On the first night of my spring trip to Japan, I fell asleep to the chorus of frogs, and on the second day, I woke up early to the sound of rain.
The spring rain did not seem to stop.
Eric and I were supposed to go hiking in Ubara Utopia with Deco-chan, Yamabushi (the thirteenth generation of the 400-year-old temple lodging “Daishobo” in the Temukai area at the foot of the three mountains of Dewa), and his students; of course, no more hiking.
After breakfast, Deco invited us to a local sound bowl healer session with Mr. Hoshino Sentatsu Yamabushi and his students.
I forgot to tell Eric we were going to Singing Bowls Healing.
It was all in Japanese, and maybe Eric was new to Sound Bowls Healing, so I wondered how he felt.
After the session, all the participants shared their impressions individually, and Eric said, “The sound was soothing and connected to his heart.” What a perfect answer.
I am amazed at him once again.
I remember when he went on ten-day of Vipassana meditation; even though he first did not want to go, he came back home and said that it was challenging to sit for so many hours every day for ten days, but it was a meaningful experience to him.
Eric loves sports and is physically active, but he is not just a physical person, and still amazes me.
After the Singing Bowls Healing session, fortunate to see a tiny part of the healing work by Mr. Hoshino Sentatsu Yamabushi.
One of the joys of traveling is not knowing what to expect.
Deco took us to a bakery with a firewood kiln,” Acoustic,” open only on weekends.
There were delicious-looking bread and baked goods lined up in a cute shop.
I wanted to eat them right away when I saw them, but I bought them for a snack for a train ride later that day.
Took a photo with the baker, his wife, and son.
We shopped at Brown’s Field Rice Terrace Cafe, their new Brown Rice pasta, etc. We love pasta and can’t wait to try it when we get back to Santa Monica!
We ate the lunch box that we were supposed to eat on the hike while having a last fun chat with Deco-chan.
It was a short stay, but visiting Brown’s Field gave us strength and hope to come back there again.
Took the JR Sotobo Line Wakashio to Tokyo Station. While riding the train, I ate “Acoustic,” a cardamon roll. It was so delicious each chewed.
At Tokyo Station, one of Japan’s leading terminal stations, about 3,000 trains arrive and depart daily, and 400,000 people pass through the Monster station.
When we transferred to the Chuo Line, the crowds were so dizzying that I felt that I couldn’t breathe.
I had an aunt in Tokyo, and I often visited her from my parents’ house in Nagoya as a teenager. I enjoyed the visit but thought I couldn’t live in Tokyo because of too many people. The feeling got more certain.
Arriving in Shinjuku, in the rain, we went to the green Italian restaurant “Torcia”
in the Isetan department store to meet some macrobiotic teachers and activists.
Trucha is a restaurant I went to twice when it was a Chayama Macrobiotics.
About a year and a half ago, Torcha opened as a vegan-friendly Italian restaurant where you can casually enjoy a vegan menu. The atmosphere mostly stayed the same, but everything has changed to Italian, and not only is it vegan, but the menu is abundant.
There were 7 of us, so we ordered all of the vegan menu items and tasted them. My favorites were and Strawberry Mont Blanc. It felt like 12 courses tasting menu!
I was a little nervous at first meeting everyone because there were some people I never met before, but everyone was so warm and kind. They belong to the Japanese Macrobiotic Society “Wa no Kai“: Minaka Nagai, Yuko Sakurai, Miyumi Chiba, Shugo Nanabayashi, and Nana Arisawa.
We had a good connecting time.
I was filled with gratitude for meeting them.
I felt that it would be great if we could keep in touch with everyone and hold Eric and my workshops and talks in Japan someday.
I had a good time chatting with them and felt sad to say goodbye, but after saying goodbye to everyone, Eric and I headed to Setagaya, our accommodation in Tokyo, and boarded the Odakyu Line from Shinjuku Station.
I have known my friend in Setagaya since I was at Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA.
Ringo-chan (a beagle dog) welcomed us there, and I gave her dog cookies, shampoo, etc.
After a long walk, I massaged my swollen feet in the bath and fell asleep with the excitement of connections of Japanese macrobiotics people on the second night.
Sanae