Due to a busy week, I haven't had a chance to post about my trip to Tokyo yet. My conference was pretty bland, but it was nice to meet other researchers and share stories about life in Japan. We were also treated to a full day of sight-seeing on the last day -- which was not expected, so I had no camera with me. Renee and I will just have to come back to Tokyo, I suppose.
Most notable to me was the trip to Asakusa a Buddhist temple which survived the Tokyo bombings during WWII. It is surrounded by a large marketplace. In the central temple, you can pay 100¥ for your fortune -- you shake a stick out of a metal can, and there is a number painted on it. You then open a drawer with the corresponding number. I drew fortune No. 70: Very Bad Fortune (this was its exact title). It then went into frank detail about how now was not a good time to start a relationship, look for employment, buy a house, cross the street, or get out of bed. I can't quote it exactly. When you get a bad fortune, you tie it to metal ropes in the temple grounds so that the fortune won't follow you. To be safe, I followed the custom. (By the way, you can apparently get your fortune in a similar manner at most Buddhist temples in Japan)
I made it back to Kyoto last Wednesday in time for the temperatures to drop. We are now in the low 50s, colder at night, and my delicate Southwestern senses are having problems adjusting. Meanwhile, Renee is ecstatic... :)
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