In the garden of memories
In the place of dreams
That is where you and I
Shall meet.
- The mad hatter. Alice through the looking glass
Eleven months ago we stepped through the looking glass, leaving our old world behind and entering a new.
The world twisted and turned, the unexpected became the expected, unusual acquaintances became our guides and a very many unbirthdays were had.
Stepping into Japan has been like seeing the back of the looking glass, knowing we will step back through the magic door in less than a month: back to home, forever changed. The modern amenities, longer days, cooler weather and thongs of American tourist make the door back home feel trangible.
It seems like a fitting place to finish our travels. When I was a Watson fellow looking at the impacts of tourism on culture and environment in Antarctica, Botswana and Nepal, the difference between eastern and western tourism was striking. In most western cultures to appreciate or enjoy something means taking something from the place with you. It may be a souvenir, a picture, a stone, but you collect things that are important. In eastern cultures if a place is important, you leave something. You leave a prayer flag, a wish, money or a personal belonging.
Walking through the temples of Nara, surrounded by hundreds of years of offerings to this holy site, I realized I thought a lot about what we would get from this year, but maybe the other side of that question is what will we leave behind to honor this experience.
As we soak in every moment we are reminded of another quote from Alice:
“the only way to achieve the impossible is to believe it is possible.”
Trains, temples, sushi, 800 year old trees and Onsens. We are grateful for this beautiful, meditative space and a culture that focuses on what is achieved as a whole rather than the individual as we prepare to leave a part of ourselves and step back through the glass.
The girls art books continue to amaze me as they find their voice in art
The beautiful simplicity of our lodging
Robes included helping everyone get in the spirt
Outside of Kyoto you can visit the monkeys. We loved how the people were caged and the monkeys were free so you could share food from inside but they could leave when ever they wanted.
Lily and the monkey
The beautiful of this country as like taking a breath of fresh air
June is rain season in Japan, meaning a time for rainbows and lush green hills.
early morning walks through the bamboo grove
picture on line of this place look like it can be packed shoulder to shoulder, but the rainy season and early morning turned out to be a peaceful start to the day
Art everywhere
Of course sushi was one of our first stops. This place was good, but the night before our hotel owner have us directions to a small hole in the wall place and walked us there as he thought we might not recognize it as a restaurant (he was right). It was an amazing meal, small, on the floor and run by 2 guys who did everything from cook, to serve, to the dishes. Tuna sashimi, roasted whole garlic, fried been sprouts, and many other things I could not identify.
The endless fascination of the Japanese train system and their very formal conductors.
Exploring old town
I loved this carving, the facial expressions with so little detail on the round faces that seemed to capture the tourism all around.
temples.
Beautiful cared for
art reminding us of home.
these bikes are the best. The super mom’s of Japan (sorry i didn’t see an Japanese dads rocking these bikes) They are everywhere, often with an e-assist, with a kid in the front and kid on the back. No need for a pull along. They ride these bikes through throngs of tourist, chatting with other moms, calm and stylish. My mom heros.
Our animal whisperer enjoying the dear in Nara
And having them do tricks for her
so much love
I wan not sure what I loved more, the ancient temples or the ancient trees, but together they were stunning.
stones of history
making out way to bullet train to head towards Tokyo