The Dynamic Duo

Wherein we visit “Jason”, find the happiest cat in Japan, and see Heather almost fall down a flight of stairs after being frightened by a large rodent

We are now up to Saturday, Dec 9 in my ongoing Japan Trip Travelogue, and today we are taking the train into Kamakura for a little sightseeing. UltraGirl, very wisely, as it turned out, declined to join us on this little outing. I guess after so many sunny, beautiful days, we were due for a little cold, drizzly rain, which perfectly describes the weather we had that day. The three of us; Heather, UltraBob and I, had umbrellas, but I don’t remember those youngsters even opening theirs. I used mine a lot, but as I’m a bit shorter than they are, my companions were sometimes jabbed a bit about their faces by my umbrella ribs. The little train upon which we rode into Kamakura apparently has some history behind it, and locals petitioned to keep it after it was slated to be replaced.
Enoden Electric Railway

Our first destination was the Daibutsu, (or Giant Buddha), Kamakura’s most famous tourist attraction. We took our time getting there, stopping at interesting shops along the way. Our first stop was at the 100 yen store, comparable to US Dollar Stores, but with much more varied and interesting merchandise. Here UltraMom indulged in a variety of one-time use chemical handwarmers. They weren’t as good as the ones UltraGirl had supplied us with at DisneySea a few days previously, but better than nothing. UltraBob generously went without so that Heather and I could have one in each pocket; he even had the brilliant idea to stick one on our necks, which helped for a little while, after which it was just lumpy and uncomfortable. The touristy shops were fascinating to us, and we took a lot of pictures. One store sold nothing but different statues of cats, particular those with the waving paw. But it was in another store, where we saw a living cat contentedly lying next to a lighted brazier, soaking up the heat. “That,” declared Ubob emphatically, “is the happiest cat in Japan.” Indubitably

Lots and lots of cats

The Happiest Cat in Japan

The Daibutsu, or “Jason” as Ubob calls him, was indeed an impressive sight. The huge bronze image of the Great Buddha is 13.35 meters tall. It was cast in 1252, and originally was located inside a large temple hall. But a tsunami wave, at the end of the 15th century, washed the temple buildings away, and since then the Buddha stands in the open air.

Heather and UltraMom pose in front of the Daibutsu

Mounted on a nearby wall are the Buddha’s sandals, and as may be expected, are quite large. But I never saw the Buddha wear them; in fact I really couldn’t see his feet at all! See
Daibutsu for more and better information on this sacred Buddhist architectural marvel. For a nominal fee, you could go inside the statue, and we did. I guess you used to be about to climb some ladder/stairs up into it, but now we could only stand on the ground and gaze up at the rather ugly bolts and seams. I asked UltraBob a lot of questions about the Buddha; his size, history, etc. and he very sweetly bought me a little booklet to inform me. Of course right now the booklet is misplaced.
As we made our way back down the street, we saw a sign proclaiming “English Tea and Scones” in an upstairs shop. We decided that sounded like just the ticket, so we climbed the steep, rickety stairs. Just as Heather reached the top of the stairs, a squirrel ran past her (nearly into her), causing her to scream and almost lose her balance. Inside the rather quaint, charming little shop, we settled in a corner and placed our order. We were a bit disappointed in the hard little biscuit-type scones, but then I realized that these probably were English scones; what I had wanted was a big American scone, like those ones they sell at all the county fairs. You know what I mean. Gradually we became aware that, although we were the only paying customers, we were sharing the shop with some unusual patrons. In the doorway, on the floor, on the countertops were: squirrels! The proprietress was feeding them fruit and nuts, and, as Ubob translated for us, calling them her ‘children!’ Thoughts of “health inspectors’ went through our head as we each took about 20 pictures of the squirrels as they dashed in and out, on and off the counters and up and around the doorframe.

UltraBob and Mom nibble on scones and watch the squirrels

The Shop Owner feeds “her children”

Our next stop was Hasedera, or Hase Temple
Hasedera The grounds here were stunning, and UltraBob informed us that it was one of his favorite places to take photos. There were Koi ponds and beautiful tiered garden levels. This time of year, the leaves were a riot of red, orange, yellow and green. Also, from this height, you can look out at the rooftops of Kamakura and see the ocean in the not too far off distance.

Looking Down on Kamakura

Part of the temple grounds

Fall Colors and a Sea of Umbrellas

The first thing we saw when we entered the temple grounds were the Jizo statues. Distraught relatives purchase these for aborted or stillborn children, and they are somehow supposed to get these spirit children into a better afterlife. Some of the statues wore knitted caps, and there were toys available to purchase for them in a nearby temple shop.

Jizo Statues

The Kyozo or Scripture House is a big wooden revolving structure that holds all of the scriptures covering Mahayan Buddhism. If you grab one of the handles and turn the thing one full time around, you gain the same benefit as if you had actually read all those scriptures!

UltraBob getting smarter

After looking around and becoming thoroughly cold and wet, we went through the red tori gate and entered the caves. This was a bit surreal; statues are carved directly into the cave walls, and candle-offerings provide the ghostly light.

The Red Tori Gate

In the Caverns

As you may have realized, I just did a bit of research myself; there is NO WAY I actually learned and remembered all of this stuff, but it is interesting, no?
I believe it was after Hasedera that we ate Japanese Cheese Currie, and I’ve gotta tell you, this was one of my all-time favorite meals. Japanese Currie is different from the hot, hot Indian cuisine one usually thinks of when they hear the “C” word. All I can say is “Yum, Yum.”
UltraBob had planned on taking us to “ChinaTown” (yes, a China Town in Japan; not so unusual), but we ran out of time, plus we were wet and freezing. So, on to Yohohama to visit a giant electronics store (maybe the world’s largest!) so that UltraMom could buy a new computer mouse and headphones. I think it was on the 9th floor that we located the computer mouses (mice?) Six rows of mouse-perusal and 1/2 hour later, a selection was finally made. Nothing fancy, but a comfortable grip and cordless.
At last it was time to catch the train back home where, exhausted, we were soon all in bed.
Tomorrow (or some day soon): Motoji’s garden and Karoke!

UltraMom