Sunset

The sunset over Shinjiko was going to be the highlight of my visit to Matsue.

Late afternoon I set out for the shoreline where some photographers had already taken position. What a pleasure to watch children climbing on the big sculptures using great art playfully.
It was not one of the most spectacular sunsets, but splendid enough to make it very memorable, a poetic scene with the rays of the sinking sun dying the soft waves of the waters in ever changing hues of gold.
It lasted a long time and I strolled on along with many others until I stood opposite the tine island of Yomega-shima. I could not stop watching. On return to the Art Museum, I turned back for a last view, a last picture - when misfortune struck and I stumbled and fell over a floodlight barely pointing out of the pavement but just not very noticeable in the dim light. I hurt my knees badly, my clothes were unspoiled but my camera got a blow and didn't function properly thereafter.

It could have been worse but for the good Gods of Izumo providing me with a better destiny...

Fishing villages

From then on I was dipped into a Japan, I did not expect to encounter any more. I know the small fishing villages I visited will have all the modern, necessary equipment, but the small boats with their glass-lights for fishing in the darkness and the few houses clinging to each other raised the hope that the spirit of days gone by is still alive. The boats were moored opposite a small island where a small torii tells how everyday-life is interwoven with religion.

Sea of Japan

Only a few steps away I could see trough a granite torii the bright blue Sea of Japan. Outside a nearby shop jellyfish was drying pegged on a line. The intensive smell of fish and the picture of anything out of the sea up for drying stayed with me for the rest of the afternoon. Some visitors bought dried fish, others were nibbling away on barbecued fish or shellfish. From up the hill a winding small road I saw the white torii of the small island Fumi-shima, a breeding ground for Black Tailed Gulls and a sanctuary where only the priest is allowed to step on.



At the top the lighthouse of Hinomisaki, the tallest in the Orient.

A path over cliffs and through pine woods offered splendid views. Windswept trees transformed the sea into a living picture and small islands seemed to swim in a bay with forested hills as backdrop.

Hinomisaki-jinja

The bus along the coast to the westernmost peninsula of Shimane stopped near a granite torii. I knew about Hinomisaki-jinja from Lafcadio Hearn’s visit in 1891, but I did not expect such a contrast between the splendour of this joyful vermilion red shrine and the magnificent shrine of Taisha in its natural brown serenity. Both shrines belong to Japan’s important cultural assets and are very old, or based on old buildings, both are very extensive. In Hinomisaki some buildings are up a steep stair or hidden in the nearby woods.

Izumo Taisha

Today I went to Izumo Taisha at last.
The grand shrine of Izumo, also called Izumo no Oyashiro, is one of the oldest and most revered Shinto shrines of Japan.
There is a saying still that 8 million kami of Japan are gathering each year in the 10th month at Taisha. October therefore is called month without gods (kami-na-tsuki) only in Izumo month with gods (kami-ari tsuki).
So I obviously chose a good time to visit Shimane, or the Izumo of old.
The sun was shining brightly and I had a good briefing by Terazu-san who even gave me some small coins to use for the ritual at the shrine.
On the bus from Izumoshi to the shrine an elderly lady, Tomoko, from Hokkaido, a visitor as well, took good care that I would not miss the right stop. So it was natural and very pleasant too, that we visited the shrine together. Once we walked through the many huge torii in the pine woods which surround the sacred place we were joined by a young girl, Motoko, who to begin with helped out with English, when Tomoko was at a loss. The buildings appear in "taisha-zukuri", the oldest style of shrine architecture in Japan. I was impressed by the shimenawa of the haiden which supposedly measures 13 m in length and weighs tons. Having followed the purification as shown by Tomoko and prayed as instructed by Terazu-san, I had to buy an Omikuji as it was a book on those Oracles on a white paper which first drew my attention to Izumo. Tomoko and Motoko followed reluctantly. As I could not read it, I handed the little white piece of paper to Tomoko and for a while I heard only excited Oh’s then followed by a torrent of words. Omikuji are oracles telling your destiny, you can have a good or a bad fortune and in both cases people tie the little white papers to strings or trees in the sacred grounds, either to make them come true or to hope for the help oft he gods to prevent the misfortune. My destiny was obviously very fortunate and even better than Tomoko’s and Motoko‘s who were pleased as well. After ward when I went around the fenced in Main Hall (honden) and other attached buildings, all of them typically thatched with pine bark chippings, Tomoko took a rest and even Motoko looked out for me from time to time. This was not difficult as there were only a few Westerners among the visitors and I always returned faithfully.
At one time the honden must have been very impressive. Archaeological finds suggest that the original structure was placed on very high pillars, only accessible by very steep stairs.
We were more lucky and could watch a wedding ceremony at the second hall (kagura den) . Okuninushi-no-mikato to whom the shrine is dedicated is not only a god of agriculture but also the Shinhto deity of marriage. I was puzzled at first to see many people throwing ceaselessly coins up to the shimenawa.I only learnt later that for the lucky one whose coin does not fall down a wish comes true.

