The Japanese really have a love of nature, but alter it to suit their sense of design.


Here's a gardener meticulously tending the grounds with brooms. I was reminded of the time I was at a temple in Kyoto and watched two ladies tending a moss garden. In Miyajima we saw a groundskeeper sweeping the trails.


The straw rope denotes something as being sacred, as these camphor trees at the Meiji Shrine.


I assume the straw coverings are to protect these pines from the cold.


We saw quite a bit of pines with branches supported by bamboo poles.


Flowers with straw tents to protect them from frost.

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Here is some of the neat/fun/interesting things we saw in Japan, but I did not mention in my reports:

Man hole covers--each area seems to have their own man hole cover designs. Pretty cool.


Ginza


Akasaka


It's not pot, it's a maple leaf from Miyajima. They also had a red one.


Himeji


Here's another one from Himeji


ueno



These are probably places for firefighters to access water. We never saw any fire hydrants. There were a few variations of these designs.

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Day 13 In which we explore a castle
We were still in Hiroshima, and this was our last full day in Japan. We went to a Sukiya restaurant at the train station and had curry and rice for breakfast. We checked out of the hotel, and caught the 9:48 high speed Shinkansen to Himeji. The ride took just an hour. The train was very comfortable, with wide seats and plenty of leg room. Even so, when the woman in front of us reclined her seat, she first said, "Sumimasen (excuse me)," before reclining it a few inches.




The castle in Fukuyama is right next to the train station. This was taken from the train as we went through the station.

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Day 11 Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Yesterday was our last official outing with SCAD. We would be on our own beginning today. There was a nasty bug going through the students and faculty of the school, and we caught it too. In a society where so many people are wearing face masks, we were very conscious of every sniffle and cough.

We had bought Rail Passes before arriving in Japan. These are great deals, but only sold to foreigners, and only before they step foot in the country. Basically, any Japan Rail system can be ridden with these passes. You can even get reserved seating, in fact, some rail lines require that you reserve a seat. Japan has the most efficient rail system in the world, and the most expensive. Our one trip to Hiroshima would pay for the Rail Pass on its own.


We stowed our bags at the Mercure cloakroom, and walked over to Tokyo Station with a single duffle to catch the 9:03 Shinkansen to Himeji. We had seats in car 13, and waited at the designated spot on the platform. When the train from Himeji stopped, the doors opened right in front of us. Such precision. The cleaners went through the train first, and, since the train would be returning to Himeji, rotated the seats so each of them faced the right way. I hate facing backwards on a train. We had wanted seats on the right side of the train to get a good view of Mt Fuji. The weather was gorgeous, and we got wonderful views not only of the volcano, but of the tea plantations, and towns along the way.


Whenever the conductor or JR staff came into our car, he (or she) would always bow before entering, and would turn around and bow as they left. It was a little act, but it pleased me greatly. For me, it embodied what Japan is.

We had purchased bento lunches at the train station, and ate those on the 3 hour 40 minute ride. I had the teri beef, and Sharon had the chicken cutlet. We had 10 minutes to catch our connection in Himeji, and we made it with ease. We arrived in Hiroshima just before 2:00.

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December 6, 2009 Sunday
It was a beautiful, sunny day. The group met at the usual time--about 8:50--and metroed to Sengaku-ji Temple, the grave site of the 47 ronin. These masterless samurai avenged the death of their lord, and were ordered to commit seppuku, ritualized suicide. They waited two years before completing their vendetta. Their leader put on an act of drunkeness and lechery, throwing the enemy off his guard. They gathered one night in December and attacked the enemy stronghold. They fought his guards, and finally found him in a hidden room. They cut off his head, paraded it through town, and brought it to this temple to wash before laying it at their master's grave.




The well where they washed the head

People still visit the graves to place incense. The smoke got so thick when we were there it was difficult to see the grave stones. There is also a museum showing a video of the ronin, and a hall with fairly life-size statues of each of them.

Ray places incense

( click here to read about our search for Godzilla and going to Studio Ghibli )

Day 7 in which we eat ninja style
Friday, December 4, 2009
This was the final day of classes and i did a watercolor demonstration. Coloring was the only thing that Bernard and I discussed prior to starting our classes. He did a day on computer coloring, and I would do it the traditional way. I colored the two pieces that were inked the previous day. As I worked, I talked about breaking into the business--networking, attending conventions, submitting to publishers, and portfolio reviews. The finished colored drawings were given to SCAD faculty Ray and Duncan.

Bernard and I later got together with the faculty to pick the 19 students who would go to TMS and Studio Ghibli. There were some great submissions, and it was a difficult choice. Duncan drew up neat Totoro cards for all the students saying either, "Let's Go!" or "Sorry." I'm still waiting for mine.


Bernard Chang and me at the Imperial Palace
( click here to see cemetery and robots )

Japan Days 5-6
Wednesday
In class we finished up story and thumbnails, and went on to pencilling and lettering. Before class though, Ray made an announcement. I had received an invitation to visit TMS's Telecom Animation Studio and Hayao Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli. Both studios do not usually give tours, especially not to students, but I had managed to get a group of 24 invited. The problem was that there were almost 50 of us, so almost half the group would be excluded. The SCAD faculty came up with a contest. We would be going to the Tokyo Edo Museum today and, anyone who wanted to go on the studio tour, could turn in a single sketch, drawing, strip or painting. Bernard and I, with the instructors' advice would chose the 19 students who would accompany us.



The Tokyo-Edo Museum shows life in and around Edo, as the capital was formerly named, from the 17th to the early 20th century. It has artifacts, dioramas, displays, and interactive activities. I was most interested in the early Edo period, as that is the time period that Usagi takes place. Besides our SCAD students, there were local elementary groups all wearing matching hats or bandanas.





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