Memorable Moments

A collection of happy memories but what stands out at present in my mind is the genuine friendliness of the Japanese people that we met. Even though the only word we had was "arigato" (thank you) just about everyone had at least a smattering of English and those that didn't were more than willing to mime. Helpful to a fault, one lady even went about half a mile out of her way to make sure we got to the shop we were looking for. A Plasma Physics Professor took us to his favorite bridge and a young local restaurant owner spent time miming what he would cook for us then sent us on our way with six saki cups.

Chic middle aged ladies, outrageous teenage fashion and easy-to-use public transport. Love miso soup (it comes in so many savors...sorry Polly T!) but had enough of noodles for a while.

Yesterday we had a shrine walk (a bit like visiting English country churches I suppose) and the photos will be up soon but here's a couple to be going on with:

Jojakko-ji TempleOur favorite temple grounds. Adashino Nenbutsu-ji TempleOver 8,000 gravestones relocated here from around Adashino about 100 years ago.