A Day To Remember

Today (Saturday) was a jammed packed day.

I wish I had a pedometer because I am really curious how far I walked. Judging by how tired my feet are, I know it was a lot! 

Anywho, we spent a lovely day with Stan's uncle and aunt, his cousin and her husband. They planned a very special day for us and we were on the go from morning till evening. Although Stan's aunt is pushing 80, she is a fireball of energy and it was a challenge to keep up with her! (Note to self: get back to the gym!) 

Our morning consisted of a guided bus tour of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, the Peace Memorial Museum, and the Atomic Bomb Dome.  Our tour guide was a sweet older woman who was as cute as a button. She was very knowledgeable about her city and its history and she never stopped talking for a minute. Unfortunately, the tour was in Japanese so I didn't understand a word of it but Stan filled me in on the highlights. 

Our tour began at the Atomic Bomb Dome. The Dome (originally constructed in 1914) was located in the business district of Hiroshima next to the Aioi Bridge and was used for arts and educational exhibitions. It is the only structure that remained [partially] standing near the hypocenter of the nuclear blast on August 6, 1945. It has been preserved as a memorial of the bombing and as a symbol for world peace.

Atomic Bomb Dome.

The Aioi Bridge was the target for the atom bomb because if the weather was good, its "T" shape was easy to see from the air. I believe the Dome is on the far right. Only a sliver of the building is visible in this photo.

Dome Today.

Original building before August, 1945.

Before and after bombing.

As I was pondering the devastation that occurred in August, 1945 in the very spot where I was standing, I happened to notice this man sitting on a park bench under the cherry blossoms reading a newspaper. The Dome is directly in front of him. He looked so casual and relaxed, and for a brief moment my brain and my emotions could not reconcile the scene: the co-existence of destruction and peaceful relaxation. I took a photo to remember the moment.

The location of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park was once the city's business downtown commercial and residential district. The park was built in an open field created by the explosion across from the Dome. The park contains various memorials and monuments but the one in the center is particularly moving. It is a concrete, saddle-shaped monument that covers a cenotaph containing the names of all the people who perished in the bombing. The cenotaph carries the epitaph, "Please rest in peace, for [we/they] shall not repeat the error." The epitaph was written by Tadayoshi Saika, Professor of English Literature at Hiroshima University. He also provided the English translation, "Let all the souls here rest in peace for we shall not repeat the evil." On November 3, 1983, an explanation plaque in English was added in order to convey Professor Saika's intent that "we" refers to "all humanity", not specifically the Japanese or Americans, and that the "error" is the "evil of war". Stan's aunt was a victim of the bombing and her name appears on the cenotaph.

Peace Memorial Park with Dome in the background.

Children's Peace Monument.

Children's Peace Monument Plaque.

Eternal Flame of Peace with Museum in the background.

Cenotaph Monument with Eternal Flame and
Dome in the background.

"Let all the souls here rest in peace for we shall not repeat the evil."

Finally, the Museum was the most emotional part of the tour. I could barely get through it. The exhibits are gut-wrenching and I had to fight the tears. Stan's aunt pulled me over to a model of the city which represented areas that were destroyed. Speaking a language I do not understand, she shared her memories. As I listened to her tone and watched her facial expressions and body language, I understood every word. I realized grief is a universal language. 

I have not fully processed everything I saw, so at this point I can't begin to convey how it moved me. The only thing I CAN share is that my heart cried out to God today - for mercy, for deliverance, for restoration, for the victims of war and hatred, and for the hope of His coming.

Whew!

After lunch, we continued the tour on a happier note. The afternoon consisted of taking a ferry to Miyajima to see [World Heritage Site] Itsukushima Shrine.  

Cousins on the left, uncle and aunt on the right.

Itsukushima is an island in the western part of the Inland Sea of Japan, located in the northwest of Hiroshima Bay. It is popularly known as Miyajima, which in Japanese means, "the Shrine Island". It is considered to be one of the most scenic spots in Japan.

Itsukushima Shrine has a long history and at the time of this writing I have not had the opportunity to research it. I paid particular attention to the architectural style and noticed how expansive the complex was but that is as far as I got. I DID find this one tidbit of information on Wikipedia that was interesting: the Itsukushima shrine is dedicated to the three daughters of Susano-o no Mikoto, who according to Japanese mythology, is the god of seas and storms and brother of the sun goddess Amaterasu. So, there you go.

Stan waiting for the ferry.

Bicycle Parking!

Deer sneaking up on unsuspecting humans.

A torii is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine. It symbolically marks the transition from the profane to the sacred.

Five-tiered pagoda in the background.

Very steep bridge. Can you imagine crossing in a kimono?

Five-tiered pagoda.

These are miscellaneous shots of people being people.

Wedding party posing for the family shot.

Wedding Party from the front.

