racially profiled at the temple
We had a lovely trip to the temple built into a cave on the seaside, as is the local tradition at New Year's. It's a beautiful site, and we got there juuust after the sun came up, meaning that the colors were nice and the textures of the cave roof were as I've never seen them. We threw clay stones at a rock with a circle of rope for good luck, and bought our fortunes. I have "small luck" this year, which somehow feels right.
We had a special treat this time, which we can also attribute to the time of day. We encountered enough monkeys that they were shouting at each other in different groups. The Boy had the camera, we'll see what he came up with.
And speaking of cameras, I offered a variety of people help with taking photos of their group. One chap had a very nice film camera but we went through various problems as he'd set it for a ten-or-so-second timer and then some other setting had to be adjusted. The racially profiling came when the fellow asked me if I knew a certain English teacher in Miyazaki. That's a city of 400,000. It only occurs to me now that I should have said yes and then spun some yarn; "That guy? Yes, he owes me money." Heh.
P.S. The annoying kanji for "new year" is literally "correct month". Are you trying to give me fart hailure, Japanese?
Three good things that happened today:
- Sea-side shrine at dawn!
- Monkeys
- I potted two of the clay stones, and got 75% of a third into the rope ring. Both kids also got one in.