Hi Inky
You have to visit Japan to see and have fun.
love hotel... mirrored wall and ceiling, viberating bed, water bed.drop few coin and you can see adult movies. room has small refrigelator . you don't have to bother room service. room allways have bath tub for two , you may have very small garden out side of bath. you don't have to tell who you are. No Id required. opens 24 hours. whenever you are ready, they are there no matter what part of Japan , you will find them easly. It is good for kids and adult/you( kids over 18 ) you can bring own drink too.

drink and eat: many place open till 4 Am . by 6:00 am cofee shop and some first food restaurant open. From my mother's home, any direction within 10 minuits walking , there are 6 temples , few churches, many neighborhood bar restaurant 40 ~ 60 of them. may be more. 7~8 of small flower shops, nurseries, 4 book stors, 4 used book stors.3 good size Department stores.
I don't have to drive to visit them. one of my favoret bar, I know them over 35 years . when I was in 20's they called me " Oni san " big brother, Last time I visit, they called me Presidnet "Shyacho" I was promoted from Big brother to President. same familly run hardware store 180 years or so, it is always fun to go there. within two hours, 5 Botanical gardens.
you can keep you wife in Canada and have fun yourself or bring your wife and kids and had have fun .............
hehehehe.......... Inky . It is hard to get off me ;););)

Happy new year to all ......................yama

Holy Cow, Mike-san! You mean you learned to ride a bike in a love h-
... er, well, maybe not :) :) ;)

Okay, the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate park in San Francisco has many inauthentic features, but I had lots of authentic fun there when I was a(n authentic :) kid.

I would race my little sister up and down the paths, sometimes guessing against her as to which fork in twisting path would get to some distant point first. We would tear back and forth over the (inauthentic :) half-moon bridge until my disapproving mother had to tell us in no uncertain terms to cease and desist; other people wanted to use the bridge, too.

I would stand on one of the more authentic bridges and watch the koi swim by underneath, and pick out and name my favorite. Or I'd just wander around exploring, and looking at all the beautiful plants and flowers.

Rarely, when the tea house was open, we could go there and be served green tea and fortune cookies (I did say it was inauthentic :).

Sometimes, there would even be a Real Japanese Lady there, wearing a beautiful kimono (Mrs. Tanaka, at our church, was also a real Japanese Japanese-American lady, of course, but she always wore perfectly tailored pastel gray suits, and it just wasn't the same :)

I really loved that place. One of these days I'll have go visit it again, and walk sedately and decorously over the (inauthentic) half-moon bridge :)

- Evelyn

Hi Evelyn
I like Erin-ji, Yamanashi ken,( next of westside of Tokyo) Enzan city . Erin-ji is old temple. garden of Erinji was designed by Muso Kokuski. unlike famous Temple of kyoto, Threr were no tourlists and no fee to view the garden. I could stay in temple long as I wanted to stay. I am not for sure if young Muso kokushi was ordained at this temple or not.

Next time I go back to Japan , I am going to visit Erin ji again. Erin ji is about 2 1/2 hour drive from my home in Japan. last time I visit Erin ji, I had no idea of Zen nor Rinsai shu. Erin ji is temple of Rinzai shu. Since I am studying Buddhism, I can enjoy not only garden , buddha's statues ,archtect of temple and look around more carefuly. Perhaps I ask to monk to tell me precepts of Buddha.
enjoy your life and the garden..........yama

Thanks, Yama-san :)

I've read in a few places that Japan has temples within a few blocks of almost every residence, often with large grassy areas, and that this is where people have picnics, play ball or tag, and generally enjoy an open grassy place. Was that your experience growing up in Japan?

:) Evelyn

Hi Evelyn
It is sad to say. Small Temples I know,they do not have grass at all. third building from my mother's home is temple, I have not visited even once . before world war two, Temple had large piece of land but not now. after world war two, any of public school baned to teach or discuss any of relegion in class room. piriod. beside many of teathers are used to be belonged communist party, socialist party. most Japanese do not visit temple reguarly. funeral , obon, memorial day of ancesters, those day we nornaly visit temple few times per year. most Japanese temple do not offer class or service regularly. beside when monk visit for funeral, we have to give to monk about average $ 3,000 if large funeal is performed $5,000 or more. 49 day later monk visit again then another $ 300 ~$ 500, one year, 3 year later for annuversary of dead, same thing .

many monks are married, they eat fish, meat, and drink. many monks son inherit temple ( I think, it is wrong ) . all the money went to temple we do not know income of temple, income of monks family, when temple need to repaire temple we normaly get demand/ required letter of lump sam of $1,000~ $2,000 minimum. we cannot give just $300 , $500 or what we can offer.

