Japan! Gunma province, Tatebayashi

After arriving in Tatebayashi of the Gunma prefecture, I made my way around the neighborhood. The first thing that I saw were 'Tanuki Statues'. Tanuki's are a type of racoon dog that appear in Japanese folklore. They are represented as jolly and mischievous as well as being a master of shapeshifting and disguise. (If you click on the highlighted word it will send you to a wikipedia link so you can read up on the Tanuki.)

You can watch this great film about Tanuki's called 'Pompoko' created by the legendary Ghibli studio. 

Here is a nice resourceful image pointing out the symbolic aspects of the Tanuki's design. 

The Tanuki on the right seemed to be really mesmerized by something that he saw in the air so I joined him in his moment of realization. 

I thought the poor statue was covering his face in shame so I tried to help him. Unfortunately I have to use the tissue so it was only a temporary gesture. Sorry pal! 

This is a Meiji era architecture. You can see the european influence in it's design. It's not particularly special but it was nice to know that the influence of the western design spread all the way over here in Tatebayashi.  

Some nice lonesome swings. I don't really see these in the city anymore so it was nice to see some swings. 

They have plenty of temples where ever you go in Japan but this was the first one that I was ever since I stepped foot on this land. I did go to 'Nikko' once and they have some beautiful temples, but that was such a long time ago and I was a wee boy and my memory of those events aren't so great. 

I really love those gates and I find it really interesting because of its repetitive placement, one after another, like a train track. These gates are called 'Torii' and their function is to mark the entrance to a sacred place. 

There was no one around so I wasn't able to ask anyone what these tablets were. I was guessing they were tablets that the visitors wrote on for good blessings. 

This dilapidated shelter had an eerie energy that emanated from afar. It was kind of creepy as well because of its rusting, orange and brown metallic decay. There were also spiderwebs and dust covering the underneath of the shelters roof area. 

I've picked up a habit where I take hand stand photos. This is something of a meme that I do just for the sake of it. 

There was a beautiful stream that I followed, and along the way I got to see some beautiful structures.

I wasn't very sure what this thing was but It just looked so Japanese so went ahead and snapped a photo. *snap*

The beautiful sunset about to hide itself behind the trees and foliage. Some of its fine golden rays are reaching out as it descends into its slumber. The reflection on the water is so perfect and clear that it makes one wonder if the world in the reflection offers better life prospects compared to this side of the world. 

As I reached the Tatebayashi station there was a loud populated, repetitive, sharp tweeting sounds aggressively on repeat. It got louder and louder as i approaced the station and when I looked up in the sky there were like a million flock of birds flying in formation. They looked like a swarm of insects and in my opinion is was quite frightening. It was nice to see something special like this because i never get to see such phenomenons in the city. 

Shopping with my aniki (兄貴) in a large Japanese grocery store. (Aniki is an honorific term used to honor an older brother or a superior.)

My aunt from Korea. We are not blood related but we have a bit of history so we are bonded by history. 

My aunts husband. He is Japanese and he has a quirky sense of humor. 

This is the head of the family, big grand daddy. He is quite old now and he isn't as energetic as I remember him but his sense of humor is still out there. 

This was the house I stayed at. 

The children in this neighborhood form these human trains. The 6th graders would lead the group and the little ones would leave their house and pretty much just walk right up to the train and form a line. 

Many of Japan's graphics are represented by characters. I don't know what the hiragana says nor can I read Kanji. I've been learning Chinese so one would hope that I could read the Kanji but I am hopeless indeed. I was guessing maybe it said "Beware! Children playing baseball!" or "Don't run too quickly or your hat will fly away and we will not reimburse your losses!" or "Extra points for hitting the ones with gloves.". I'm sure none of what I mentioned are correct. Most probably it said "Watch out for the children", directed at drivers. 

After a nice stroll I took the Ryomo express to Tokyo. The Ryomo is an express train that takes you to Asakusa station within less than an hour. There are like a handful of train companies in Japan so it's wise to read up on the train services. I reserved my seat a day before and it was a good thing that I did because the seats can get pretty packed. I actually got on a train that came a few minutes earlier than the train that I was supposed to ride on. I didn't know that our seats were arranged so I just randomly sat on an empty seat. Very soon a man approached me and he was like "GTFO here". I apologized and walked around the aisle until people started getting off. Thats when I had an empty seat. The train attendant usually comes to punch the tickets in the later half of the journey.