By Tanya DeWolf
Times Intern
Editor’s Note: While on a Waterford High School-sponsored trip to Japan, Times intern Tanya DeWolf kept a log of her 10-day visit.
April 13
Students arrived at the WHS parking lot at 1 a.m. to catch a 7 a.m. flight out of John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York to begin our adventure with a six-hour flight to San Francisco. When we landed and were finally given the opportunity to stretch our legs, we had a rushed walk before immediately having to board our connecting 12-hour flight toward Osaka, Japan.
April 14
After 30 hours of total travel time, what seemed like a lifetime, we finally arrived at Kansai International Airport at 3:30 p.m. Waiting for us was our bilingual EF tour guide, Christian Aleman. Just from the architecture of the airport alone—and the glass elevators— it seemed as if we had stepped into the future. Though we were all in dire need of some sleep, we nevertheless took a scenic bus ride through the city to our hotel in Osaka.
Factories line the coastline in Osaka, western Japan’s major commercial center and one of Pacific Asia’s major exporting cities. Besides the Japanese characters on billboards, it was not until we saw the Oriental-style Osaka Castle in the distance amid all the skyscrapers that it set in—we were in Japan. [Aleman] also pointed out an enormous Ferris wheel, which he said the Japanese prize greatly and have in most of their big cities.
We got to our hotel and had our first authentic Japanese meal: raw fish, sushi, and tofu. The majority of the students were unsure of the new tastes, having never tried Japanese cuisine before and were thankful for the white rice served with every meal.
Far away from the nearest fork, mastering the art of eating with chopsticks was the first of many great learning experiences.
April 15
We woke up at 6 a.m. and started our day with our first Japanese-style breakfast: more fish, a variety of vegetables, seaweed, and, of course, a side of white rice. We also had the option of eating purple-colored octopus legs, which still had the suckers on them. If not chewed properly, they stick to your throat on the way down.
It was a short ride to our first historic site, Osaka Castle. It is a replica of the classic donjon building with five towers overlooking the city. The structure houses the original art, weapons, and documents of the original castle that was built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the feudal ruler, who in the 16th century oversaw the unification of Japan. On the fifth floor observation deck we took in the view of the city, as well as the surrounding park outside the castle surrounded by cherry blossoms.
After a 30-minute bus ride, we arrived in Kyoto, which until 1895 was Japan’s capital. First we visited Nijo Castle, built under the powerful regime of the Tokugawa shogun, the ruler of Japan in 1598. Young warriors trained in this ancient castle not only to become skilled samarai soldiers but were also educated in literature, history, and the arts. Most impressive was that the floor was built to squeak like a nightingale’s call, which prevented any intruders from sneaking in.
We then made our way to the Shinto Heian Shrine, which was built in 1895 to commemorate Kyoto’s founding. Designed as a smaller replica of the Imperial Palace from the Heian period, the shrine is bright orange with green pagoda-style roofs and lined with marvelous traditional Japanese paintings. We were taught the proper rituals of praying and making a wish. Several students had their fortunes read here. Unfortunately mine was very unlucky, which is so rare to Japanese people that our guide paradoxically reassured me that since bad luck was so rare it is actually considered a form of good luck.
We had one more stop before we ended the day: the Kinkaku-ji, most commonly referred to as the Gold Pavilion Temple, which was built for a retired shogun ruler of Japan in 1937. A three-story building covered with pure gold leaf, it is located in the middle of a mirror pond lined with bonsai trees and herons wading on rocks.
April 16
We once again got up at 6 a.m., and students were given the choice to go on an excursion to Nara or stay in Kyoto and explore the city with a few chaperones. The majority of the group took the bus ride to Nara.
My favorite part of the entire trip was the Todaiji Temple. It is the largest wooden building in the world and houses the world’s largest bronze statue of Buddha. Built in 743, the temple is surrounded by Nara Park not surprisingly nicknamed “Deer Park.” In Japan, deer are sacred animals; even the Todaiji Temple has golden antlers on the roof to pay respect to the godly creatures. Deer in Nara are protected by less severe laws nowadays, but in ancient times the penalty for killing a deer was a death sentence. Unlike the shy deer in America, Japanese deer roam the streets not scared of humans. Instead they flock like pigeons in New York and even nibble and poke tourists with their antlers, eager to be fed.
Unable to understand much of the Japanese language besides “arigato” thanks to “Mr.Roboto” by Styx, we resorted to pointing and finding other ways to communicate. We quickly realized the Japanese interest in American culture, especially among young people. Much like the Asian characters that kids in America wear on their shirts just because they liked the way the writing looked without knowing the meaning, there were countless poorly translated English shirts that were quite comical. One of my favorite T-shirts read “Don’t Worry Be Smile.” We also happened upon a pagoda McDonald’s with a brown traditional roof and the 100-yen menu advertisement outside.
April 17
Breakfast was raw fish, again. We then boarded a bullet train going 180 mph to Hakone. There we took a boat tour on Lake Ashi and got an up-close view of Mount Fuji.
We arrived at the Sumni Club, a traditional Japanese-style hotel, quite early that evening. Our rooms were simply decorated with straw mats and a very low table at which you had to kneel to sit, along with a green tea set.
The entire group donned ceremonial robes and went to dinner. We were served a traditional fare of tofu, seafood, and rice. The place setting was extravagant, as each place setting had an individually lit pot to cook our fish. The meal looked great even though the majority of the fish still had their eyes intact that almost pleaded not to be eaten.
That night students bathed in one of the gender-separated hot springs.
April 18
We finally set out toward Japan’s capital, Tokyo. Before leaving we stopped in Kamakura to take pictures of the second-largest Buddha statue, towering at 37 feet high. After paying a few yen we were able crawl inside the large statue.
April 19
Located in the center of Tokyo our hotel overlooked the Sumo Arena building in which we saw real sumo wrestlers walking the streets. It was still preseason for the athletes; the majority of them were still quite thin and had yet to bulk up for competition.
One of the most exciting parts of the trip was our visit to the trendy Harajuku shopping district. Teenagers with crazy-colored hair as well as mismatching outfits lined the streets.
We finished our tour with a boat cruise on the Sumida River, getting a better look at the architecture of the futuristic city of Tokyo, where we were given our last opportunity to buy souvenirs in a local shopping area and finished our evening dining on traditional tempora.
April 20
We spent most of the day at Nikko National Park with its magnificent 30-foot Kegon Waterfall and packs of wild monkeys.
April 21
Home to some of the world’s largest fish markets, the seafood industry is crucial to the Japanese. We left at 6 a.m. to get to the fish market before dawn.
Tourists are made wary as the men work and are strictly forced not to use flash photography and interfere with the market’s daily routines.
Returning to the hotel to pack our last things and get in a short nap, we prepared to venture back to the airport for our flight home.
April 22
After enduring a painfully long flight back to the States, we were eager to return home.
Despite the horrible jet lag from the 13-hour time difference and some delays with our flights home, the trip was an amazing learning experience, though I’ll stick with Corn Flakes, instead of raw fish, for breakfast.