Tokyo Day 2: Sumo

Sumo is a traditional sport in Japan based on the Shinto religion. It dates back 1500 years and has continued in practice through today. It remains very popular worldwide and has almost a cult like following. I had no idea. I thought it was just very large men pushing each other around in a circle. I didn't think about the strategy, the strength, or the emotional investment in the wrestlers and fans. It's a big deal. I had to check it out and find out for myself.

Sumo is broken down into categories. There is no weight class for sumo wrestling, sometimes the very large wrestlers fight with small wrestlers. Just like American wrestling sometimes these large men pick each other up, but not very often and occasionally it is by the belt they wear. This is called a mawashi. This particular piece of clothing was chosen so sumo wrestlers have nowhere to hide weapons and not much for the other wrestler to grab. They do often times grab the mawashi and it looks very uncomfortable. 

Just like everything else Sumo has seasons, and I was there during an off season. Most of the popular wrestlers were in London for a big match. Luckily, they do have morning practices for the wrestlers still in the city and I signed up to watch. There are also many dining establishments which have sumo matches in the evenings, but these fill up quickly and often get over booked. Durning this morning workout we were given a headset and our docent, Yuki, spoke very quietly in English and explained to us what was going on, the history of sumo, and random interesting facts: for example, wrestlers don't wash the Mawashi unless the stable master dies.... 

Sumo stables are the places where the wrestlers, eat, sleep, and practice. They dedicate their lives to the sport and spend all their time in the stables. The stable I went to visit was a Yokozuna stable and this is the highest level of Sumo in Japan. The best of the best live and practice in these stables. The different color mawashi are for the more established wrestlers. White is the highest. 

These very large men are not just fat; they are muscle and fat. Capable of lifting a lot. They only eat two meals a day, they do not eat breakfast. They start training first thing in the morning. It was interesting watching them practice because the ones not wrestling were still lifting weights and working out with each other. It wasn't just the ones in the ring. The ones in the ring were given direction after their matches by the stable master. He was in attendance for this practice, and our docent told us he was a very famous wrestler in Japan before becoming the stable master. 

It was overall an interesting and pleasant experience. You get to meet with them afterwards briefly and take picture with them. Yuki did an excellent job explaining the history of sumo and watching them practice is amazing. I never realized how much effort goes into just pushing someone outside of a circle, or how complex it's past and cultural implications are to people in Japan. It's more than just large men pushing each other around for entertainment. It's a spiritual experience. 

First day in Tokyo: wandering into Bake Neko (Supernatural Cat)

In one of Tokyo's neighborhoods, Kagurazaka, in the Shinjuku Ward, there is a supernatural cat festival held every year in October. I just happened to stumble upon this when I was planning my trip to Tokyo.

Why Tokyo?  I have this plan of seeing 50 countries before I am 50. Japan is my 44th country. When I planned my trip to Japan, I did not realize this amazing festival would be happening. Since I love cats, it seemed fitting to at least try and see it. 

When I arrived in Japan on October 12th it was still very early, and I was weary from the 13-hour flight. I found my way to the hotel and dropped off my bags and began to feel lighter, but it was only 7am. I wandered my temporary home, calibrating my surroundings. 

I was definitely not ready for this experience. The streets were nearly empty as the city had not yet woken up. Abandon umbrellas were the first thing I noticed. The streets were still damp from the rain in the night. There were people jogging and walking, but none of the stores were open. The city seemed as empty as I felt. I decided coffee would be the best solution. 

Nothing was open. I was kind of shocked, but I read about this. Tokyo is a city with 37 million people, all rolled up in the morning, a reminder that all things need rest. Interestingly enough the only place I found open was a McDonald's and I stumbled upon it walking through Harajuku. The United States is my home, and I found this familiarity comforting. I decided to go in for a hash brown and coffee. The menu was similar, but there were some items I've never seen before, a strawberry milkshake pie, an order of macarons, but everything else looked pretty much the same. I sat and ate my hashbrown, drank my coffee and studied my route to Kagurazaka. I had read about not walking around with coffee in Japan (it's rude) so decided to take a lesson from them and sit. I enjoyed my coffee while reading up on maps around the city and mass transportation etiquette. 

