The Great Buddha of Kamakura

Time for another retrospective post from the Kodak era. This time we’re off to Kamakura, a historic coastal city on the Miura peninsula south of Tokyo. The city is renowned for Kamakura Daibutsu, otherwise known as The Great Buddha of Kamakura, at Kotoku-in temple.

Kamakura is one of Japan's ancient capitals, alongside Kyoto and Nara. It served as the seat of the Kamakura shogunate for almost 150 years from 1185 to 1333. This was also Japan’s first military government. As a result, the city is filled with note-worthy temples and shrines.

Kamakura Daibutsu is a large bronze statue of a seated Buddha. It sits on a low-profile stone podium. Including the base, it measures 13.35 metres high and weighs about 93 tonnes. According to temple records, the statue dates from around 1252 and thus was cast at the height of the Kamakura shogunate.

It was created to replace an earlier giant wooden statue destroyed by a storm in 1248. The bronze replacement was originally enclosed in a temple hall. However, this building was swept away by a tsunami in 1498. Since then, the Great Buddha has stood in the open air.

I visited Kamakura and spent the day exploring its many hillside temples and shrines while on a business trip to Japan. My company’s Tokyo office was a bit of a problem child at the time. As a result, made many trips to Japan to support the team, usually staying at the Keio Plaza Hotel in Shinjuku.

My first business trip was a three-week secondment in August 2001. At the time I was the Managing Director of our Australian office. I then returned regularly between 2002 and 2005 after I became Regional Director for Asia Pacific. I’d frequently stay for more than a week and thus often found myself with a weekend to fill.

To be brutally honest, I’m not sure exactly when I visited Kamakura. I never dated the photos I took. At a guess, it was either 2001 or sometime in 2002. It takes about 90 minutes to reach the city by train from Shinjuku. Most visitors disembark at Hase Station, then make their way uphill to the Kamakura Daibutsu tracing a popular tourist walk that passes some  of the area's ancient Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines.

However, I decided to get off the train at Kita Kamakura station. From here I walked down the tree-lined streets of old Kamajura toward Hase Station. Along the way, I passed numerous immaculate shrines, including Engakuji, one of Japan's leading Zen temples, before finally finishing up at Great Buddha. Thanks to regular tourist stops, it took me several hours to complete the walk.  You can see a photo above of the wonderful Zen garden at Engakuji.  It was undergoing a little maintenance the day I visited.

Kenchoji, Kamakura’s oldest Zen temple, was also memorable. I was captivated by the defensive demon statues guarding the steps leading up to Hansōbō, the temple's large Shinto shrine. Known as Tengu, these mythical creatures are similar to goblins. Some of the statues had wings and a beak, a tengu genre known as Karasu-tengu (crow tengu) because of their avarian appearance.

The Great Buddha of Kamakura an impressive sight. As it comes into view beyond the ticket gate its size and scale is immediately clear. You instantly appreciate why it’s designated as a national treasure of Japan and is considered one of the nation’s most famous icons. Where else can you gaze upon one-metre wide eyes resting in eternal contemplation?

Farewell Rhonda

On Monday we farewelled Rhonda, Garry's mother, with a wonderful service. It was held in the Garden Chapel at Castlebrook Memorial Park Rouse Hill. It rained like crazy the night before.  However, as the service began the weather lifted and we enjoyed dry conditions.

Attendance exceeded everyone's expectations. The chapel seats 120 people. We'd anticipated that maybe 100 people would attend. In the end, almost 200 showed up (or at least that's our best guess as more than 173 people signed the condolence book - excluding immediate family members such as Garry and I, his brother and sister and their families, plus boyfriends and girlfriends and a few school friends).

Murray asked me to lead the service. To help me prepare my opening and closing remarks I leveraged my notes from both my parent's funerals.  I'm relieved to say that everything flowed smoothly. The service was a superb blend of formality and informality with plenty of laughter and tears. Garry's brother, David, delivered a eulogy filled with anecdotes, capturing Rhonda's character perfectly. 

Murray was delighted by everything. I also received plenty of accolades for my role. The service was streamed online.  As a result, I could replay a recording and experience what everyone else had. I must admit that the service looked seamless and really was a fitting tribute to an exceptional woman.