A different bride and groom during their shoot,

Nice hat!

After the tour, Stan and I headed back to our hotel, dropped off our stuff and headed back to Peace Memorial Park to photograph "hanami". In my previous post, I shared that one of the nation's all-time favorite pastimes is - hanami - which literally means "looking at flowers" and refers to having picnics under the blooms. This evening, I was able to witness hanami firsthand. It was beautiful!

Cherry Blossom Season, Hiroshima

Picnic under the flowers!

I peeked over her shoulder and saw that she was writing in her journal.
I wondered what thoughts she was recording.

I was waiting for Stan and noticed this woman.

After a very long day, we were ready for a hearty dinner.  Stan suggested we try a unique place he spotted this morning.  It was a stand-up steak place! 

A what?

You may have heard of stand-up sushi bars? Well, this was the same concept except they serve steak instead of sushi. The idea is you stand at a bar and a server takes your order. Then you walk over to the grill chef and he helps you select your size and cut of meat and you tell him how you want it prepared.  When the food is ready, you STAND at the bar and eat. It's different. The food was good and I would go back again. But next time, let's go on a day when I haven't been on my feet all day, okay?

What Time Is It?

THURSDAY 

I left LAX at 12:50 AM on Wednesday, March 30, flew for approximately 11 hours and landed in Tokyo at 4:00 AM on Thursday.

Wait. What happened to Wednesday?

With the sixteen hour time difference between L.A. and Tokyo, I lost an entire day! I have been confused ever since! ha! ha! The good news is, when I return home, I will get to repeat a day. How's that for do-overs?

Upon my arrival in Tokyo, I successfully navigated customs, baggage claim, more security, a terminal transfer and a connecting flight to Osaka ALL BY MYSELF! (My friend Stan flew to Tokyo the day before I left, so he was waiting for me in Osaka when I arrived.) I admit I was nervous about finding my way around, but Stan provided fool-proof instructions (complete with video links) so all-in-all it was relatively simple. Yay me!

And now, a quick word about bathrooms . . .

This is going to sound crazy, but I love the bathrooms at the ANA terminal.

Seriously! 

Everything is so high tech. The private water closet comes complete with a Toto toilet, heated seat, a sound system that plays soothing sounds of rushing water to camouflage other noises (!), a complete bidet system with options to choose from, an automatic air freshener, and lighting that makes you look good even after 11 hours on a red-eye! Now that's impressive! 

Okay, moving on. 

One of the things I love about traveling with Stan is that I have no idea what the plan is.  I don't know where we're staying, what we're seeing, how long we'll be there, who we're meeting, or where we're going next. My only responsibility is to pack, show up, bring my camera, and write a check at the end. It's perfect. (And no, girls, I won't introduce you to Stan! Forget about it.) 

As soon as I arrived in Osaka, the first order of business was Starbucks.  The second order of business was a hot shower and a relaxing 75 minute massage! Oh, yeah baby! It was a perfect way to ease into vacation mode and work the kinks out after a frenzied few days prior to leaving L.A.  My massage therapist was AMAZING! 

The rest of the day (which felt like the-middle-of-the-night to us) consisted of a little shopping, dinner, a blog post and early lights out. 

FRIDAY 

Today was a move day. Moving day means I have to pack up all my stuff, schlep it, and transfer to a new city / hotel. I'm usually not ready to switch locations but I always look forward to seeing what's next. (BTW, that's the cool thing about a cruise - there's no packing and no moving. Every morning, a new city is waiting for you right outside your door.) 

After breakfast we checked out of our hotel and joined the herd at the train station. We took a train to a transfer point and then hopped on the Bullet Train for the rest of the journey to Hiroshima. I love traveling by train because I get to see more of the country . . . well, as much as I could see as it was whizzing past me at 200 miles per hour! (It's kinda like riding in the car with Jerry Piani!) 

Japan is all about how many sardines they can squeeze in a can. In other words, it's crowded. Multi-family high rises are sandwiched together and every possible square foot of space is utilized as efficiently as possible. The streets are narrow; the parking spaces are narrower. What impresses me is that in spite of how densely populated Japan is, everything seems to run smoothly and orderly. (I contrast it to the chaos I have witnessed in New York, Italy, France, etc.) It's very impressive. 

Upon our arrival in Hiroshima, we were met at the station by Stan's cousins. They are sweet people who I had the privilege of meeting in 2013. I used the translator app on my iPhone to communicate with them over afternoon tea as we mapped out our itinerary for the weekend, which of course includes cherry blossom viewing. It's going to be fun hanging out with them.

Afternoon Tea with Cousins

Selfie on the Bullet Train

Cherry Blossom Season in Japan

Growing up in a small farming community in Texas, I never dreamed I would have the opportunity to travel 5,650 miles away from home to visit a foreign country. Now, the idea of traveling the world (well, parts of it anyway), seems as natural as visiting that small town in Texas I used to call home.

