Six members practiced their way through Japan and five others followed along to enjoy the trip. Those on the mat were-- Barbara, Bob and Rachel Klein, Ron Dolan, Laura Barlow and Heraldo Farrington. Guests were Jerry Pollard, Glynnis Dolan, Gil, Janie & Jenni-Kim Silva.
Clicking the links in this text, you can see a few of the places we visited.
We departed Honolulu Oct. 26, crossed the international dateline, and arrived at Narita airport (near Tokyo) on Oct. 27 . At the airport we picked up our pre-arranged Japan Rail Passes and boarded the Narita Express train to Shinjuku Station. From there, it was a short taxi ride to our hotel.
The hotel was located about 15 minutes walk from Hombu dojo.
Oct. 28 was our first day practicing at Hombu dojo, the World Headquarters of Aikido. Each morning at 6:30, the Doshu instructs some of the most dedicated and advanced practitioners in the world. We had the honor of practicing with these members daily. For the next week, we all trained with partners who were 6th Dan, 7th Dan and 8th Dan, for some very intensive practice!
We made a day trip to Kamakura to see the Great Buddha (Daibutsu). This is considered a "must see" in the Tokyo area, the world's larest outdoor bronze buddha. We got back in time to make evening class with Masuda Sensei and went out afterwards for a late meal and drink with members of his class.
Oct. 29 Morning class with Doshu. Bullet train trip to Nagoya for a visit with Klein Sensei's friend (Midori Iwano) who took us to the Tokugawa Art Museum. Following a great sushi dinner, we arrived back in Tokyo late that evening.
Oct. 30 Morning class with Doshu. Afternoon visit to Edo-Tokyo Museum guided by Inakoshi Sensei, followed by evening training at his new dojo in Ueno, a central portion of Tokyo. After class we were taken out for a big party, both a reception for our group and a celebration of the dojo's 6-month anniversary. A great time was had by all. We went on for hours, drinking, eating, singing, etc.
Evening class with Doshu, followed by a private dinner for our group with Doshu, Miyamoto Shihan, Osawa Shihan, Kobayashi Shihan, Fujimaki Sensei and several of the Hombu dojo uchideshi.
Nov. 1 Morning class with Doshu. Some members rested while others made a trip to Nikko, famed for it's ancient temples and natural beauty.
Nov. 2 Arakawa Aikikai Embu Kai. This large demonstration was held by a federation of dojos in Arakawa-ku, an area on the north side of Tokyo. Sato Sensei, Shihan for this area, has visited Hilo and plans to bring a group in 2004. Doshu participated in the demo and the banquet afterward. Following that, we were taken out by local members for more eating and drinking, and then moved to a third party for dancing, karaoke and (of course) more food & drink!
Nov. 3 For Bunka no Hi (Culture Day, a national holiday) the dojo was closed. We went to Meiji Shrine at Yoyogi Park to see martial arts demonstrations. This included an aikido demonstration by Kobayashi Sensei from Hombu. Later we went to Asakusa, where the entrance to the renowned temple is adorned with an enormous paper lantern. Outside the temple is Nakamise, a seemingly endless shopping arcade composed of thousands of small shops. We met up with the Ikemoto Family (former dojo members) - Seiya, Michiko, Kazuya & Natsumi. We had a wonderful dinner together talking about old times in Hilo and their lives since returning to Japan.
Nov. 4 We made an early departure (before rush hour) for travel south by Shinkansen (Bullet Train) to Hiroshima. By early afternoon we checked in at our hotel and walked through town to reach Peace Memorial Park. This area includes ground zero for the atomic blast which destroyed the city in 1945. The park includes numerous memorials and a large museum which chronicles the events of the blast and its after effects. The park and museum are dedicated to the purpose that there should never again be such an event.
Nov. 5 We travelled to Kyushu, Japan's southern-most (major) island. There, we were met by the Nishiyama family (Hiroki, Hitomi, Natsumi, Haruka & Makana) in their hometown of Kumamoto. They had returned home about six months earlier after 3 years in Hilo, as dojo members. They took us touring at Kumamoto Castle, one of the few surviving major castles in Japan. After a terrific dinner, we headed to the local dojo for class with Honda Sensei, and a rendevous with Jun Nakayama, our friend who has visited Aikido of Hilo twice and who hosted us on our last trip to Kyushu two years before. After class we went out for eating and drinking, trying all the local food specialties.
Nov. 6 We moved on to Fukuoka, Kyushu's largest city. By evening we located the dojo and took class with Suganuma Sensei, Shihan for this region of Japan.
Nov. 7 The Shinkansen carried us north, to Osaka. We arrived just in time to make our afternoon reservation at the National Bunraku Theater. The show featured half life-size characters each operated by three puppeteers dressed in black. Although the stage was fully lit, the black-clad operators seemed to disappear as the drama unfolded among the brightly dressed puppet characters. This four hour long theatrical classic was no kids' show!
Nov. 8 The last leg of our train trip took us back to Tokyo where we did some last minute shopping, had a final dinner and rested for the next day's travel.
Nov. 9 We took class at Hombu dojo one last time and departed for Narita airport. The Ikemoto Family met us again at the airport to see us off. Our flight departed Japan in the evening and (thanks, again, to the international date line) arrived in Honolulu 12 hours earlier, that same morning.
