Kobe steak

We finally went out for a Kobe beef lunch.

Spencer loved it and wanted to eat Hannah's.

So here is a piece of the meat.......and you might be wondering what that awful looking thing is in the beef.......no, it is not bone from the cattle.......

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It's Hannah's last baby tooth that came out in her steak. We couldn't pass up a photo.

Nagoya, Sumo, Tsushima, Tennoh Matsuri

July 21-23 Nagoya

 There are 6 Grand Sumo Tournaments a year. Each tournament is about 2 weeks.



 In the higher ranking, each rikishi has one match per day tournament.

 The pomp and circumstance usually lasts longer than the actual match.

 Sumo's origin is religious. It was a ceremonial ritual performed with dances and dramas for a bountiful harvest.

 In the 8th century it moved from the religious ritual into an era of a more aggressive sport.

 July 23-24 After Nagoya we took a train to Tsushima. Our hostess had arranged for us to join a matsuri (festival) weekend at the home of one of Japan's leading drum makers.

 Little did we know how much of a highlight of our trip we were about to experience!

As you make your way through the store front and exit to the back, you enter a lovely home space. Here is Spencer just outside the gathering/dining space.

This is the main socializing room. Brunch was served for 50 in this main room and down the hallways.

The main room opens to a beautiful garden.

A delightful place to sleep.



We were escorted to the bank for our spot on the water for Tennoh Matsuri. 

Here's our group for the weekend.



Our deck had a private boat that would take us out on the water throughout the evening.

Spencer and Hannah made a friend and loved going out on the boat with him. 

 Our 2nd boat ride seemed indulgent. The "captain" took us out on the water and put us right up to the fireworks. Matt hung back and let the women and children have the boat. Little did we realize that we would be gone for 90 minutes and experience the festival up close. (I left the camera with him.)

 The floats have hundreds of candle lit lanterns, hanging by bamboo. They were gorgeous.

 Sunday morning, we return to the water for the rite of passage of young boys becoming men. They have to jump from the boat and swim to shore, wearing their loincloth and carrying bamboo poles with cloth.

When we returned to the home, the Hotta's had a few drums set-up and the musical director of a current Japanese film played (along with a few others).

The brothers entertained us during lunch. This was part of their fun piece.

Osaka Spa World, Kyoto, Gion Matsuri

Spencer wants the computer and I want to do a post, so this one will have to be quick. No video uploads today, more pics, few comments.

July 10th...."Happy Birthday To Hannah...." We no longer have an 11 year old. Her birthday party and present was a day at Spa World. The building is divided by zones. The women go to the Europe Zone and the men to Asia. Everyone gets down to their birthday suit and away you go!

For dinner, we found a Mexican Restaurant. We all had been craving some chips and dips.

Yummy nachos!

Guacomole made at the table.

"Tanjoubi omedetou gozaimasu!"

July 13th We had dinner at our friends' home before they departed for a vacation in Michigan. Mary, Maya, and Ren helped us to navigate the grocery store and cook some local dishes. We miss them already.

July 14th (Thursday) We headed to Kyoto. Checked into our hotel, New Miyako and met a new friend, Jane Ward (a friend of Jim Smith's from childhood).

This is Gion Matsuri time. A huge festival in Kyoto. So Jane helped us to get ready to take to the streets for the evening.

Amy and Hannah bought yukata (summer kimono) and had our hair done by the guy on the left.

The salon overlooked the main street, so you can see one of the parade floats from the window.

The yukata style is to pad the body to bring out the waist and front so that their is no hourglass shape.....as if Amy wanted layers of towels to create a flat side and front....not the most flattering style on me....darling on Hannah!

Spencer got in on the action in his jinbei (informal yukata for boys, men, and young women). Jinbei is usually worn in the home or for summer festivals.

Here's a festival game........I didn't want to catch crabs at a Japanese festival!

Beautiful fruits dipped in a sweet glaze.

How about some squid on a stick.........where's the turkey legs, cotton candy, and hotdogs?

July 15th (Friday) We headed to Fushiminari Shrine. A shinto shrine in honor of the god of rice. The fox is the symbol of the messenger of the god to the people.

Thousands of torri gates line the mountain side.

Your family name is placed on a gate when a contribution is made to the shrine.

The greater the contribution = larger gate!

"Kinkakuji Temple" or the Golden Pavillion for the afternoon.

 Spencer and Hannah duck into an art gallery for a free woodblock print lesson.

Flying Sushi for lunch.

So we ended our Kyoto trip to a Japanese Movie Theatre for the opening weekend of "Harry Potter." Hannah was thrilled and it actually put a spring in her step.

What a foreign experience in a movie theatre. Assigned seating....complete silence..nobody left to use the bathroom...nobody went to the snack counter once the movie started, and when there was silence in the movie, you could hear a pin drop in the theatre.