Kamakura, Japan

Jonesin' for some more lovin' in my life, I set off for Kamakura from Tokyo early in the morning. (Kamakura, Kama Sutra, clearly I haven't matured much since high school.) I had high hopes for my prospects after being pinned against a wall (on the subway during rush hour) and eating meat (the clerk gave me a pork steamed bun instead of vegetarian), and when I boarded my last train, I cried mercy -- but not in that way.

As much as I secretly fantasize of sitting next to a dashing gentleman on a flight, I have a knack for sitting next to chatty old ladies. Don't get me wrong, I love old ladies, there are days I dream of fast-forwarding time to become one, but sometimes you just want to be anonymous to the person two inches from you. Apparently my land travels assume the same pattern because my cab was full of chatty old Japanese women, adorable chatty old Japanese women. This time, I wanted to talk their ears off. Why were they travelling in such a big group? What's so funny? Why were they headed to Kamakura? I couldn't because I don't know Japanese, but I sat there listening to their rhythmic conversations. And in twenty minutes my inner state went from looking like Yama, the ruler of Hell's Ten Kings Ennoji Temple), to good 'ole Buddha (Kotokuin Temple).

Ennoji Temple

Kotokuin Temple

The perfect state to be in because Kamakura's rhythm is drastically slower than Tokyo's even though it's only an hour away. Could this be the reason why it was one of my favourite trips in Japan? Possibly, but my hippie strings were strummed when reggae sauntered into the street from a store. And perhaps the "One Love" vibe of the city could be the very reason why many temples here are showered with love.

My favourite temple in all of Japan is the Hasedera Temple. Upon entering the gate hundreds of statues greet you. It was such a delight because I hadn't read about the statues in my guide book, but an unsettling feeling soon took hold -- I knew they weren't for ornamentation. My pamphlet listed the reason: the Jizo statues were placed by parents who had lost their children to abortion, miscarriages, or stillbirth. I instinctively began to count...

Below the temple is Benten Kutsu cave, and again, thousands of statues. This time wishes for the sea goddess Benzaiten, the only female of the Seven Lucky Gods of Japanese mythology.

If I didn't end up walking around in circles (literally, in a bamboo forest, for hours) after the Hasedera Temple I could have made it to more sights or flashed a peace sign to a flower child downtown. But as time bellied in the late afternoon, I headed to the beach to watch surfers pay their respects to Benzaiten. It's really why I came to Kamakura in the first place. I was born on an island, and when you visit one, you have to have to pay your respects by the beach.

Length of Stay

One day

Docking Index

       

8 anchors. Besides my peace, love, and harmony bent, and a right (ha!) to live by the sea again, Kamakura is still fetching. Hundreds escape here from Tokyo for the day, yet it didn't feel overrun nor saccharine. When I caught the last train to Tokyo, I was kind of ashamed at myself for being one of the many day-trippers. Though I knew better, I wouldn't have left Kamakura until my last day in Japan after my first night.