Afterwards, everyone retired to The Fiddler Hotel for an informal reception. Once again the numbers exceeded expectations. However, the hotel did a superb job of accommodating extra tables and additional catering at short notice.  The family then spent the rest of the afternoon reminiscing in the sunshine at a large table in the hotel's garden bar.

Savai’i (kind of)

Today’s excursion to Savai’i didn’t exactly happen as advertised. Our guide Chief Tai (yes he really is a local chief) picked us up from our resort at 6:40am. The early start was scheduled to ensure we caught the 8:00am ferry to Savai’i. The weather forecast wasn’t ideal with passing showers forecast. However, our guide thought we’d be ok.

As we arrived at Mulifanua wharf the rain started falling. Our guide then discovered that the ferry company had swapped one of its larger vessels for its smallest. The smaller vessel has limited indoor seating. In other words, we’d be exposed to the elements as we crossed Apolima Strait, the 20km of ocean separating Upolu and Savai’i.

However, to our surprise, Chief Tai arranged for us to join the crew on the bridge. As a result, we stayed sheltered from the weather and enjoyed a bird’s eye view of cars and trucks being loaded on board. Below is an image of the ferry I later took during our return sailing. 

Once on Savai’i we made our way along the southern coast towards the island’s iconic Alofaaga Blowholes. However, as we ventured west the weather deteriorated rapidly into heavy showers. Our guide became increasingly agitated. He explained that after heavy rains the road is often blocked by localised flooding.

Apparently, heavy rain falling on the slopes of Mt Silisili, the island’s highest peak, can quickly overwhelm streams along the entire coast. At first, I thought he was exaggerating. That is until we encountered a fast-flowing dirty brown torrent surging knee-deep across the highway, less than a kilometre from the blowhole turnoff.

Needless to say, our guide promptly abandoned the tour and turned his minivan around. Understandably, he was now worried that streams were flooding in other locations. Fortunately, his fears proved unfounded and we made it safely to the ferry wharf. However, we passed over bridges with wild waters raging below so his distress wasn’t entirely misplaced.

Along the way, we stopped briefly to admire Mt Pagoa Waterfall in full flood. The fall is an impressive sight. It flows over an arcing five metre ledge of black volcanic rock directly into the pounding ocean. Access to the waterfall is across private land, which isn’t signposted from the road. We later learnt that thanks to this hidden access very few tourists actually see it. Even fewer witness it in full flood.

Our guide decided to return on an earlier sailing as poor weather often causes cancellations. As a result, we soon found ourselves disembarking in Upolu, hours ahead of schedule. Ironically, the weather on Upolu was only partially overcast, dry and warm.

Apia road trip

We hired a car for our first five days in Samoa. It got us from the airport across the island to our resort, let us stock up at the local supermarket and made it easy to schedule a couple of day trips. Today we finished our final hire day by touring Apia’s popular sights.

Our road trip started with a slightly hair-raising ride via the Cross Island Road. Along the way, we stopped to admire the spectacular Papapapaitai Falls, the Baha’i House of Worship and the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum. The falls were spectacular. They drop more than 100 metres into a jungle-clad gully. Our arrival at the lookout was initially hampered by a swirling mist. It slowly lifted as we watched and waited revealing the falls in all their verdant glory.

We had the entire Baha’i temple to ourselves during our visit. The local custodian came across from the nearby visitors centre to give us a brief overview of the Baha’i faith and the temple’s key features before leaving us to explore it alone. The custodian asked if I'd visited a Baha'i House of Worship before. When I mentioned the Lotus temple in New Delhi, she told us she'd been lucky enough to attend its opening in 1986.

The Robert Louis Stevenson Museum was equally quiet. The tour staff were on their lunch break when we arrived. As a result, we were invited to take a self-guided tour through this magnificent colonial homestead. Once again we had the entire building to ourselves and could explore it at our own pace.

From the museum we went into town for a swim at the rather ramshackle Palolo Deep Marine Reserve, followed by a leisurely lunch by the water's edge overlooking the exclusive Taumeasina Island Resort. After lunch, we had just enough time for a brief driving tour downtown. 

Our route included a stop at Samoa’s new National Parliament (currently under renovation and built in the style of a traditional tribal hut), the ornate Immaculate Conception Cathedral, and a drive-by of the infamous Downtown Clock Tower. Guidebooks claim the clock displays random time on one or more faces for no apparent reason other than dodgy maintenance.

