Sado Photos- Shukunegi

Video here.and here.

Sakura at Night

Sado Photos: The Sotokaifu Coast

The seaward side of Sado is known as Sotokaifu, the coastline wilder and more rugged than Uchikaifu on the opposite side of the island.

Sado Photos: Kotohira Shrine

Kotohira Shrine (金刀比羅神社), Aikawa. As the photos and votive panels suggest, the shrine is dedicated to the well-being and prosperity of local mariners. No friendly felines (as at Seisui Temple), restoration long overdue, Kotohira was forlorn indeed.

Sado Photos: Seisui Temple

Seisui Temple (清水寺) is on Sado Island's 88 temple pilgrimage route. The massive trees flanking the entrance are gingkos. Excepting the friendly local cat, the place was deserted. The figures of Buddhist deity jizo were rather forlorn, many having toppled over. Videos here and here.

Sado Photos: Kinpuku Yakitori

金福, Aikawa, Sado, absolutely the best yakitori I've ever had、((The cucumber was fantastic, too.)

Sado Photos: Diving School

Because of its clear waters, Sado is a popular diving destination. Housed in a defunct primary school, the Kita Koura Diving Center's (itself defunct) signage shows a diver encountering a friendly-looking Asian Sheepshead wrasse, or kobudai コブダイ.

Sado Photos: Bonsai

Seed, stony ground, ghostly bonsaist.

Sado Photos: Seaweed

Seaweed (wakame?) drying on the

sotokaifu 外海府

seaward (as opposed to its opposite, the uchikaifu 内海府　mainland- facing ) coast of Sado.

Sado Photos: Harbor Boats

Sado Photos: Buoy Art

Unfortunately, if unsurprisingly, the Sado coastline is in places littered with bouys and other flotsam. I would have liked to meet the beachcomber and inspiration behind this strange sight.

Sado Photos: Tunnel Art

Many tunnels on Sado feature decorative panels. On the right: 鬼の田植, Demon Planting Rice; opposite: 甘草に変身した鯛(?), The Red Snapper That Turned into a Day Lily. The former refers to a Sado Island folktale, while the day lily, or kanzou, is prolific at the northern tip of Sado in the vicinity of Futatsugame and Onogame.

Sado Island Photos: Taraibune

Photos (video here and here) from a recent trip to Sado Island. Taraibue, or tub boats, were traditionally used to fish for shellfish in the shallow waters off Ogi and Shukunegi. My taraibune captain narrated the history of Shukunegi, hamlet and harbor, explaining that a powerful earthquake some 200 years ago caused uplift of 2 meters, curtailing the use of the latter by trading vessels- called kitamaebune (北前船)- sailing between Hokkaido and Osaka. Neighboring Ogi, with its deeper harbor, was able to accomodate the ships, while Shukunegi retained its status as home to maritime aristocracy: shipwrights, carpenters, and captains. Incidentally, the steerer of the taraibune built the boat himself and even paddled it once the 70-odd kilometers to the mainland.

高半(Takahan), Yuzawa, Setting for Kawabata Yasunari's "Snow Country" (雪国)

Takahan, the ryokan in Yuzawa, Niigata,

where Kawabata wrote the novel 雪国, whose famous opening line reads: 国境の長いトンネルを抜けると雪国であった (The train came out of the long tunnel into the snow country).

蜘蛛

赤トンボ

柿

馬

Trip to the Vegetable Market

I popped round to the veg. market this morning: 533円 ($3.58 US) was the total. Quality slightly lower than at the supermarket, where I might have paid 50% more.

Japan's Slow Decline

The authors of this article consider Japan's decline (birthrate, depopulation, economic output, trust in elected officials) against the backdrop of its orderliness, low crime rate, advanced infrastructure, and reliable social services. However, the underbelly of Japanese society reveals a stubbornly high suicide rate, growing poverty (particularly for single-parent families), and a level of overall happiness that is lowest among G7 nations. In Japanese.

Joukou Temple's Jizo-sama, and a Kwannon Figurine

Kwannon is the goddess of mercy, while Jizo console the souls of children in the underworld.

Joukou Temple (定光寺) and Apple Computer

Joukouji, located in Kamo City, Niigata, is the 'family temple' of Zen Master Otogogawa Chino Koubun, mentor and friend of Steve Jobs.