As I sit here enjoying the comfort of my own cubicle in Business Class, and the impeccable service offered by the beautiful Japanese ANA flight attendants, I marvel at the goodness of God and His plan for my life. It occurs to me that nothing has turned out the way I initially envisioned it:  I didn't marry the boy I was in love with in sixth grade; I didn't learn to cook like my grandmother; I didn't settle down to small town living and raise a family; I never learned to sew; I never mastered the piano . . .

Instead, thus far I have followed the Lord on a totally different path experiencing the life HE planned for me - with all of its twists and turns, gifts and surprises, and a few self-directed detours. I jokingly refer to it as "Father God's Wild Ride." LOL.

And so begins another adventure.  As I cross the International Date Line traveling 516 miles per hour toward Tokyo, another memory is in the making. This time, Stan and I are traveling to Japan to photograph cherry blossoms.

That's right.

Cherry blossom season (known as sakura) is a BIG deal in Japan. Months before the cherry trees bloom, everyone starts to gear up. Retailers decorate store fronts with cherry blossoms, and restaurants and convenience stores offer blossom-flavored drinks and recipes. The local news stations report the daily Cherry Blossom Forecast which offers a petal-by-petal analysis of the advance of the blooms as they sweep across the nation from the south to the north. When the blooms actually arrive, the general population indulge in one of the nation's all-time favorite pastimes - hanami - which literally means "looking at flowers" and refers to having picnics under the blooms.

Like I said, it's a big deal. 

So here we are, excited to join the festivities. We're going to spend some time looking at flowers and hopefully capture some of the beauty in photographs.  I can't wait.

Sunrise in Tokyo

Flying from Tokyo to Osaka we passed Mt. Fuji.

Mt. Fuji.

Home Sweet Home

It has been a few days since I left Paris and returned to my home in California. In some ways it is wonderful to be home, but in other ways I am sad that my great adventure is over (for now). 

Getting back to reality is always difficult as I am now faced with a mountain of laundry, mail stacked to the ceiling, bills to pay, a dusty house (how does that happen when I'm gone?) and my ever-present "To Do" list that is still sitting on my desk where I left it 5-1/2 weeks ago. Plus, I brought home an extra (not to be disclosed) amount of weight that I have to shed before anything in my closet will fit! 

Sigh.

But there's something else. 

There is a wonderful freedom that I enjoy when I'm traveling around the world without any immediate responsibility. It's hard to explain, but it's a feeling of release.  For a while, I am free from the daily pressures of life, and in that place, I experience God's presence. It's a rich and satisfying feeling knowing He is near and there is nothing standing between us.  There is no pressure to perform. There are no deadlines. No one is watching or judging. There are minimal expectations. I can simply BE . . . and in this unencumbered state, I am naturally drawn to Him.

The question I am now asking myself is what changes do I need to make in my life that will allow me to STAY in this place of intimacy and encounter in the midst of my daily responsibilities? Why must I allow the pursuits or entanglements of living (sometimes it feels more like survival) choke out The One who sustains me?  That's not the way it is supposed to be.

The first and greatest command is to love God with our whole being. But isn't it rare to find someone who is completely God-centered? Isn't it more "normal" for people to focus on trying to make life work apart from Him? 

Hmmm.

Being fully His; staying connected - these pursuits will be my next adventure - right here at home.

The Stained Glass of Notre-Dame

I sure am enjoying the leisurely pace of my life in Paris! 

I shared with Stan this morning that I believe I was meant to have a palace in the Parisian countryside and spend lazy summers reading intriguing novels, sipping cool lemonade, and riding horseback along meandering rivers. And every Saturday I should be attending formal balls wearing beautiful evening gowns and dancing in the arms of a man in uniform (or Fred Astaire). Don't you think?

Shhh. Don't wake me.

My mother always shakes her head at my romanticism, but I can't help it! I take after my father . . . my earthly father AND my precious Heavenly Father.  He is, after all, the most romantic being I know.  One of my favorite worship songs goes like this:

Divine Romance, by Phil Wickham

The fullness of Your grace is here with me 
The richness of Your beauty is all I see 
The brightness of Your glory has arrived 
In Your presence God, I'm completely satisfied 

For You - I sing, I dance 
I rejoice in this divine romance 
I lift my heart and my hands 
To show my love, to show my love 

Today we returned to Notre-Dame because I wanted to see the inside of the cathedral. The stained glass was beautiful. After walking around for awhile, we stopped at Hard Rock Cafe for lunch. Eating at Hard Rock is one of our traditions - we try to find one in every city we visit.

On the subway in Paris.

Notre-Dame

My name on the walls of Notre-Dame!

City Hall, Paris

Me and my sunbrella strolling the streets of Paris.