Spring Break: Day 5

On Wednesday my parents and I decided we would venture to Nara, just south of Kyoto, to visit its parks and famous temples. We took a shuttle bus from the hotel to Kyoto Station, then took a train straight down to Nara. Inside the station we bought day passes for the Nara bus-line for about 500 yen/per person (a good deal if you plan on riding the bus at least three times around town).

[singlepic=578,320,240,,right]Tension was high as we left the station, however, and I found myself aggravated with my parents. After four days with them I imagine most of my frustration revolved around the simple fact:  I was fairly used to Japan by this point. Taking off my shoes to enter a temple, refraining from eating in public, and talking quietly on trains and buses were just a few things I formed a habit of doing.

My parents, just now coming to Japan, were making comments or doing things I hadn’t done in months–things that I found embarrassing. My parents didn’t understand that I enjoyed being submersed in this new culture, attempting to live by its rules and customs. Instead I heard complaints and the inability to try something new (like takoyaki). At the time I felt as though my parents were complaining about me. Insulting Japan felt like an insult to my own character, because this was a country I chose to live in for four months…and a country I had to make the best of until the end of May.

We had a fight on the bus (something I was again embarrassed about). We spoke in hushed, fast English…I’m fairly certain no one could understand what we were saying. Unfortunately, tone portrays meaning quite accurately. I said a few things I shouldn’t have, as did my parents. I was ready to leave both of them in Nara, but we got off the bus and headed down a dirt path.

Moms have a funny way of making you talk. Not too long after we were both hugging, even while I don’t think she really understood why I was upset.  She had valid points. I couldn’t expect my parents to change or to like Japan or be entirely different people. They came to see me. Mom just figured I was homesick and would miss them when they left…hence my being upset. I guess it was partly true; maybe even mostly true. It’s hard to get half-way through a semester on the other side of the world only to see your parents and say good-bye to them all over again. It’s like saying good-bye the first time, only now I would be reminded of them every time I went past the places we visited. We came to the conclusion that it would have been better for them to come at the end of the semester.

[singlepic=577,320,240,,left]We continued, determined to make the rest of the day a good one.  Nara has a very ancient aura about it–far more than Kyoto.  Moss covered lanterns line the park’s paths, and wherever you turn there are herds of deer looking to steal your map (let alone the food you might be carrying).

As we explored we ran into a bunch of tourist shops with the usual Japanese souvenirs: wind chimes, bobble-heads, fans, paper lanterns, key-chains, and dolls.  Dad urged us to stop and look around, and we found a few gifts for people back home.  I found some metal throwing stars for my brothers, as well as a few bamboo bookmarks, a wind-chime for my grandmother, and also a decorative sword for my youngest brother and his birthday in June.  For my little cousin Johnny we found a practice wooden sword to go with the child’s kimono I bought him months ago at a flea market.

A deer poses for my camera along one of Nara's paths.

[singlepic=582,320,240,,left]We stopped briefly at one of the temples within the park–one called the Kasuga Grand Shrine.  It is one of the most photographed Shinto sites.  The current structure standing has been there since 1863, but the original was built back in the year 710.  According to the Shinto belief, they demolished the shrine every 20 years and rebuilt it.  Apparently it’s been rebuilt 50 times since its creation.  All the lanterns along the paths lead to this site–which are all lit during festivals in early February and mid-August.

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Inside the Shrine my mother and I bought fortunes in English.  They were rolled into the mouth of a little wooden deer–it was impossible not to buy at least one.  When you buy these fortunes, you read to see if it is a good or bad one.  If it is a bad fortune, you tie the piece of paper to a nearby tree or “fortune-stand” so that the spirits will find the paper–and not you!

Thankfully, my fortune was labeled as one of the “moderately good ones.” It covered different areas of my life (Lost objects, Journeys, Trade, Agriculture, Directions, Quarrels, Employees and dependents, Change of residence, Birth, Illness, and Love and Marriage), and overall I couldn’t complain.  Most important it told me that I needed to rely on my relatives…ironic with my parents so near, huh? Needless to say, I did not tie my fortune to a tree for the bad spirits to find.  I still have it close.

[singlepic=590,320,240,,right]Across the park we trekked, feet tired, but determined to find the Todai-ji temple.  Down a  steep hill we finally found the giant horned Buddhist temple.  My parents urged me to go inside alone, as they wanted to rest outside for a while.

Todai-ji Temple is a Buddhist temple and was built in 752, back when Nara was Japan’s capital.  It has been rebuilt several times since then, and the current structure (built in 1709) is only 2/3 the size of the original.  Even still, it is the world’s largest wooden building.

[singlepic=595,320,240,,left]It was built to house a 53 ft. statue of the Great Buddha Vairocana…it’s huge.  So huge, in fact, it is the largest image of Buddha in the entire world. Apparently it hasn’t ever been completely destroyed by earthquakes or fires (surprise!), but its head has been dislodged a few times by it, instead.  The current head has been there since 1692.

Beside the giant Buddha are two Bosatsu, or “Enlightened Beings.”  They are not nearly as big as the Buddha, but are golden in color, with many more embellishments.   They were completed in 1709.  Behind them wait the two heavenly guardians–giant statues with serious and angry faces, and are dressed in heavy armor.  They were finished in the mid-Edo period.

[singlepic=596,320,240,,right]Another interesting feature of the wooden hall is a small hole in one of the beams–located behind the Buddha’s left side.  It is said that if someone can squeeze through this hole, they will one day attain Nirvana.  I did not try this, myself, because I was alone with my cameras and unwilling to set them aside for even a moment…but it looked pretty fun to try.

On the way out I bought a charm for my cousin Matthew–meant to bring him victory, seeing as he would be graduating from high school soon.  I also bought my dad a key-chain of Nara, complete with a little compass. I rejoined my parents and we headed back for the train station…getting slightly lost along the way when we searched for what the information desk lady told us was, “Old Town.”  I still don’t think it exists.

The Great Buddha Vairocana is the largest image of Buddha in the world, and is housed inside Todai-ji Temple in Nara, Japan.

Back in Kyoto, we had a really nice Italian pizza dinner inside Kyoto Station.  It was really fancy, and the pizza cost too much, but it was our last night together in Japan…and Dad wanted me to pick something I couldn’t have normally.  Good pizza–without all the Japanese mayonnaise and corn and shrimp on top–seemed a real commodity.  I really appreciated it, especially after our brief spat earlier that day.

At the hotel, Mom and I spent some time together in the hotel’s jacuzzi–making my swimsuit worth bringing to Japan (finally).  I would miss them so much…it was hard to admit it.  That night I got to sleep one last time in a big, soft and comfy European bed, and then it was time to say goodbye.