My bit of heaven

Jazz, whiskey, ambiance - these things define SAKABAR.

Ever since my first trip to Japan back in 1999, I've been on the lookout for bars like this.

In a way it reminds me of the local, neighborhood bars in Chicago. Charismatic bar keep, regulars, intimate.

Nestled in the bosom of an anonymous building outside of the JR Ibaraki station, SAKABAR popped up on my phone as place to grab some post day trip drinks.




I must have walked by this place dozens of times over the last couple of trips to Japan but had no idea it was here. In fact, once I realized it was here, I still couldn't find it.

We went right around opening time only to find it dark and locked. I asked the store owner next door when they opened and the guy plainly stated its random. The owner seems to be on his own time - which I can appreciate.

After killing some time at another watering hole (no pictures... pretty simple place), we made our way back to see if the owner came to work yet or not.

Fortunately he did - and I found my little slice of heaven in Ibaraki...

Ice blocks hand chipped to fit the glass. Perfect.

By this time Yuki and her mom had left. I moved up to sit up at the bar and enjoyed my drink with nothing but jazz in my ears. The barkeep wasn't interested in conversation - neither was I. Perfect.

Eventually the regulars started to come in. I gathered they all worked for the same company - this was confirmed when the boss showed up and admonished his team for already being three rounds deep. All in all they had a good time, I had a good time, everyone was happy.

And one more... night cap.

Nice Laphroaig

Uji - Tea, The Tale of Genji, and the gates to heaven

Today's trip took us to Uji - a city prominent for several things.

1) Tea production
2) Last ten chapters of the famous The Tale of Genji take place here
3) The world heritage site of Byodo-in

I went for #3, not knowing about #2 and #1...

First things first, a good meal is in order. We randomly picked KOKORO, which was a short jaunt from the train station.





I should have taken pictures of the interior, as the place was swank. However, I was hungry and focused only on the food...

With my stomach satisfied and the sun shining, we made our way to the main attraction - Byodo-in, where you go when you die.

Upfront - you should go here if you visit Japan. There is a museum within the complex which is very interesting.

Not so interesting is the fact photos are not allowed in the temple (sacred) or museum (?).

There was no crowd.

Unfortunately there was a breeze, so the reflection on the water didn't come out.

I gave this dude the evil eye at least 4 times, apparently it didn't translate as he decided to ruin my picture.
If someone is using a camera (not cell phone) to take a shot, and if they are using a squat, compact lens, it is probably wide angle which means get out of the picture please! Oh well, the picture wasn't square to begin with...

This place is so famous it is stamped on the Japanese equivalent of a dime.

The main hall - Phoenix hall - houses a huge statue of Amida. The deity is flanked by 52 other gods all of which help guide the dead to heaven. Consider it your final place on this earth before you ascend.

This temple was originally established in 1053, 962 years ago. Needless to say they have some old growth hanging around (although I am sure not original).

The path leads you around the building.

Here is a 200 year old Wisteria plant.

For those in my family, the colors and patterns of this ticket seem awfully familiar - brings a lemon scent back to me...

After Byodo-in, we decided to take in the sites of Uji starting with the Uji River. This is fed from Lake Biwako, which I had fished a week ago.

屋形船 (やかたぶね)　Yakatabune　lined up in the off season. These are used for viewing Ukai, which is the use of Cormorant on leashes to catch fish and regurgitate them for the fishermen to sell, cook, whatever. Apparently its quite a show and deserves consideration for the next trip. 

Nice park along the river.

Not sure if this is cherry or plum, but once its in bloom none of the supporting structures are going to be visible.

Apparently they found some potential artifacts and are moving the river so they can dig.

The turbulence caused by the narrow channel was quite strong.

These statues were here and there depicting scenes from the Tale of Genji.

Uji is known for its shrines. We visited a couple to pay respects.

Each shrine has a fountain or spring at the gate for you to cleanse your hands. This was one of the cooler ones I've seen. This little hut was fed by a spring.

After getting our fill of shrines, we decided to make our way back to the train station.

The bridge in the distance is where I shot the earlier pictures. The difference from my slovenly life in the States of driving everywhere and walking everywhere in Japan is huge. My phone logs activity - usual US business day - 15 minutes of walking versus usual Japan vacation day - 1.5 hours... Unfortunately I recovered all these burnt calories by excessive drinking and eating, so no weight loss here.

We stopped for some matcha and sweets before arriving at the station. The tables and chairs (sorry no pic) reminded me of visiting an elementary school. I was concerned as the chair groaned under my weight. The table was to low for me to get my knees under, so I ended up straddling it and feeling too big in general.

If you blow the next picture up, you can see although the skies were clear, there was a light rain falling.

Apparently this is called 狐の嫁, daughter in law of the fox. Not quite sure why, speculation by my hosts is that the fox generally likes to mess with people's heads. This is the daughter in law of the fox's version of messing with your head. This explanation is messing with my head...