When I finished, I found the train station was directly across the street. I was in Harajuku, and it was just starting to open up. I opened my Suica app (the way to pay for subway and rails) and put 2000 yen on it. (about $13) Scanned my phone at the entrance and entered the train station. It was still not super busy, and I wasn't 100 percent sure about what I was doing or where I was going so, I watched people go in and out of the platforms and looked at the train station maps. The one I entered in Harajuku was a rail and not the subway, I found out later that was a little bit up the street. I found the right color and the right route and went to the platform. I stood and watched as the very disciplined passengers queued on the platform. They were very organized, it looked like a habit, they weren't even trying, it was just how they were, disciplined, orderly, and very focused. 

I have been in numerous trains and subways, Paris, London, New York, this was probably the quietest ride I've ever been on, the only thing I could hear was the sound of the rails and the announcements. The announcements are in English and Japanese, mostly just announcing the next station, "please keep your phone on silent", and "do not talk on your phone". Most people were engrossed in their phones, reading, watching movies with their ear buds in and not the slightest communication among them. Later in other rides it was different. There were occasional chatter and people talking, it was not all silent all the time, but I did not hear one single ring tone on the subway or rail the entire time I was in Japan. 

I made it to Kagurazaka still a bit overwhelmed with all the new stuff around me. The city was waking up, and it was very obvious. Chatter on the streets, bicycles, cars, people everywhere. There were new smells I was unfamiliar with (not all of them good). I found the street where the parade would be held in several hours. Seeing a Starbucks and worrying about my phone battery I went in, ordered a mocha latte and found a place to charge. As my phone charged so did I. The window was huge, and I could see everyone passing by, it was like a giant TV screen. Men and women dressed in business attire, school children on their way to school in uniforms and some tourists cruising through. A man parked his bicycle and sat down next to me with his paper and his coffee. We did not speak but we both watched the show. He was local and this was probably part of his routine. 

When my phone was charged and I was full of coffee I set off again to wander the streets of this new area. I found gotcha balls, little plastic toy vending machines, these are everywhere in Japan. Then I found the Konbini (convivence store). It was a 7 Eleven. These are extremely popular. After getting a snack and buying some random candies to take home I headed off to find the start of the cat festival, instead I found a shrine. I watched people go in, bow, make a donation, clap and ring a bell. It was wonderful to watch people come and go, silently praying, wishing, thanking. 

I went back to the cat festival area, and I started noticing people dressed as cats and found the line to get to join the parade and stamp rally. It was my first day in Tokyo and I didn't yet know that people basically stand in lines all day. I stood behind some French tourists and the woman behind me was Japanese, she had a parasol, a husband and a three-year-old little girl. She used to live in Montana and loved being in the United States. She was delighted to talk to me about Tokyo and Japan in general. 

The festival included two parades, face painting, a stamp rally (this was interesting- it's basically walking around and getting stamps) and a really cool wrist band, which I'm still not sure what it was supposed to do, maybe allow you into the parade? 

I never got to the parade. I walked around for an hour or so, took some selfies with some of the cat people, met other Americans in cat shirts, filled out most of the stamp rally book, then got distracted by the shrines and overall beauty of the city.  It's easy to do when you've only had 4-6 hours of sleep in 36 hours. 

I went back to the rails and found myself at the imperial palace and found the huge Torii gate. The park was gigantic, and I wandered around watching people with their children, listening to really loud crows and brown headed Bulbuls. I saw a rat at one point (it is a major city, and I see them in New York every time I go, so I was not surprised.)

The gentleness of the people and their respect of everything around them was astounding. There were no trash cans anywhere, yet no trash. Every Torii gate gets a bow, eyes down, bending at the waist, hands to the sides, it was very precise, disciplined, focused. 

As I wandered, I decided I loved it. Every part of it. I meandered back to my hotel to check in, freshen up, go get dinner, and I finally slept.