Our first day in Japan: Kamakura

The beginning of our first day in Japan started with a 6:30am wake up call. Morgan and I had already been awake for two hours because we had fallen asleep around 7:00pm the night before. I think we all slept for so long that none of us experienced true jet lag on our first day. We took an hour and a half set of train rides to Kamakura where we spent most of our day. Kamakura was a wonderful first day to have, a beautiful city with hospitable people. We started at a temple called Hase-dera temple with statues that represented miscarriages and babies that had died young. It was a very moving and heartfelt beginning to our trip. 

Jizo statues at the Hase-dera temple

Mr. Hayashi from the Mayor's Office came with us
to the temple to help us.

We visited a sacred temple where we could not take pictures and it contained a beautiful gold and wooden statue of a Bodhisattva. People would throw a coin into a box and say a quick prayer at the Bodhisattva. At this temple sight we had an amazing view of the Pacific Ocean.  I had never seen the Pacific and it was breathtaking. We also went through a cave that had many small figurine statues where people could pay $3 to dedicate a statue by writing their wishes on the back and placing it with other statues. I can attest to the fact that this temple was an eye-opening glimpse into another religion and shed some light on other cultures. 

View of the Pacific Ocean from Hase-Kannon Temple

The second place we visited is called Daibutsu which held the Great Buddha. The Great Buddha was a very large bronze statue that is actually hollow. We learned many facts about the statue and many of us even took the narrow and crowded climb to the inside of the statue to learn how it was constructed. Morgan and I even managed to take a “selfie” with the Great Buddha (which happens to be one of my favorite pictures taken so far). 

Morgan and I taking a "selfie" with the Great Buddha

We were then able to enjoy an amazing lunch at Chiyojin, full of udon noodles, miso soup, rice, and the best potato salad we have ever had. I think the most enjoyable part of the lunch was discussing how we can now say that the best potato salad we had ever eaten was eaten in Japan. 

From the Noodle Lunch

Close Up of the Hand-made Noodles

After slurping noodles, eating amazing potato salad, and timidly trying coffee jello, we took a bus ride to the Mayor’s office. We were early so we took time to enjoy shopping in little Kamakura shops. Upon arriving at the Mayor’s office, we immediately were seated in their special conference room. The room was decorated in portraits of past Mayors as well as Nashville posters and Nashville decorations, where we were served a delicious green tea. Matsuo Takashi, the Mayor of Kamakura, was an engaging and kind man who was very hospitable and young. I presented a certificate of friendship to the Mayor from Harpeth Hall, as I was the only member of the Youth Advisory Board for the Sister Cities of Nashville. Kamakura is the most recent addition to the list of Sister Cities with Nashville.   

The entire day we owe to Charlie, our amazing guide, who led us as our translator and overseer through the city. Claire “Tat” and I discussed how he is our personal hero for the day… and for the next 5 days he is with us.  An officer of the Mayor’s office, Mr. Hayashi, was with us all day and observed our presentation to an all-girls school in Kamakura. Mr. Higashi and Mrs. Ban from the Kamakura Nashville Friendship Association were also very helpful in translating and representing Sister Cities. 

Me with My Group

Kamakura was an out-of-this-world experience considering all of the research with which I conducted ahead of time in Nashville. One activity we got to participate in was a religious-type experience in which we rotated three sets of spinning bookshelves found on several different walls at the Hase-dera temple. Because we touched the walls, it is rumored that it is the equivalent to reading all of the sutras and one day perhaps we could be walking priests. My favorite part of this trip is realizing how fashionable every single person is here. I cannot wait to see the fashion districts. This was an amazing first day and I am so pleasantly surprised by how much I love Japan so far.

-Maria-Rose Z, 2015

Harpeth Hall group outside of the Hase-dera Temple in Kamakura