NAGAHAMA JR STATION

Image by kansaikate via Flickr

I'll have to go back to Nagahama. It is much more interesting than I thought. The first time I visited there, I rode my bicycle into town late in the day along an unpleasant, busy highway, searching with increasing desperation for a 'HOTEL' sign. I never make reservations on bike trips because I never know how far I will ride. Besides, 'playing it by ear' increases my sense of adventure. I finally found a hotel but I remember the room smelled funny, and I left at 5 am the next morning, before anyone was even up and about (don't worry, I paid when I checked in!)

On my recent ride around Lake Biwa, I put my bicycle in station bicycle parking every night and traveled home on a JR train to Kyoto, returning the following morning. So this time I noticed Nagahama's JR station. It's an impressive building. Still fairly new, it was opened in October 2006. Something that is quite unusual in Japan is that the architect successfully designed the building to resemble Nagahama's Historic JR Station (pictured below.) Of special interest to me were the beautiful stained glass windows. Nagahama is famous for glassware production, so stained glass windows seem a very appropriate decoration for the station.

The style and quality of the station building caused me to revise my previous impression that Nagahama was just another dull country town, so I did a little exploring before continuing my ride South along the East side of Lake Biwa. I'll write about my findings in a future post.

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NEW TEA STORE IN KYOTO

There's a new store in Kyoto, near the Oike Street end of Teramachi, my favorite shopping street. The store is called Lupicia.  (ルピシア）They sell tea, and they are a class act! The shop is gorgeous. Along the one wall there are small tins of different teas - probably hundreds - for customers to inspect and smell. If you want to try before you buy there is an area at the back of the store where they will brew a cup of whichever tea you are interested in. They have teas from all over the world, green teas, black teas, herb teas, fruit teas, flower teas, even South African red bush tea. There are some very special Japanese style teas available in pretty little sample packs of three teabags for 300 yen, and also in various sizes of beautifully packaged gift tins. They would make wonderful souvenirs or gifts for tea drinking friends back home.

The store opened just yesterday. I found they have a mail order tea business on the internet, but I chatted with the charming European manager who was strolling around the shop in traditional Japanese dress, and he told me the store is the only one in Kyoto. (After we left the store my friend and I were speculating about the nationality of the manager. My friend thought French but I thought perhaps Belgian or Swiss...)

Now I'll tell you what I bought! The first tea that attracted my interest was 'Karigane Nikki' ( 雁ヶ音日記 ) which is Houjicha (roasted tea) with cinnamon. Then there was the fruity-scented 'Karakoro' ( からころ ), a black tea flavored with yuzu (citrus) and  plum. Finally I bought 'Tattoo', a green tea blend with jasmine flowers and longan fruit, which smells heavenly and is described on the packet as having a smoky flavor.

I only bought 300 yen sample packs of each of these, but I still received three gift teas at the check-out, where they also inquired whether I wanted my purchases gift wrapped. So in addition to my selections I will also be able to try 'First Flush', 'Grapefruit' and 'Champagne Rose' (no English description on the packets so I don't know what I'm in for.)

It's enough to make me wish I was more into tea... but sadly, although I like to try new things, and I do drink the occasional cup of tea, what I really like is coffee...

TAKING THE SCENIC ROUTE

If you travel along the Western shore of Lake Biwa by train (JR Kosei Line) you can enjoy a fine view of the lake for much of the journey, but after Makino station the train leaves the lake to pass through a series of tunnels before coming out on the Eastern side, and Biwako line which runs down the Eastern side is mostly too far inland to see the lake.

So it's only motorists and cyclists who have the opportunity to travel along the scenic road around the top of the lake, where the scenery is so beautiful I can't keep the smile off my face.

In some places the cedar-clad mountain-side sweeps right down to the lake edge, and dusty sunbeams streak down through the trunks. Elsewhere, homesteads and tourist lodges nestle into lush valleys planted with rice.

Cherry trees line the shore, and in spring heavy loads of blossom weight the branches down. Egrets and shags fish from rocks that have tumbled into the water. The road follows the curve of the bays, in and out, in and out. Two small monkeys scramble up the retaining wall at the side of the road. Small boats drift dreamily against a backdrop of blue hills. An island rises out of the lake, misty, indistinct, and mysterious. A man fishes from a small jetty in water that reflects the clouds. A mossy wall encloses a house with shining roof tiles. Hawks glide on air currents over the water.

