Fukuoka Trip Part 2: Dazaifu and Onsen

... so it's been awhile since the cliffhanger of me cutting rice and eating a delicious lunch with obaachans reminiscent of the witches from Macbeth.. but the rest of that weekend in Fukuoka should be recounted too. (Especially since I'll be back in Fukuoka next weekend :)

After my morning deja-vu-Farmer-Kim excursion to the rice paddies, I decided to take advantage of the city's offerings. Sated by McDonald's and a crepe (well, what did you expect), I meandered about until I found a movie theater and-- wonder of wonders-- something playing in English. Having been out of the movie-news loop for awhile, I didn't realize until after I'd bought my ticket that the establishment was an independent movie theater and the production I'd chosen for its English, "Goya's Ghosts," was a rather dark commentary on art and the Spanish Inquisition with a few horrifyingly grotuitous moments. ...the only other possibly-in-English option, though, was "The Real True Life of Hitler," so I think I made the right choice.

After the movie ended (with a rather touching if bizarre finale), I had my first wrenching moment of homesickness. I had to pass through a hyaku-en (100 yen, like a 1-dollar) store to switch escalators and was walking by a Christmas display-- this was still October, so a little early, yes?!--when the music over the loudspeakers switched to a melancholy English-sounding song. (Sometimes if I'm not paying attention, English songs sometimes sound like they're in Japanese, and vice versa... this one sounded English-y from the beginning, but I think it was really Japanese). The thought that I wouldn't be going home for Christmas really hit me.

I'm not going to change my mind about staying in Japan over Christmas-- it's my first break long enough to really travel in, and I'll have to go back to the states soon enough to check out grad schools-- but I'm going to have to work extra-hard around Christmas to not be depressed. I'm currently planning a 2-week-long sight-seeing extravaganza with Rose, the southern Tsushima lady-ALT, to Osaka, Tokushima, and Kyoto. It'll be nice to revisit some of my old Kyoto haunts, especially the temples that I kind of took for advantage while JYA. And going with Rose, I'll get to take part in her joy of seeing them for the first time. We're going to try to hit up some of my fave Osaka spots too, like Spa World and-- good lord help us get tickets from this konbini-barren wasteland of an island you've sent us to-- takarazuka.

Anyway. I was feeling kind of low after the Spanish-Inquisition-torture movie and Christmas-store-display-inspired homesickness, so when I saw the palm readers at a bookstore near Hakata station, I made a beeline for them. The man who read my palm clearly had no idea what to say (I think he was just trying to sell the mystical palm-reading books), but his hands were warm and he told me my ancesters were watching out for me. Also, I apparently have "Big Love Power" (I applauded his attempt at English), so as long as I try hard things will work out.

Faith in myself, my "love power," and my spectral ancestors who got my back all restored, I called it a day and went back to the youth hostel.

The next morning saw me grabbing more tasty tuna-mayo onigiri and umeboshi for breakfast (it may be an aquired-taste combination) and the beginning of the hunt for Dazaifu and the legendary flying plum tree. I suppose it's time to tell the story of Sugaware to Michizane and how he came to live around Dazaifu and why there is such a thing as a flying plum tree. I wrote a lengthy research paper on the subject during my first year at Smith (during the first-year seminar that led me to Kyoto for two weeks and, in retrospect, had a huge influence over the paths I took afterward), but here's the short rapper's version:

So there was a guy named Sugawara to Michizane,

yeah, he was alright--

liked writin' poetry,

dude stayed up all night.

Haiku, haiku... Hai-KU!

Going 'bout his business

then just one day

the dude got slandered

by the power-hungry Fujiwaras

Fuji-fuji-fujiwaras!

So the Emperor who really liked him

got all in a fuss

believed those dirty liars

and sent Michizane far away.

Away, away-- so far away!

To Kyushu, to exile,

with hardly any family.

Leavin' behind his loved ones

the man was sorrowful.

Sorry-sorry-so very sorry!

So the night he leaves,

he writes one last poem

saying 'bye to his favorite plum tree,

which really meant his family.

Fam-fam fam-Family!

But you know, that plum tree

took it all the wrong way

thought Michizane'd really miss him,

so it flew to Kyushu!

Plum-plum plum-- super plum!

Now that's the best part

but the story doesn't end

Nah, gotta have some ghosties

this is old-school Japan!

Bake-bake-bakemono!

Sugawara finally dies

so far from his loved ones

and strange things start happnin'

to the imperial family

Strange, strange.. so strange.

Lightning strikes a prince

and sets fire to some buildings.

So the soothsayers decide

it's Sugawara's restless spirit.

Comin-comin- coming back at ya!

To appease the angry spirit,

they make him a god--

with the power of lightning and writin'

now he's Tenmanu.

Ten-ten-tenmangu!

So if you need some help

with an entrance exam or two

you know who to pray to

and he'll listen to you!

Ten-ten-tenmangu!

... and that's about as far as I'm going to go with that. Not really brilliant, but it gets the point across in less than 20 pages.