Fondness

What made Matsue so special to me?

There are the people: I have mentioned Hideki and the girls, but I may not forget Terazu-san the chef and owner of Ryokan Terazuya. He and his kind wife gave me good advice and had always an open ear for me. One evening after dinner which he had cooked and served for quite a few guests he asked me to stay on until he would have the dishes cleared away. He then spontaneously gave me a lesson in calligraphy and at the end even presented me with a calligrapher's pen.



Matsue is a pleasant, modern city: I thoroughly enjoyed myself promenading along the shoreline of Shinjiko and often crossed the Ohashi bridge to the city center. The wide open spaces let you breathe easy.




Small is beautiful: I have a notion for small shops where you can buy goods in small quantities and not prepacked - and I found a lot of the in Matsue: the florist opposite the street from the the greengrocer and another shop dealing with a variety of food and spices just round the corner.
One morning on my way to the station I met two women heavily loaded with flowers for a market and when I returned in the late afternoon I met them again now with empty creels but the same lovely smile.

The days of Ozu and his films are past but the spirit, I believe, I found in Matsue.

Tea

The International Tourist office in Matsue has a small tea house built in where the way of tea is explained and occasionally tea ceremony held. Tea culture is very alive in the city and so it was not surprising that Hideki invited me to a delightful tea shop downtown. I enjoyed my matcha and 2 delicious dangos so much that we went shopping after wards. Matsue is not only famous for its way of tea but also for WAGASHI, the traditional fine confectionery that goes with it. The problem with this kind of sweets in Japan is their short shelf-life. So soon both of us were turning the pretty boxes of sweets on the counter of the delicatessen shop for the relevant dates. As we did this on a big scale I wondered what the shop assistant would think of us and asked Hideki to explain to her my reason, which he did reluctantly after a while, with the result, that the girl joined us and found suitable ones at last.




Later on we had a quick visit of the castle grounds when we were called to the Tourist office where a present for me had been handed in by the mother of one of the girls.Unfortunately she was not in when we arrived and I was asked to draw an OMIKU-JI instead, which read as follows:

"Thank you for coming to the castle town Matsue!
Please enjoy the beautiful view from Matsue castle tower and you will find happiness in Matsue!!"

This was a charming idea of the girls and I could not believe my luck when I won a lovely set of chopsticks. I protested at first, but was told there were blanks as well.
so this was one of my lucky days...

Adachi Museum

Next morning I changed my choreographed schedule. Hideki had so kindly offered to take time off in the afternoon and show me around Matsue. Instead of setting out for Izumo I took the train to nearby Yasuigi and went by shuttlebus to the Adachi Museum of Art, a must-see for anybody who is interested in Japanese gardens. Set in an expansive natural environment, the beauty of the various types of gardens was stunning. Most of it can only be viewed from the museum building, but a path leads you to a teahouse, through a mossy garden and bamboo grove. I loved the Pond Garden with the foliage of its trees beginning to show autumn colours, but I was most impressed by the „living picture “ , where a dark tree together with the window frames the dry landscape garden. I would like to be able to see the gardens different characters depending on the season, especially in winter when the black and white reduces everything to basics.
In addition to the gardens, the Adachi Museum of Art also houses a collection of nearly 1,300 of the country's most highly regarded contemporary paintings centering on the works of Yokoyama Taikan.
And then the most unexpected happened:
I can not recall how we met, but traveling back at the end of my visit to the Adachi Museum I found myself deeply in conversation with a Japanese lady 2 years my senior. Within the short time we had together we became very close and I feel I struck up a friendship for life with Keiko, a musician and master of tea ceremony.
This can only happen in the Province of Gods as Shimane, or Izumo of old, is called. Think of it, I had to travel half the globe, to change my plans and be on the prerdestined spot at the predestined time – to meet a friend…