I have send e mails to the head quater of Judo shu in Tokyo 4~5 times, wanted ask few things ,I never had any respond from. I do not bother any more. if I want sutras, I go to Chinese Judo shu society in Atlanta. they provide me many free sutras and books, video, casset.
If Japanese temple are run the way Korean temple run, Buddhism can be come back to society.
Many Japnese Temple has historical value but not much of spritual value. ( My feelig toward Japanese temple may change, since I understand buddhism better )
yama

Spring in a Tokyo park on a Sunday afternoon.

Drifting cherry blossems, Haiku, saki, friends, family, blankets on the lawn, fun.

Gerald

Hi Gerald

Please Don't forget to bring Canadian whisky and ice.
yama

A good friend of mine asked a monk here once why he chose to be one. His response was that the ¥¥¥ was very good...hmmm...

Most parks I see are not at temples but rather are scattered everywhere and usually have no maintained lawn. Most often they are simply dirt or grassy areas that are not maintained as lawns, but more as fields. At least that's how it appears to me in Fukuoka Prefecture. PF

Im not giving much of oppotunity to Inky ;););).......

Temple's garden never mean to be park or nor for peoples.
Since many big temple ,zen temple lost suport from roler and noble, Open the garden to public for income/profit. Since then ,none of monk have spend even one day of hunger.

Meiiji Empror who tried to destroy Buddhim and bring shinto as relegion of nation, made new law. monk can marry, eat meat etc. It is another way to destory Buddhism. Japanese monks and Buddhism took and grab oppotuity of centurys. even after Meiiji empror is gone , power of Emporor are striped off, many monks and sect of Buddsim keeps law of man, even after the man is dead and forget precept of Buddha. They are living in greenhouse. out side of green house is too cold or too hot, waiting people to come into greenhouse. I know that not all of manks are same. but too little number of Good Japnese monks exsist.

plantfleak: Have you been to Yakushima yet ? If you have chance to visit to Yakushima, Please tell us about it.... Yama

Yama-san, no, not been to Yakushima yet. It's on my list of things to do this year, maybe next spring. I'm lucky to live next to a mountain that's got some nice big old sugi. The funny thing is its name is Young Cedar Mountain. Perhaps the average sized one is around 25-30 meters tall and four meters in diameter. There are larger ones up there, too. A couple came down the last typhoon we had and nearly flattened the gift shop associated with the shrine on top. The big sugi in the picture is fine. PF

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1011630}}

Mmmn just as I thought. Not much fun.

Hi Inky
some how your last posing remind my a old Jewish friend.
David was often sulky.
when I said to him " David you are oftten sulky. but when you smile , you have million doller smile " he gave me a million doller smile and said " I don't waste it "
since David was gone, I missed him very much. but I found you ......: ) :) :)
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life and death, joy and sadness. young and old age is like a coin.it cannot be separate. one side has life , other side is death. Today you may have great joy, tomorow you are in pain.Today some of you enjoying youthfulnes, matter of time, you will be a old man.

while I can have joy, I enjoy today's joy. tomorow I may have to face pain. when pain come, I cannot or do not avoid it. ...........................

Hi, INKognito, apparently, it all depends on what your idea of fun is. ^_^

Which brings us back to love hotels and the little tsuboniwa outside the bath!

Maybe that's what I need at my love hotel "Nasty Acres" - The previous madam just taped maps of England to the ceilings and lit fireworks outside windows whilst playing Elgar

.... which she assured me WAS a lot of fun

Jack

There's a ball field at every elementary school, and they are generally within a kilometer of nearly every child's house. So it's not that bad, or at least it's not as bad as some people think. Japanese kids have plenty of places to play, but they usually don't have any TIME to play.

There are plenty of public parks where I have visited. The Japanese Garden and the public park space parks are two different creatures. Japanese do not mind - even seem to prefer - playing in concentrated groups.

While a public park may have a 10 acre meadow where people play, throw frisbee, fly kites, play catch, picnic, and kids run around in circles, there won't be a vacant square meter on a nice day. Where a fragile space commands respect and protection, they seem to honor this automatically.