I later learned in my wanderings that the day I chose was a special free market day at Dazaifu (meaning anyone could set up a stall selling goods for free), but when I first arrived, the streets were insanely packed and I thought maybe it was just a popular temple.

The research paper for my first-year seminar was focused on Kitano Tenmangu, the shrine dedicated to the god Tenmangu (the former Sugawara no Michizane) in Kyoto. There are Tenmangu shrines scattered all around Japan, but probably the two most famous are the one in Kyoto and the one in Dazaifu, where the flying plum tree is located. I was a little surprised to see this statue of a bull outside the Dazaifu Tenmangu shrine:

... the Kitano Tenmangu shrine has similar bull-statues leading up the path to the shrine. It's considered good luck to rub the bulls and, indeed, there are many shiny worn spots on all the bull-statues I've seen.

Also similar to Kitano Tenmangu, the Dazaifu shrine has rows upon rows of placards written mostly by high school or university entrance examinees, praying for help during their entrance exams.

And the glory of the shrine, I give you the Flying Plum Tree-- dum dum-dum!

... see, it even comes with a plaque that labels it the "Flying Plum Tree." ...I may try to return during plum blossom season, when it's supposed to be even more impressive. It was such a surreal moment when I found it, though.. it's set prominently out in front of the shrine, but the plaque is hidden to the side, so for a little while I was inconspicuously circling the tree like one does with someone you think you know but can't be sure of, in order to buy time to place the person before charging into a conversation about your previous meeting. And it's kind of funny... I'd traveled to the shrine mostly to see the tree, but most of the other visitors seemed to be ignoring it. I finally confirmed the tree's identity when I simultaneously found the plaque and a Japanese man with an impressive-looking camera started snapping shots of it from all different angles. The Japanese may be photo-happy, but they usually only take pictures of trees if they're particularly beautiful in spring or autumn OR are famous.

Mission accomplished, I spent a few moments in the tree's company and then went to do what all the Japanese people were doing after their brief moments of reverence-- lining up to buy charms and other presents.

Sufficiently under Tenmangu's protection until the end of my studying days (and y'know, I am a life-long learner), I browsed through the shop stalls until it was time for lunch. I decided to treat myself to a very fancy lunch at a wonderful high-quality tofu chain, Ume no Hana, which has an elegant restaurant squirrelled away on a side-street near the shrine. At my waitresses' recommendation, I ordered a plum wine with a full plum a la olive-in-a-martini-glass stuck inside. Very sweet and delicious.

I also specially ordered (aside from a huge and beautifully-prepared set lunch) a few bits of deliciousness that I'd had in Ume no Hana's Kyoto branch: deep-fried mochi on a stick covered in sweet miso sauce. Can there be any higher bliss? (Or any higher-calorie mochi-based food?)

Sufficiently stuffed to last a few meals, I continued on my journey. I'd wanted to spend more time at some of the more hidden-away temples (with richer offerings of statues and art), but my reservations at a traditional ryokan in the onsen/hot-spring town of Takeo, more than an hour away, preceeded sight-seeing. According to traditional ryokan rules, I had to arrive relatively early in the afternoon to settle in and take a bath before resting and then taking, perhaps, another bath.

It was worth skipping out on the other temples. I'd had low expectations for my room at one of Takeo's bath houses because it was so cheap, but the futon was lovely and the sliding doors nicely painted.

The room was also enormous for one person, with a secondary sunny sitting-room that for some reason made me think of Aunt Beth. I don't know why.... maybe it had a family let's-all-settle-down-and-relax feeling, maybe it was the sounds of the rather loud family next door and the kids bouncing around, maybe it was the neatly-arranged alcove for two where a couple could escape while their kids played in the next room... but I think Aunt Beth would've liked it.

Looking out from the double-door/windows in the sunroom was a quaint little homey shrine and garden. I snuck out before I left to leave a little something in the shrine; it was just so peaceful to look at.

... if Aunt Beth was Japanese, I could totally see her camping out here for a week on vacation, letting the kids play in the garden, wandering around town, using one of the For-Families baths.

Takeo onsen was ~so~ amazing... such a nice chance to relax after all of my earlier adventures. I immediately dropped my stuff in the room and took a bath in the place I was staying, then came back to flomp on my futon. Then out for another bath at a different bath-house --wrapped up in my onsen's yukata, clomping around in their geta sandels and trying to not break my neck or get the geta stuck in the street grates lining the parking lot I had to walk through. Some of the baths had rotenburo (outdoor baths), beautiful with elegant gardens and stars above, and some of them were rather scroungy but had locals (great company) and scorching-hot water that soaks worries away on contact. Next time I want to stay longer.

The next morning I got up, made a brief appearance at breakfast (one of those everyone-crowded-in-one-room affairs with seating by room number), and then one last dip in the bath before heading back to Fukuoka and home. A busy weekend but just the solo-adventure I wanted with some nice down-time at the end.