In the time since I've last posted, I've gotten to take two trips: one home to the states and the other to Koya-san, a nearby mountain complex of all things Buddhist.
The trip home was really relaxing – spent time with family, visited with a good friend from college (Kacie Hengel…no wait…Kacie Fletcher), and interviewed for a scholarship (unfortunately though they liked someone else more then me). Here’s a picture from home of Kacie and I.
I just got back from a weekend trip to Koya-san. About a two and a half train ride south of where I live in Sakai, my friend Brenda arranged for seven of us JETs to spend two nights there in a log cabin. Log cabins are different in Japan (at least the one we stayed at) and consist of a tatami floor, a roof, and a single light bulb. Sparse, but comfy, fun, and cheap.
To get there you take a train through forest and mountains. The pictures to the right are some of the scenic highlights. At the end of the line you have to take a cable car almost straight up to get to the 850 meter Koya-san plateau.
Here’s a picture of the small cabin we stayed in, a shot of the inside, and a view of linnley by the cooking area.
Nick and I walked the length of the plateau (at least the developed portion of the plateau). Here are two pictures with a view looking northwest from the top of Koyasan. The best sights in this small town of about 7000 are the numerous Buddhist temples and shrines – one of Japan’s thriving centers of Buddhism (the headquarters of the Shingon school which counts about 10 million members and presides over approximately 4000 temples in Japan.) there are more then 110 temples here. The headquarters of the Shingon school is Kongobu-ji. The pictures here are of the rock garden and the back end of the building. By the way, rock gardens are supposed to inspire reflection – here is a picture of me trying to get into the mood.
Another one of the big sites is the cemetery Okuno-in. Unfortunately, I wasn’t allowed to take a picture of the most impressive part. At the northern tip of Okuno-in is the Toro-do (Lantern Hall) which houses hundreds of lanterns including two believed to have burning for more than 900 years. The Hall is about half the size of the large hall in Nara and chants echo within the hall and can be heard while you’re approaching it. Light in the hall is produced solely from the lanterns which completely fill the ceiling and what resemble book stacks lining the back half of the hall. In the center back half of the hall, are desks where monks work and chant. In the front half people are allowed to enter and sit and meditate amongst the lanterns, chanting, and incense.
The last two shots are of the cemetery: (i) a view of one of the narrow roads of the cemetery, (ii) a shot of a stream running through the cemetery.
|  | 
|
