Six Years!

To celebrate our SIX YEAR anniversary, Chris and I drove to 三重県 (Mie Prefecture) for the weekend.

Saturday, May 24
We left Miki at 6:15 am. Four hours later, we arrived in Ise City.

Tourists to Mie visit for 伊勢神宮(Ise-jingu / Ise Shrine), a Shinto shrine devoted to the sun goddess Amaterasu Omikami. Ise Jingu is a spacious complex composed not of one, but of many shrines. The two main shrines are the 外宮(Geku / Outer Shrine) and the 内宮(Naiku / Inner Shrine), located about six kilometers apart.

We first visited Geku. Officially known as Toyoukedaijingu, the shrine is devoted to Toyouke no Omikami, the deity of agriculture and industry who serves as attendant to Amaterasu. Twice a day, priests make offerings of food to Toyouke, who then offers the food to Amaterasu.

Here, visitors offer their respects in the form of money and prayers.

According to Shinto tradition, the shrines are dismantled and re-built every twenty years for the sake of maintaining purity as well as for passing on construction techniques to new generations. Each shrine is built following a distinctive architectural tradition that began over a thousand years ago. The pebble-strewn area in the photo above stands adjacent to the current shrine; it is here that the new structure will be built in 2013.

The overcast morning weather appeared ominous, and the afternoon unfolded to downpours of heavy rain. Our next stops, thankfully, were at a trio of museums along the way to the Inner Shrine, where we educated ourselves on Ise Shrine history and its strong ties to agriculture.

As we finally made our way to the Naiku, we got stuck in a long line of traffic. We waited half an hour to get a parking spot, and we decided to find lunch before entering the shrine.

At a maguro restaurant, I ate the いくら・まぐろ丼, though the most popular dish is まぐろてこね寿司 (tekone sushi / hand-tossed sushi). We found tekone sushi throughout our travels in Mie, and though Chris first tasted a maguro version, I hear that it's made primarily using katsuo.

We ordered 伊勢うどん (Ise Udon) with our fish. The hot Ise-style noodles are served in a thick, soy-based sauce.

With tummies full and clothes slightly more dry, we set out for the shrine. The Inner Shrine at Ise is considered the spiritual heartland of Japan, and most Japanese will attempt a visit here at least once in their lifetime.

Visitors enter the shrine by crossing the Uji Bridge--also re-constructed every twenty years-- which spans the 五十鈴川 (Isuzu River).

Pilgrims purify their hands and mouths at the river's edge before entering the shrine.

The main shrine.

Tourists peered above the wooden walls, to the inner, pebble-covered grounds, gawking at two large groups of suit-clad men who had been ushered in by priests in flowing white robes and tall black shoes. I later learned from the shrine website that businesses can receive blessings after donating money to the shrine.

Following our short pilgrimage, we explored the shopping streets adjacent to the shrine. Oharai-machi and Okage-yokocho have flourished thanks to shrine visitors in search of souvenirs.

Though one shop offered free fish, fresh off the grill, I opted for tofu soft cream next door. (See "A Tale of Two Fish".)

Tofu Soft Cream is creamiliciously yummy, and he loves you!

Okage-yokocho.

This shop sells hundreds of manekineko.

We had made other travel plans for the day, but as the time grew late and the rain continued to pour, we retreated to our hotel, located in southern Mie, the Hotel Kintetsu Aquavilla Ise-Shima.
After checking in, we made dinner reservations for 7:00, which allowed us time to explore. Our room was beautiful--warmly lit, with ceiling-to-floor windows with a view of the then-cloudy Ago Bay. The hotel shares space with a Nature Museum, and outside, guests can wander along tree-lined walking paths. Chris was excited for the astronomical observatory, but it was closed due to the bad weather.

