Day 14: Kyoto to Omiro-cho

Day 14: Kyoto to Omori-cho

QOTD:  (In Japanese): Do you know where I can find the house of Hiro Ajiki?

Weather: mid 60s to low 70s (nice!)

Pics:  Kyoto sunrise, at the airport, our driver getting sage (or is it thymely) advice on directions, Hiro Ajiki, Izumo Shrine, lunch and dessert (Crunky?), Abeke House and nearby apparel company, dinner in our pj’s with our hostess, Joan Baez on the guitar (that’s not what they call it here) and Bob Dylan doing the eel dance  

Up very early, before 5am, to be ready to go to the airport for a short flight to Izumo. One of the first disappointments of the trip: even though our to-go boxes are marked “Breakfast” and were referred to by the Hyatt staff as a pastry box, they are a repeat of yesterday’s lunches (sandwich, fruit, oj, grilled veggies) plus very runny yogurt.

Airport security for domestic flights in Japan aren’t far of what some of fondly refer to as the “pre-9/11” world; you don’t even have to show an id at the check-in desk or security or at the gate. You don’t have to take off your shoes or worry about having more than 4 ounces of liquid. You don’t have to do much except go through a scanner.

Oh, and the Japanese run their airlines like their trains: an announcement is made (sorry, very sorry): we will be boarding 2 minutes later than scheduled.  In the US that’s called: early departure. The flight is full of people we have not seen in our first two weeks: businessmen in suits and white shirts.

Prop-jet for 45 minutes, our bags roll out in less than 3 minutes. Our driver for the first part of the day is awaiting us, we pull out our jackets in case of rain (which never materializes), load up the bags and take off for our first visit of the day, Hiro Ajiki, a noted ceramicist.

First, we have to find Hiro’s residence! Our driver makes a few wrong turns, asks for directions from local businesses, a farmer, the driver of another car, a guy outside his house, and after 10 minutes of touring the countryside we spot a kiln. That’s usually a excellent indication you’ve found a ceramicist.

Hiro is a character! He traveled the world on a shoestring budget in his 20s (he's 65), then again in his early 40s, spent time in India, Mexico and most recently almost three months in Manhattan (“one day in a hotel”), and his basic view of life is to collect friends, not things. Of course, he also has some very nice pieces by other ceramicists. His studio gallery has a number of his salt-fired tea bowls (a bit too pricey for us), tea caddies and woven covers (like we saw at Sagawa Museum of Art), also too pricey, and a few tea bowls by their son. He and his wife then serve us green tea in some of the pieces he has collected (Jun Kaneko, Goro Suzuki), some sweet plum confection, and green tea. Unfortunately, no purchases.

Our driver knows the way to the Izumo Shrine, the oldest and most important Shinto Shrine in Japan. Based on the number of buses in the parking lot mid-week in early October, the Japanese are showing up in large quantities (there are very few non-Japanese here, this is a long way away from the major urban tourist spots). It’s crowded, there are a number of very impressive buildings and tours being led by flag wavers, and yet it is easy to get around and see things. We do not “attend” a service; it’s not even clear how to do that, and there’s no entrance fee (a first).

After our tour, we roam around looking for a spot to eat, picking one by the selection on offer in the window. You order from a cashier (there appears to be no English spoken here), which THB did by pointing at what others were having and J did by taking the cashier out front to point at the display. THB has stacked bowls of soba in various forms (not very good) and DB has soba and rice balls (not all that good), and we share a beer, $25. J orders a beer, his does not come, does not come, does not come, and it appears they have run out and sent someone to a local supermarket. Ice cream desserts from a vending machine, $1.50 each.

About an hour in the van, along the coast (got your boogie boards? Surf is not up too high, who knows how cold the water is), and we are in a restored 250 year old samurai’s house, the Abeke House, in Omori-cho. It’s way above the inns and ryokans we stayed in along the Nakasendo: the bath is huge and set up for easy couple sharing; the rooms are very large (one comes with western twin beds) and ours has futons on small mattresses (if only that was an innovation that had come to the inns on the Nakasendo). About the only drawback: to get to the toilets you should not be taller than 5’2”.

The family that owns Abeke has started a company that has restored many of the buildings in town, runs an apparel company and chain of stores with their products, and there is a very nice store up the street from the Abkeke featuring their products; DB and E make purchases.

Before dinner, it is bath time and we get clean with our respective partner: there’s plenty of room, candlelight, and a huge bath with room for two consenting adults. And, after we dry off, instead of yukatas we get sets of the apparel company pajamas. Dinner pajamas? THB thought that only happened in Busby Berkeley movies.

Dinner is served in the kitchen, another first on this trip. And, we eat with Tomi Matsuba, the driving force behind the restoration of the Omiro-cho and the building of the apparel company, and Louie, our local “guide” and translator who works for the company as the social media expert and PR guy.

There is a pic of the menu (in Japanese), which you have to read right to left and up and down (in Japanese); each column was a dish served, there are a lot of columns, and THB is here to tell you that a) he tried them all and b) he’s really really full. Many veggie dishes, a whole (small) fish (best on the trip? DB sez: YES!), a beef course, salad with what THB thinks was short ribs (pork?), miso with clams, ice cream, and green tea.

With our dessert, in the entertainment room, we watch a DVD of the before, during and after restoration of the Abeke House, which took place over a number of years in 3 phases. It is astounding that the effort was put in to remake what was a ruined building into what is now a fascinating ultra-interesting ryokan that evokes the style of old blended with modern touches (and large rooms full of comfort).

And, there’s a special performance: a local couple in their 70s (remember when that seemed really old as opposed to a few years from now?) combines playing an old-time instrument (her) and an eel-catching dance (him) into highbrow (music and singing) and lowbrow (miming a struggle to catch an eel that’s run up his leg) into a humorous local specialty. Who knew!