Tanzawa Oyama Quasi National Park

The day after our first trip to Kamakura, we took another trip to the mountains. We followed the same route that we used earlier in the week to get to Hakone - a very scenic road that followed the coastline. However, we turned towards the mountains about halfway to Hakone and headed towards the city of Hadano. From Hadano we took a very small, very winding road that climbed in elevation very quickly.

 Here is a picture from the scenic overlook near the top of the mountain that rises above Hadano.

 I added this picture because the picture after this is taken at the top of the tower - it was quite a walk getting to the top.

 Andrea, Macie, mom and I in front of the plaque that signals the beginning of the quasi national park.

Here is a picture of Andrea, Macie, mom and Mona.

First trip to Kamakura with mom (continued)

After ascending the stairs, we entered the shrine itself. No pictures of inside the shrine because camera and video use is prohibited. Once inside, people would bow and pray while also making an offering (in the form of coins placed into an alter).

After leaving the interior of the shrine, there was a place to buy things like incense and to get a reading of your fortune for the coming year.

Here is a video of mom getting the paper who shows her fortune for the year.

As we were leaving the shrine, there was a wedding taking place with the priest reading from some sort of scroll - it was very solemn and appeared to us to be a very traditional ceremony.

As we were leaving, we stopped by a large pond filled with carp and goldfish and surrounded by cherry blossom trees.

On our way home mom did a good impression of a typical Japanese train commuter. We have been amazed at how so many Japanese can sleep on the train - especially as they are going to and coming back from work.

First trip to Kamakura with mom

The day after the Hakone trip, mom wanted to take the train to visit Kamakura. By train, Kamakura is only about 25 minutes away. It is one of the most popular tourist sites in Japan - even for Japanese tourists.

Mom's first ride on a Japanese train.

Here we are about to go down the main street of Kamakura - Wakamiya. Notice the Shinto gate at the entrance to the street in the background.

This pictures captures Wakamiya street during a lull in the number of people window shopping. Typically, it is wall to wall people. 

Something mom always enjoys - us picnicking on our excursions instead of eating at a restaurant. We found a place to sit just off the main street.

This was the scene across from where we were picnicking. Anytime you see a Japanese lady in a kimono, it is because of some sort of special occasion. I have read that during Sakura season, women will dress in Kimonos as they celebrate going out to view the cherry blossoms. Notice the cherry blossoms in the background. The rickshaw driver was very elaborate in his preparation and very deferential to the women.

Here we are with the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine in the background. Over 12 million people visit this shrine every year.

Mom going through the purification ritual before she enters the shrine. Grab the ladle by the right hand, wash your left. Then switch hands, wash the right. Then pour a little into your hand to rinse out your mouth.

Here we are on the steps leading up to the shrine. I will create a second blog with more pictures from the shrine tomorrow.

Hakone

During mom's second week, the schools here were having spring break which allowed us to take several day trips during the week. The first place we visited was a mountain resort area called Hakone (pronounced A-cone-ee). I would describe the main tourist area as a Japanese version of Red River.

One of the big attractions in Hakone is the Hakone Ropeway. It is like a tram or ski lift and it takes about 40 minutes for the entire ride. Unfortunately, part of the Ropeway was being worked on, so we ended up on the ride for only about 15 minutes.

 Here is mom and Andrea as we are descending towards Lake Ashi - which was formed by the collapsed caldera of a still active volcano.

 A better view of Lake Ashi.

 At the base of the Ropeway was a restaurant. Although it looked like a typical tourist cafeteria, the food was prepared and presented with extreme attention to detail. These entrees are especially popular in Japan - curry, rice and even an egg to add texture.

Macie and Andrea taking a picture with a replica of the Ropeway and Mount Fuji.

Andrea, Macie, Mona and mom pose at the stream that runs through the town of Hakone.

A video of mom walking and shopping the stores of Hakone's main street.

Mom's first week in Japan

After going to the mall on Sunday, Zach came over to see mom on Monday.  And we ended up eating at Chili's.

During the week we visited Blue Street to do some shopping - mom ended up buying some local honey with ginger among other things.

She also did some birding at the Ikego campground area. At the Ikego campground, we learned about yaguras - small caves dug into the sides of the mountains that were used as tombs several hundred years ago. Here is a picture of one.

On Friday, mom got to experience Mona's favorite Japanese type of restaurant to eat at - the yakatori. A yakatori features meat, vegetables, etc. on skewers and fried rice (the main reason Mona likes these places).

Finally, on Saturday we traveled to a nearby base called Atsugi to watch Macie's last basketball game of the season. Unfortunately, we were missing a of couple girls, so we struggled. But this was one of the highlights - a video of Macie making a three pointer. 

Mom's first trip off base - Aeon Mall

After mom rested for a couple days trying to get over there the jetlag from her trip, we took her on her first trip off the base. We went to the Aeon Mall - which is located next to the base. We ate at a restaurant that served a more traditional Japanese cuisine than what we would normally eat. Everyone really enjoyed the food - very good. 

Afterwards, mom went to a bookstore to find a book by an nature painter and naturalist that was featured on a Japanese television show that we had watched the previous night. We were able to find the book because we showed the employees a photo of the book that we had taken when we paused the show and used our phone to get a picture of the book cover. Amazingly, the employees were able to identify the book and they had the book in stock.

Here is the screenshot that we used.

Mom visits Japan

Mom has been visiting us here in Japan for the last 5 weeks. It has been so much fun having her here and seeing Japan through my mom's eyes. Alas, she flew back home today. So, over the next few days, I am going to post about the different places we visited and try to document some of her experiences while she was here.