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In Japan they say "Autumn is the time for eating" (shokuyoku no aki) and "Autumn is the time
for reading" (dokusho no aki). For us, it turned out, Autumn was the time for a "K Tour"
of Japan: Kobe, Kyoto, Kyushu and finally Kamakura.
KOBE
The great Kansai-Awaji Earthquake rocked Kobe on January 17, 1995 at 5:46 AM. The 7.3 magnitude shock twisted
this highway pier, breaking the rebar-concrete contact, causing it to fail. The highway fell over.
(Analysis of this 2 m (7') diameter pier resulted in new construction standards.) Today, Kobe
is largely rebuilt, a new, modern city with wide boulevards, gardens and parks -- including a solar powered
floral clock.
KYOTO
No trip to Kyoto is complete without a stop at our favorite temple,
Nanzen-ji. This picture was taken from the balcony of the massive
temple gate, and it shows part of the garden of Tenjuan, one of the
three great gardens at Nanzen-ji.
KYUSHU
Kyushu is the most westerly of Japan's four main islands. It is
separated from Honshu -- the island Tokyo is on -- by the Kanmon
Strait. A beautiful suspension bridge and a car tunnel connect the two
islands. There is also a pedestrian tunnel. We walked it with our
friend Mizuho while above us passed huge container ships, fishing boats
and tugs.
KAMAKURA
Kamakura is known for its Great Buddha statue. For scale, imagine each of us sitting on a thumbnail.
Cast in 1292 it was once housed in a building, but a tsunami
washed that away in 1495. It only costs $.20 to take the E. coli tour inside Buddha's belly.
News & Notes
Like Americans everywhere, we were riveted to the TV as the votes were
counted in the US election, though for us it was already Wednesday
midday. (Yes, we voted by absentee ballot from Tokyo.) Check Cool Stuff for the results.
While in Kobe we rendezvoused with Kiyomi Hirose and her boys Ryotaro (11) and Eitaro (8). We toured the Earthquake
Museum and took a hike into the hills behind Kobe to a series of beautiful waterfalls. But that didn't begin to wear
out the energetic boys, so they burned off energy jumping water features in one of the local parks ... not always
successfully!
Eitaro and Ryotaro
The other "must see" for us in Kyoto is the Kawamoto household. In addition to
the beautiful courtyard garden,
there is also Tomoko and Takashi's warm hospitality. A special treat
this time was meeting the Takata family, Shigeru, Aya (daughter) and
their boys Tohru (6) and Satoru (3). We also had the chance to greet
Takashi's 89 year old mother. Photo: Takashi Kawamoto
Shigeru, Tomoko, Tohru, Satoru, Aya, L, J, Takashi
Our reason for heading out west to Kyushu was to visit friends Mizuho
and Naoto Ozaki in Kitakyushu. A weekend with them is always filled
with activities. But, we can also count on Mizuho to honor shokuyoku no aki
(Autumn is a time for eating). This is macha-soba with eel, pork, egg
and kombu served sizzling on a hot roof tile. Did roofers invent this
dish in mid July? 
Mizuho and Naoto
While in Kitakyushu we were invited to Keiichiro and Ayumi Akiba's
home for tea. (Ayumi and Mizuho are cousins.) The talented Akiba girls,
Misato (11) and Kyoko (8), are learning English and were excited to
practice it. They also played their piano recital pieces for us, which
were terrific, showed off their ballet costumes, and presented us with
origami. Tea time at the Akibas is a wonderful way to relax after a day
of sightseeing. 
Kyoko, Ayumi and Misato
Dinner out with friends is always a pleasure for us especially in Tokyo
where we are menu novices. Chika Yoshimura stayed after the trip to
Kamakura and helped us through an Okinawa restaurant in our
neighborhood; sea grass figured prominently on the menu, and was
excellent. L's host Kennichi Miura introduced him to a wonderful sushi
restaurant hidden on the second floor in a backstreet of the Ginza. And
a Korean barbeque was the venue for a sayonara dinner with our friends
Akio and Makiko Ogawa. We're not known for
missing lunch, either, so we happily joined our friends Midori and
Tatsuo Asano for sashimi. Midori is an artist specializing in enamel,
and they were in town to see a juried exhibition of new Japanese art. 
Tatsuo and Midori
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