Japan: Day 4 - Part 2

In the afternoon I walked around for a good hour or so and just looked at things.

I came across this giant spider at a shopping center that I thought was randomly neat.

After a while I got back on the subway and went on my way to see the Zoshigaya Cemetery.  

It was on google's list of things to see in Tokyo, so I thought it would be neat.  It's a famous cemetery from the 1800's that has lots of famous Japanese people buried there.  It was cool because it was directly in the middle of a town area, surrounded by houses and buildings.

However, it took a few lefts and a few rights through some backroad alley-ways to finally find it.

I'm guessing this was the funeral home.

Entrance to the cemetery.

There wasn't anyone there at all.  It was very quiet and nice.  And the lighting and shadows in the cemetery were ideal.  I really enjoyed walking around and seeing the different tombstones.  I wish I could have read some of the them.

Many of them had these wooden sticks with Japanese written on them that were tied to posts.

No clue what they were or meant.

Here's a quick 360 degree look at the cemetery:

I loved the whole thing.  I thought it was so interesting and full of detail.

I'm really glad I went to see it.

Afterwards I went on my way back through the alleys and back to the subway station to move on with seeing more stuff.

- to be cont'd -

Japan: Day 4 - Part 1

These Japan posts have an end, I promise.

Christmas morning I let myself sleep in to 9 o'clock.  I was exhausted from all the touring and traveling.  I wanted to have a relaxing Christmas so I googled things to go see and scheduled my day out.

Traveling in Tokyo was beyond simple.

The subway system was very easy but the map might prove otherwise...

My hotel was where my thumb is.

The first place I went to was connected to the Meiji Shrine that I visited on day 2.  It was a giant land reserve that used to be the home/property of some Emperor a million years ago.  It's set up with a bunch of different trails and lakes and gardens.  It was very chill and relaxed.

All these signs kept pointing to an old well but it took me forever to find.  It's the well that they used to (and I think still do) use on the property.  It runs through man-made streams that travel all throughout the property and water it.

I walked around there for a good hour and a half just taking photos and enjoying the scenery.  It was a lot of walking but it was worth it.

Afterwards I went to see the LDS Temple.  It was in a quiet part of Tokyo directly across the street from a giant park.  It was a lot smaller that I expected.

- to be cont'd -

Papa

In December my grandpa passed away at 91 years old.  He lived a long and fulfilled life.

This weekend my family is together in California celebrating his life and memories.  I'm unable to be there as I am in Taiwan, but am writing a few fun memories of him as my part to help celebrate.

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Papa was a very adaptable grandpa.  He had four grandkids, and was always able to find the points of interest in each of us and, perhaps against his own interests, be and/or act interested in that one thing at that one moment.

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In conjunction with the above statement, it was obvious from very early on that I was a lover of film.  Papa would always be trying to stay on top of the movie scene with me and ask me questions and reviews, especially about whatever Disney movie was currently out.  I was a definite Disney kid.  I had the luxury of spending three weeks of every summer from 1997 - 2002 with him and Nana in Arizona.  He would always, without fail, look forward to taking me to whatever Disney movie was out that summer.  I have memories of him taking me to see Hercules, Mulan, Tarzan, etc...movies of my childhood.  Afterwards, we would always stop and get us some of his beloved Big Macs.

(shh, don't tell Mom).

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One of my earliest and favorite memories of Papa was in 1993 when he took my brother Scott and I to see Jurassic Park at the Northridge Mall.  Afterwards, he couldn't find his keys anywhere.  We eventually discovered that the keys were still in the car...in the ignition...with the car running...aaaand the doors locked.  It had been running the entire time we were in the movie.  

Perhaps his first senior citizen moment?  I dunno.

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Suzy: the dog.

I think I was the only other member of the family that ever appreciated her.  Of course, this was when I was young and before my animosity toward household pets.  But that dog knew there was something special about Papa, because she practically worshipped him.  (Or maybe it was because he always fed her from the dinner table?)...

In that relationship:

Nana did all the work,

but Papa got all the love.

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In fifth grade I had to write a paper on "What America Means To Me."  I asked Papa that question because I wanted to quote him in my paper (he was a respected Veteran after all).