I forgot to bring my camera to dinner, though I'll say that it was delicious and we both ate too much. I worked off the extra food with a round of Whack-a-Gator in the hotel game room. After digesting and relaxing in our swank room, we walked to the hotel "Aqua Palace," which houses an enormous pool complex and a beauty spa. Both had closed for the night, but we were able to enjoy the relaxing hot spring facilities open until late. I contentedly stewed in the bubbling hot water before re-joining Chris and returning to our room in cream-colored pajama tops and baggy elastic polyester bottoms--standard issue and uniform for all hotel guests.

Sunday, May 25
We woke to another rainy day. No matter though--it was our anniversary! It's pretty amazing that Chris and I have made it through six years together.

We began the day with a breakfast buffet.

After our meal, I fell into a food coma, and Chris let me sleep for about an hour! We finally checked out of the hotel at 10:30. First stop of the day was Yokoyama Observatory, where despite the damp weather, couples and families were taking advantage of the view and hiking trails. We next attempted to eat lunch at 80's Cafe--a relative of the Sad Cafe we love in Harajuku. Sadly, we learned that they're not open for lunch on Sundays. Disappointed, we headed north again, this time along the scenic Pearl Road.

We stopped for lunch at the Toba Observatory.

Another ocean view that I did a poor job of capturing.

We ate at Vista Mare, where I had the "Ebi Ebi Set," which includes fried shrimp and a croquette made with Ise-ebi (Japanese spiny lobster).

Chris ordered the somen, which was much smaller than my meal was.

From there, we drove to the Toba Aquarium!

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!
I had a very hard time staying calm.

The aquarium is best known for a dugong named Serena, who shares her tank with a large turtle. This photo is actually of a dugong in a neighboring tank.

Dugongs are not the same as manatees!

We don't usually go for photo stands, but I thought it would be sweet to have an annivesary souvenir. That and the workers didn't give me much of a chance to say no after offering their services. As soon as I said, "Okay," props were shoved into our hands--believe me, Chris did not want to hold those puppets--and in less than a minute, our picture had been snapped, the shot had been printed, and my money had been taken.

Exorbitantly-Priced Photo: 1000 yen
Tangible Evidence of Chris Holding Cute Animal Puppets: Priceless.

Danger! Beware of pelicans, which are vicious, vicious creatures. The cartoon dummy is saying, "Ow ow ow," but I think you get the idea.

I found this animal in an exhibit on tidepools, which reminded me that in elementary school science class, we weren't allowed to use the word "gross"; it was considered rude and unscientific. The approved judgment to use was "interesting."

This sea slug was one of the most interesting creatures I've ever seen.

I loved the aquarium, where I got to run between exhibits, bursting with happiness over the many animals. (Admittedly, I shouldn't enjoy seeing beautiful creatures in captivity, where they're gawked at and flash photographed and forced to do stupid tricks, not to mention live dull lives outside their natural habitats. But I do.) We finally left at closing time, with me holding a large souvenir bag containing a giant yellow toy dugong.

Oh! In all my discussion on famous tourist stops, I forgot to mention Mikimoto Pearl Island, which can be seen from the aquarium. There, visitors can learn about pearl cultivation and even pick up a little jewelry. Luckily for Chris, the cute water animals filled the pearl-shaped hole in my heart.

After he spent hours with me at the aquarium, I obliged Chris with a visit to Toba Station. It was unremarkable except that I found a version of Hello Kitty dressed as an Ise Shrine priestess!

At a small shopping center, we took commemorative photos with Totoro.

Totoro is sick!

From the station we drove to Meoto Iwa Wedded rocks. The shrine is all about the frogs.

The "husband" and "wife" rocks are connected by braided rope, and the shrine is popular among couples wishing to strengthen their ties to one another.

From there, we had to head home. The sun was setting, and we still had several hours of expressway driving remaining.

For our anniversary dinner, we stopped along the expressway. I may have written this before, but expressway service areas are no longer the shoddy pit stops one might imagine. Like Michi no Eki, they cater to the needs of the demanding customer, with fancy souvenir shops, restaurants, convenience stores, and swank bathrooms. I ate shabu shabu. Chris had tonkatsu.

With that, I'm done.

And now for your daily overdose of cute, I present Otter Vision.