After returning our rental car to Blue Pacific Rentals, office staff arranged for a local taxi to take us back to the resort. The journey was an eye-opening lesson about living on “island time”. We wound down the windows, soaked in the sunshine, and watched the world glide by as our cab wound its way across the island at a speed rarely exceeding 25kph. A trip that typically takes 40 minutes ultimately took us more than an hour.

Upolu road trip

We’ve spent the first three days in Samoa relaxing in the sun. We’ve done little more than lie under the shade of coconut trees, down cold beers and swim in the sea. It’s been bliss.

Today while Garry relaxed some more I hit the road in our rental car. I spent the afternoon exploring scenic highlights along the south coast of Upolu. By the time I was done I’d covered more 115kms, starting from our resort and finishing at Samoa’s renowned To-Sua Ocean Trench, before retracing my steps.

The trench is a coastal sinkhole filled with salt water flowing from the sea via an underground cavern. Visitors access the water 30 metres below by descending a steep wooden ladder set against the rock face. I climbed down and dived in for a refreshing swim, along with dozens of others. I was surprised to find the water was constantly in motion as the ocean’s tidal currents rose and fell.

Along the way I also took time out to visit a couple of the island’s waterfalls. My first fall for the day was Togitogiga Waterfall. It often stops flowing during the dry season (April to October). However, I was in luck. The cascade was active with several strong strands flowing.

I then finished the day with a brief stop at the Sopo’aga Falls. This is one of Samoa’s most beautiful falls. It drops in a single stream more than 32 metres into a picturesque gully. The falls are viewed from a platform sitting on the edge of a jungle-clad cliff. This elevated viewpoint delivers a truly majestic photo opportunity.

Other highlights from today’s road trip include a chain of colourful flags and potted plants lining the roadside in every village. We later learned they’ve been installed for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) scheduled in Apia from 21-26 October. It’s the first CHOGM to be held in a Pacific Small Island Developing State so the locals are going all out to impress their elite VIP visitors.

I also stopped to catch some memorable images of the island’s coconut-shaded paddocks, colourful public buses, and impressive churches, including the stunning blue and white Agelo Tausi Catholic Church. Many of the buses I passed were filled with uniformed school kids on their way home from class. Apparently, almost every village here has its own primary school.

Tomorrow we'll explore the sights around Apia, Samoa's capital, before taking a day trip to the neighbouring island of Savai’i.

Samoan reflections

We’re finally kicking back on a vacation we thought we’d never have. Eight months ago Garry and I booked an 11-day holiday in Samoa for late-September. A few weeks later Rhonda, Garry’s mother, was diagnosed with terminal cancer. From that moment on our vacation appeared unlikely to happen.

How swiftly things change. Four days ago, Rhonda passed away. Garry and I joined his family in mourning their loss, laid plans for her funeral and helped his Dad prepare for a new life alone.

In Rhonda’s final weeks, as Garry sat with her each night in the hospital, she made her wishes clear. She urged him not to abandon our scheduled vacation for her sake. As a result, in her honour, just as she wished Garry and I flew out for Samoa last night.

We’ve shortened our stay by several days to return in plenty of time for Rhonda’s funeral. For the next seven days we’re staying at Return to Paradise, Samoa’s largest locally owned resort.   This evening as I look out across the pounding Pacific, it really does feel like the right place to be. We finally have time to pause, reflect and truly remember without the distractions of everyday life.

Today’s highlights in “paradise” include sleeping on the beach under the shade of coconut trees, driving across the island to stock up on some supermarket essentials, and enjoying a buffet dinner with live entertainment. The beach sleep was incredibly therapeutic, even more so after an all too brief three hour sleep on our flight from Brisbane. 

The Maeva String Band that entertained us over dinner was impressive. This talented group of men was originally founded by the resort’s gardeners. This evening they performed songs tempered by powerful harmonies before finishing with some exuberant rhythmic dancing. 

I chuckled when the compère announced the band was performing a truncated show. This last minute change meant everyone could retire to the bar in time to catch the second half of the annual Bledisloe Cup on TV. Rugby is clearly a big deal in Samoa.

Oh yes, and one final highlight. I’ve ticked off country number 72 on my travel list.

UPDATE: 22 September 

New Zealand won last night’s game 31-28 in a closely fought match.