Sunrise in the rice fields
Waking up just before dawn in the small Japanese village of Chikatsuyu (see bottom image), I threw my clothes on and hurried out with my camera. There were pockets of…
0 Comments
February 3, 2014
Temple Flags
The temple flags shown in this image are along the steps leading up to the grand shrine of Kumano Hongu Taisha located in Tanabe, Japan on the Kii peninsula in…
January 8, 2014
Special Edition Print: Kumano Sanzen Roppyaku Po
What better time to consider the spiritual side of things than at the beginning of a new year? Hiking the ancient Kumano kodo trail on the Kii peninsula in Wakayama prefecture…
January 2, 2014
Samadhi Mudra
The hand gestures of representations of Budhha are significant, and have specific meanings. The Dhyana mudra (hand gesture of Buddha), also called the Samadhi mudra, is shown in the photo below.…
December 28, 2013
Distant Japanese Landscape
About half a mile before reaching Hyakken-gura, I paused in the steady rain. Peering out from beneath my umbrella, I could see through the pine trees to a distant landscape…
December 6, 2013
3,600 Peaks of Kumano
During a short break in the very wet weather, from Hyakken-gura, a lookout high on the Kumano kodo, I shot this panorama of the "Kumano Sanzen Roppyaku Po"---which translates to "view…
December 3, 2013
Along the Kumano Kodo
Along the ancient Kumano kodo pilgrimage trail there is mostly the silence of the weather. Wind whistles through the trees and a fine mist falls drop by drop. It wasn't always…
December 1, 2013
Hot springs resort
The hot springs resort of Yunomine Onsen nestles in a valley basin in the Kii peninsula of Japan, where it has provided respite to weary trekkers on the Kumano kodo…
November 30, 2013
Tokyo Stairs
Before heading to Kyoto on the bullet train, I spent a little time in the morning wandering around Tokyo. These stairs were to a pedestrian walkway over Chuo-dori in the…
November 27, 2013
Pagoda at Nachi-san
The three-story pagoda Seiganto-ji is part of the Kumano Sanzan temple complex in Nachi-san at the end of the Kumano kodo pilgrimage trail. This is a very special place, located near…
November 25, 2013
Of drinking and not driving
Aya, her father, and a business associate met me at the small Awa Yamakawa train station. It was already getting dark, so we drove across the river to a restaurant…
November 22, 2013
Riding the Big Tuna
When Kayoko at the Sakuraya Guesthouse in Nara had helped me figure out my transportation logistics, she saw the Nankai Ferry ticket in the folder from the travel agent, and exclaimed,…
November 20, 2013
Bus train taxi ferry taxi train
At the long-sought end of the Kumano kodo lies Nachi-san, a sort of religious Shangri-la nestled in the mountains with---finally!---a view of the Pacific Ocean. While some pilgrims do it…
November 19, 2013
Yunomine Onsen
Yunomine Onsen is an ancient spa town in the middle of Kumano kodo territory. A hot creek runs down the middle of the town next to the road; you can…
November 19, 2013
Misty Mountains
At 6AM my iPhone alarm rang. I raised my head off the futon, pulled the screen aside, and peered out the window at a world of driving rain. Yunomine Onsen…
November 16, 2013
Dawn in the High Fields
Early morning light coming through the Shoji screens woke me. I opened the screen and stared out at a chill world with fog hanging in the distant valleys. This was…
November 13, 2013
Mt Koyo
Getting to Mt Koyo from Nara took a taxi, two different trains, a cable car, and a bus. Mt Koyo itself is kind of like Arlington National Cemetery and Westminster…
November 13, 2013
On the Kumano Kodo
I am hiking on the Kumano kodo at last. It seems like a long time ago that I started planning this trip. Amazingly, everything is working. To get to the…
November 13, 2013