most of the castle ruins at this point are being repaired, so there was a lot of the castle I couldn't see. However, I found another look-out point, and was able to see the other side of Murakami (the side I spend most of my time in)!

There was also this peculiar field, but there was nothing in it. So sad ...

And that's all there really was to this trip. There is more of the castle to explore, but I thought that I would save that half for another trip up. It was a lovely walk, so it's no wonder why people of all ages climb it daily. All of the bugs are really cool looking (and BIG), and I even got to see a lizard or two!

Here is the photo account of my trip!