My entire paper ended up being one long Papa quote.

I think it even started off with, "I asked my Grandpa what it means to him, and this is what he said..."

Two pages later: 

End quote.

The end.

A+

Thanks Papa.

My teacher, Mr. Lundquist, loved it so much that he asked for it to be read at the next major school production.  I was currently in a local Ariel production so wasn't able to read it myself, but I know that it was read.

I'm sure that paper is somewhere...

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I remember the anticipation of knowing that Papa and Nana were on a road trip to come visit.  From Arizona it's about a 12 hour drive, and I remember counting down the hours just waaaaiting for their arrival: especially for the "Christmas visit" because their car trunk would always be full of presents.  Bonus: if it was a "birthday visit" then the presents would only be for YOU!

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One summer, while visiting AZ, we heard a loud BANG hit the back patio window/door of their house.  At first we thought it was a golf ball because they lived on a golf course.  But it ended up being a bird.  It was obviously dead on impact.  I found this humorous in my adolescence..."dumb bird"...but I could tell Papa sincerely felt sorry, even compassion, for the little guy.  He took the time to get a dustpan, a broom, and tenderly and properly dispose of it; whereas I would have just left it there and gone along with my day.

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On my 20th birthday, 2005, I was on my mission in AZ.  My grandparents lived only 45 minutes away.  I got permission to have them take my companion and I out to dinner.  They came and picked us up and we went to The Cheesecake Factory.

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One time, visiting home from college, Papa asked me at the dinner table, "So what do you eat there in good ole' Rexburg?"  I was annoyed by this question (as I expressed at the moment), because it's a question I honestly don't know how to answer.  There are 3 meals a day, 365 days a year: what do you want me to say?  Anyway, it ended up being really funny, and a continuously used inside-joke (along with the "Mushrooms" incident provided by my grandma, Neece), especially with my dad, who happens to nearly almost throw that question in somewhere when we talk on the phone.

I tell this story to show that that's the kind of grandpa he was: He wanted to know all the details of your life, because he cared.

It's inside-jokes like that that help keep memories alive.

For proof: "Mushrooms" still pops up from time to time...

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I think the ultimate memory of Papa will be the countless games of dominoes played over the decades.  It was always his "go-to" game.  One Christmas, Papa gave each of us grandkids our own dominoes set.  When I visited them in AZ they would have friends over for dominoes.  When they visited Cali we would always play dominoes.  And the last few years of visiting the rest home, dominoes was a daily ritual from 4 - 5 o'clock (even when he could never again grasp the concept of that blasted penny!).

Whenever I see dominoes from now on, I'll always think of Papa.

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Those are just a few memories from a 27.5 year memory bank.

Thanks for everything Papa!

Japan: Day 3 - Part 3

...or the post about the attack of the Asian Santas.

After the Mount Fuji tour I went home and warmed up and rested for a little bit.  Then I headed back out to the Shibuya Crossing area that I had briefly seen the night before. I wanted to see it more because it's famous and awesome.  So I went down there for Christmas Eve dinner and to walk around and see the sights.

It was so bright.

The amount of people that pile up between each red light is ridiculous.  You can YouTube a million videos of what it's really like, but this is a video of one of my crossings:

The video doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of what it was really like, but you get the idea.

It was so cool.

The highlight of the entire night was the red motorcycle stampede of Asian Santas.

I walked around the area for a good three hours, and they had spread out like a disease during that time.  They were eeeevvvvveeeerrrryyyyywwwhhhhheeerrrreeee.  I saw possibly hundreds by the time I was done walking.  They were just circling streets and spreading Christmas cheer and waving and taking photos.  It was hilaaarious.

After dinner I didn't do much other than just walk around looking at stuff and people watching.  It was a lot of fun being in the big city.

Lots of crazies out and about.

Afterwards I went home to relax for the rest of the night and wind down.  It was a long day of traveling and seeing cool things.  A lot different from the Christmas Eve's that I'm used to.

The view from my hotel room.

And once my light was out I passed out faster than one of those Santas on a motorcycle.