Leave Period

Since the ship was scheduled to be undergoing repairs for quite some time our Captain decided that the crew should be able to take leave. The ship can never be without the entire crew so we split the leave period in half. I ended up with the first leave period and had enough days built up to take about a week and a half off. Some of the sailors wanted to go back home but I have only been here in Japan for a few months so I wanted to explore my host country.

I have always been a big history and culture buff so I started looking for Japan's historical sites. During the AOB/introduction class that I took a few weeks earlier our presenter mentioned several major cities that were worth visiting. He also gave us a chance to travel on the trains, they are actually easy to use. The electric signs denoting destinations alternate between Japanese and English. Some of the trains even make announcements in English.

Several of the cities that our instructor mentioned were too far to visit during the course of a weekend so I wanted to focus on a few of those. From that point, the only problem was in finding a train route to those destinations and printing out tourist maps in English. I do know some basic Japanese now but am certainly not fluent. I suppose I could have used taxis to get around and see the sites but I wanted to walk through the streets and experience a little more culture.

I chose three cities in the southern part of Japan to visit; Kyoto, Osaka and Hemeji. Kyoto was up first because of the three cities it was the largest and had more points of interest. I wanted to see some of the Japanese shrines and temples located there. Kyoto was the national capital before Tokyo existed so it was a cultural hot spot for many generations. Countless castles, temples and shrines were built there. It would have been impossible to visit all of them so I did some research and found about a dozen that interested me. I did get lost a few times, that was expected, but it was a great first city to visit. I posted the pictures on facebook.

After Kyoto, I had enough of shrines and temples so I decided to see the castles. I had been to Germany in high school and visited many European style castles so I wanted to see how Japanese castles compared to their European counterparts. They are actually very different, same purpose but structurally look nothing alike aside from the moats and main walls. The keeps of the Japanese castles are much more decorative. Japanese craftsmen took pride in designing and creating their castles. They placed their family seals in locations they worked.

In Osaka, the city built itself around the castle and preserved the space around it for recreational use. Some people set up picnics while others played baseball and Frisbee in the well tended fields. Upon crossing a bridge over the castle moat you enter a courtyard filled with vendors and historians. For a small price you are then able to enter the main keep and walk up the seven or eight floors. The view from the top was worth the effort. On the way back down each level had artifacts and stories recovered during the restoration of the castle.

The last city I visited, Hemeji, was much smaller than the previous two but had the largest castle in Japan. Unfortunately the main keep was undergoing renovation so I was not able to go inside. I was still able to read about the history of the castle and walk around the grounds. The real treat in Hemeji turned out not to be the castle itself but the gardens surrounding it. It is hard to describe the gardens from a western point of view. Japanese gardens are set up with different themes and focuses. This particular garden was separated into many different sections. One section focused on a large pond filled with colorful carp. The walkway circled around the pond and included a narrow bridge over part of it. The next was devoted to tea plants. The Japanese tea ceremony is still considered a sacred ritual practiced by priests and geisha. Other sections were built around pagodas and sacred statues which I could really only guess at.

I gained a new respect for Japanese customs and culture during my travels. I feel fortunate for having the chance to explore the country. Everywhere I went I found the Japanese people to be sincere and respectful of foreigners. I know the United States has tolerant views as well, but I can't see Americans being quite as polite in offering advice and assistance. This is an ally truly worth the people, material and effort we place in protecting it.