Shojoshin-in Temple Koyasan

... meals would be ready. We were given slippers and traditional Japanese gowns to wear and they have invited us and the other guests staying here to their early morning prayers and fire ceremony. It looks like an early morning for us all so we’ll sign off soon and hit the futon (our pillows are full of rice!!!).

Strangely though, our room also has television and there is an internet room downstairs. The building is very old and made primarily of wood. There are rice ...

... pointed it precisely, depressed the button, and swiftly make my way back to our waiting tea ceremony...

[CLICK, CLICK, CLICK...] We posed, and toasted, and enjoyed:)

We finished our tea off with the complimentary sweets left for us - kind of a Fig Newton, but with a sweet bean center. Very tasty:)

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DINNER:

A fter a short nap for Michele and a little blogging for SwaME, we donned our yukatas (summer kimono "robe"), slid into our slippers, and solemnly ...

... lados del sendero estaban encendidas. Ya era casi de dia, pero aun asi, con el silencio y las tumbas a nuestro alrededor, intentamos no hacer demasiado ruido, casi como si fueramos a despertar a alguien. Algunas de las tumbas eran impresionantes, de varios metros de altura, cubiertas de moho verde. Muchas estaban acompanadas por estatuas de pequenos buddhas, varios con baberos.
Al final del sendero, vimos un templo que se alzaba entre los cedros, con velas titilando en ...

... rive ruisselle une eau tres chaude. En creusant un peu on peut s'arranger une baigoire-jacuzi (et oui y'a meme des bulles !!!). Vraiment tres amusant ! Ballade en foret, divers villages a onsen (dont un avec un bain de cuisson public), visite de sanctuaire... bref de quoi nous occuper agreablement, bien sympathique !

... temples. But there was one exception in this place… the mountain holds a sacred age old graveyard, the grounds which fortunately are open to outside visitors.

The graveyard projects a sense of wispy peace and calmness though I'd imagine slight eeriness during nights. We took a walk through the grounds beginning from late noon to early dusk, and it was ...

... friendly and tried to communicate with me. One darling lady was fairly fluent in English, as she had lived in New York City for 3 years. We chatted about Japan and its people for a while, then she realized that the baths were closing, and told me we needed to get out. We said very warm goodbyes in English and Japanese, and headed to rest. I was feeling so good yet that I stayed up to use the Ryokan computer, catching up on email and news until around midnight.

... travels in Australia is a story unto itself (some of you who already know, and for the rest will save for a later date). After spending 21 months abroad, in June 2003, I finally decided to pack it in and head back home (Toronto, Canada). At that point I spent the next 2 years contemplating just why I left Japan when I did. For some reason, something just didn't seem to feel quite right, and often questioned why I had left, and wondered if I had cut my time there too ...