People always say New Zealand is beautiful, and it is.... but no more so than the wild, lovely area at the top of Lake Biwa.

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A SMALL TOWN NAMED MAKINO

On the West side of Lake Biwa, right at the top of the lake, there's a small town called Makino. I've been there several times in various seasons of the year. It really is small - a JR station, a main street lined with old wooden houses, a few lodges and restaurants for visitors who probably only come in cherry blossom season, and that's about it.

But it draws me back again and again. It's the kind of place I like. Glimpses of lovely lake views between old wooden buildings. Orange persimmons against a blue sky. Daffodils by stone walls. Crumbling mud-plaster walls. Dark mysterious little stores.  The proximity of Kaizu Osaki, a stunning beauty spot in the spring.

Sometimes I meet Japanese people who tell me they have a holiday house there, which might account for the sleepy, shut-up look of the place. Perhaps a lot of the houses are empty most of the time. If I owned a house in a place like Makino I'd spend most of my time there.

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SIT-DOWN COMEDY

Image by rwangsa via FlickrIn the West we have 'Stand-up Comedy' where someone stands up, usually with a microphone, in front of a group of people, and tells jokes and humorous stories. But in Japan they have 'Sit-down Comedy' - Rakugo. One person sits in the middle of the stage and tells a humorous story, often dependent on puns and word-plays. In fact, they don't so much "tell the story" as act it out, doing all the voices and facial expressions, and using a folding fan and a small cloth as props. I'm told it's quite amazing how expressive these minimalist props can become in the hands of a talented rakugo performer.
A few weeks ago a Japanese friend took me to a rakugo performance in English. a Canadian and two Japanese performers told several stories assisted by a female presenter. I have to admit, I've never really been a fan of comedy shows and I was a little bored. But once I read a famous rakugo story about a man who said he was scared of manju - a small Japanese cake filled with sweet bean paste. It was kind of funny, and I can imagine that it might make a good performance. You can read a translation of the story here: http://jeisensei.blogspot.com/

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FIRE FESTIVAL

Every year on October 22nd, in the small and picturesque town of Kurama just North of Kyoto, they hold a fire festival. Although I've lived in Kyoto for nearly seven years, reports of long lines and ridiculously crowded trains always put me off going. But last Friday I finally went to see it.

The festival starts with bonfires being lighted at 6pm, but my friend and I missed that, arriving in Kurama just after 7pm. The train from Demachiyanagi in Kyoto was packed, but that was only what I expected. The main street was lined with braziers tended by locals sitting or standing outside their houses. We walked down the street to a shrine where two huge bonfires roared and hurled sparks into the night sky.

Every now and then men and youths in  festival costumes carried flaming torches of various sizes along the road. We saw one youth being helped to shoulder a huge torch. He was carrying the fiery end, and sparks fell from the torch onto his bare back. I thought more protective clothing would have been a good idea!
At one point we followed the crowds along the street thinking there must be some action up ahead, but policemen were pushing people into a narrow space along the side of the street behind a yellow tape. The people were 4 or 5 deep, and probably wouldn't see much form the back.

No doubt the nature of the festival and the crowds of people who attend make it potentially a very dangerous situation, but it was just like being on the train again. My friend and I pushed our way back along the road out of the crowds, then ducked under the police tape and joined some locals tending a brazier on the other side of the street. I was expecting to be moved along and forced to join the crowd again, but it never happened. Free from the pushing and shoving, we were able to enjoy a good view or the procession which came along after a while.

After the procession we headed for the train station, hoping that by leaving early we would avoid the worst of  the crowding. No such luck - everyone else had the same idea, and we were forced to queue for two hours before being tightly crammed into a small train for the journey back to Demachiyanagi. A friend told me he caught the last train back, at midnight, and that it was relatively uncrowded, and most passengers were even able to sit down.

I wish I had done more research about the event before we went. I'm sure we missed some of the good bits. I'm also sure I don't want to go back next year.  I really loved the festival, but I find it difficult to voluntarily subject myself to that degree of crowding. Crowds are okay if you can still move around freely, but when I'm trapped in a train or a queue it feels really unpleasant and frustrating.