Friday, May 31, 2024

31 May 2024 Nagano: A Sloppy Weather Day

 


It was a cold and rainy day.  From drizzle to rain all day long.  We went down to the Onsen area, soaked in the hot hot water and then dipped into the chilled pool.  We did four loads of laundry and were happier for that.  It takes some of the pressure off of our first day in Denmark



Where did the mountains go?


The clouds rolled in and out all day


The clouds are hanging very low


This looked like a fire burning but it must have been a hot springs


The steam rolling up and up


Onsen!


Toasty!

It has been 1 year and 361 days since we began pour Migration

Thursday, May 30, 2024

30 May 2024 Nagano: The Nagoya Prefecture Art Museum

 


From the temple we walked 300 meters over to the Prefecture Art Museum.  There were two main exhibits going on, each a treat for the eyes.  Higashiyama Kaii donated a huge amount of his works to this museum and they have built a wing just to display his work.  Another large collection was of Ikegami Shuho another famous post war painter.  


Nice lines of the building


Very modern with glass and steel


Bronze lady ready to spring out at anyone that gets too close


A wall reminiscent of the castle walls in Japan


Bronzed from her time in the sun


No pictures allowed inside so I took a few of the interior to set the scene


They had a placard for the kids (big and small) to use.  When the animal in the circle was spotted the kid can put a check mark in the small circle


A calm reflecting pool where we sat calmly and reflected


Water striders were zooming over the surface of the water


We felt as if we were back in South Florida


One painting from Higashiyama Kaii's "White Horse Series"


Higashiyama Kaii himself.  There was a description of a series of murals that he painted.  80 meters long and 2 meters tall!


He was the most popular Japanese Landscape artist of the post war era


Unlike most museums we were able to see a small painting if this, a full sized under layer painting that mapped out, in meticulous detail, how the painting was going to be



A classic old style painting


Taken from a postcard in the gift shop


Ikegami Shuho works were very traditional.  Chickens to keep you company while at the loom


Snow Monkeys!


A fire hydrant lies below this manhole cover


Wandered about in the station before heading back and saw this array of bacon


I put a sticker on South Florida


Piggies , corn and other veggies made out of yarn


The train station in Nagoya


An apple a day


Nicely decorated


This is Nagoya's mascot.  A bear and apples 


What a beauty


It has been 1 year and 360 days since we began our Migration

30 May 2024 Nagano: The Huge Zenkoji Temple Complex

 


As you can see from the picture above, these temples buildings are huge.  There are shops and restaurants all along the street leading up to the temples and shrines.  We got an early start today as we wanted to take advantage of the free shuttle into town.  It left the hotel at 9:50!  Goodness that is early for us retired folks.  We took a bus to the temple area and it let us off a few blocks away.  There was a cool shop that we stopped in and picked up a few items, coasters, a spoon, a handkerchief and an pendant.  Then we walked through the temple complex.  We saw young kids walking around with clipboards and we knew what this meant.  These kids were out practicing their English.  We had talked with junior high kids way back in 2014 when we were first in Japan.  So we stopped and talked with one group, then another group and then a third.  They were in groups of three and four and invariably there was one kid too shy to say anything.  One kid was the brave one but not necessarily the one with the best English, so sometimes this one needed prompting. We ducked down a side street and had some time to just enjoy the neighborhood.  Then we found a bench and ate our lunch.  As we were headed off to another area I heard the "hello, hello, helloooo" of another group.  This time I was mobbed with seven or eight kids around me.  Leslie was some ways away and she could see them laughing and giggling.  My fourth English practice session was my last so we stayed to the exterior of the grounds after that.  We walked to the Art Museum after that.  


Leftovers from the Olympic games


Large wooden lanterns


In the shop


A surfing rabbit


The shopkeeper carefully folded the package


Many older buildings in the center square


These roses were huge


An odd decoration


A sundial?


More large wooden lanterns


Very crowded 


Bahama bulls


The monks here have very fancy robes


Still wearing the sandals of torture


Squid or noodles?


Fancy wooden gate


A baby loving deity 


A huge incense censor 


Red hats are all the style


Everyone is wearing them


From this angle it looks like a new mom with her baby


A fancy type of prayer 


Feathery


This gate is so tall


Ripped beast!


Giant wood carvings


All the kids in white hats were out practicing their English


Leslie is so patient


The chicken wire would be better if it were  painted black



The three faced statue


Nice beard


My first group


Do not touch the dog!


Next time we will have to try the Oyaki


Time for a nose job


Gilded beauty


Her comes the senior council


Another huge bloom


Enter to a peaceful oasis


The Dragon!


This one seems to be new


Kobe Beef!


Rows of red hats


I get the hats, there are lots of pigeons, but why the bibs?


Everywhere you look there are huge temple buildings


The name for Zenkoji Temple


Lots of key chains


Lots of very old trees, some have seen better days


One of the English Teachers


Smoke is rising from a huge incense burner


It sure smelled good


A nice grove of trees right next tot he temple


The Brown Eared Bulbul in full squeak mode.  The call of this bird sounded like a puppy with a squeaky toy in its mouth


Another huge building


We are loving Japan


Cuteness for all the cows


What a tree this must have been


It has been 1 year and 360 days since we began our Migration