Odawara Castle

Come to think of it, I've only been to two castles in Japan. The first one being Matsumoto Castle (松本城) in Nagano Prefecture and this second one, Odawara Castle (小田原城) in Kanagawa Prefecture. Stopping by in Odawara wasn't my initial plan. Waking up at 5.30am, taking a two-hour train ride followed by a three-hour hike left me longing for an afternoon nap, even just a doze before going off again for a farewell dinner with my colleagues. (It wasn't much to my surprise that after the dinner, we ended up at a karaoke till the last train!)

But, spending all that effort and money to travel all the way to Hakone (箱根) just for a morning hike wasn't too fulfilling. Besides, I had to transit at Odawara station anyway, so why not make a brief stop, I thought. So, after treating my famished stomach to a gyuudon (お好み牛玉丼) at Sukiya - by the way, it was my second time since last Sunday - I headed towards Odawara Castle.

Odawara is an old city located at a strategic point on Tokaido (the ancient Edo-Kyoto Highway).. Whoever was in-charged of this city also controlled the traffic between Sagami area (now Kanagawa) and Tokai (south of modern-dayTokyo). During the post-Warring States Period (16th century), the castle belonged to the Hojo clan for five generations, but was taken over by Toyotomi Hideyoshi (豊臣 秀吉) and handed over to Tokugawa Ieyasu (徳川 家康). Later in 1870 during the Meiji Period, it was sold away by the government and demolished, only to be replaced by a shrine 23 years later.

In the early Showa Period, there was even a ferris wheel, which was naturally a famous local attraction. It wasn't until the year 1960 (22 years after Odawara city was designated as a national historical site) that they finally rebuilt the castle keep.

All in all, it's a small castle with a big compound and a short stretch of moat on the lower side. There's no more ferris wheel but guess what, they keep monkeys and an elephant right in front of the castle keep! What's more, there's even train rides for children! I guess this is the quirkest castle I'll ever see.

Personal Favourites

I've no idea whether anyone even bothered to read last month's posts on my trip to Seoul. It reads, "Seoul in 6 Days" but there're only four entries. The last two days are missing, owing to my feeling lazy to pen them down. And when I eventually feel like doing it, I have problems recalling much of what I did except for some bits and pieces, like my awe and amazement upon seeing a kimchi refrigerator, the visit to the spooky Seodaemun Prison (with its torture chambers) that scared me shitless, and the commanding view from the fortress city of Suwon.

Ideally speaking, I'd like to post those first before doing this. But, I've been wanting to share four of my favourite photos taken during the trip.

1. So, here goes, starting from the first one taken at Namiseom. (Day #2 - Korean Wave)


Jangseung 장승; 長承
This is a Korean totem pole, usually placed at the edges of villages to ward off evil spirits. In the olden days, Koreans used to practise shamanism that was influenced by Buddhism and Taoism from China.

2. This second one was taken at Namsangol Hanok Village. (Day #3 - A Cultural Evening)


Namsangol Hanok Village 남산골한옥마을
A lantern in a traditional Korean house.

3. The third one, somewhere in the city, next to a busy junction, and amidst skyscrapers. (Day #5)


Red and Green 단청; 丹靑
This pavilion is located at a busy junction in downtown Seoul. The contrasting colours of green and red were especially vibrant under the light up.

The word 단청 literally means "red and green". For a list of the names of different shades of red, please refer to Korean Language Notes.

4. Lastly, the one I like the most, taken at UNESCO site, Suwon. (Day 6)


Hwaseong, Suwon 수원화성; 水原華城
Suwon is about one hour from central Seoul. The fortress, Hwaseong is definitely a must-see spot. Built by King Jeongjo to guard his father's tomb, the walls surrounded the city of Suwon. The place is now designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

This gate (Janganmun), located in the north, and the other one (Paldalmun ) in the south are the largest of the four gates. They resemble Namdaemun in Seoul, which unfortunately has been wrapped under vinyl sheet since the arson incident.

Notice the five small figures on both ends of the roof? They're the characters from Journey to the West: the Monk, the Monkey, the Boar, the River Monster, the Horse and a dragon. What role the famous Chinese novel played in Korean history, I haven't got the chance to find out.

Religion and Social Dysfunction

In the news this evening was a special interview with a former member of The Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity. It's a "Christian sect" started in South Korea but is not recognized by the Church. In fact, it's often referred to as a cult. Despite the controversies shrouding it, the movement is active around the world, especially in South Korea and Japan. In the interview, the lady claimed to have been conned of at least 3 million Yen. But there're reports from victims who supposedly paid as much as 10 million Yen to the "church".

Obviously cults are detrimental to the society. They make you part with your money and family, they require you to pledge absolute commitment to the cult. But how many of us actually think for a moment if religion actually does much good to us? It's a common belief that religion is beneficial. Advocates are steadfast in view that the belief in supernatural presence is critical to the development of a stable society.

Embarassingly, as Malaysians, this very stereotypical view is firmly embedded in our head. I'm sure skmming through any essay written by a Malaysian student can confirm this. Whenever we're asked to discuss about social problems, we immediately point to the lack of religious faith as one of the underlying factors.

But check this out. According to a study made by Gregory S. Paul, "the most religious democracies exhibited substantially higher degrees of social dysfunction than societies with larger percentages of atheists and agnostics." (Excerpt from Los Angeles Times: The Dark Side of Faith, October 01, 2005)

Inarguably, there's no way to come up with a definitive conclusion but at least the result will hopefully encourage further debate on the matter. People should be aware that religion is no holy issue which should be, by default, spared from scrutiny. Because, like it or not, religion plays a big role in the formation of both government and judicial policies. Think about the laws on abortion, gene therapy, cloning, stem cells research... They are made based on the standards set by religion, presumed to be the default public consensus. Believers or not, we are all dictated by religious dogmas. How then, can laxity towards religion be tolerated?

See also:
"Religion is Bad for Societal Health" - Church of the Churchless
Testimonial of a former member of the Unification Church (Japanese)
Legal complaints filed by fraud victims of the Unification Church (Japanese)

Running Away from Boredom

People who complain about being busy obviously have not had a taste of extreme boredom. It's worse than having an itchy spot on your back where your fingers can't reach to give it a good scratch. You know you ought to move your ass and do something, anything; but for some uncanny reason, it's rooted to the chair or to the bed or to wherever you parked it on. You'd rather just sit there, and stay as inanimate as your other furniture, for as long as it takes rigor mortis to set in. Or until you eventually get bored of looking like a retard, and decide to put on your sports shoes and go out for a jog, just like what I did.

Taking a jog out of boredom was my first time. The last time I did it was for the peace of mind. It helped clear my head and offered me solace, albeit a temporary one. Ironically - or, should I say, in a masochistic manner - it feels good to have every muscle in your body throbbing in pain, and your lungs screaming for air.

However, I didn't achieve what I intended to when I set off for a one-hour run yesterday evening. The legs were vaguely aching from the weekend's badminton session but no bursting lungs. In fact, I was enjoying the run, to and fro Tamagawa 4.55km away from home.


Alden, I can see you stifling your laughter! I'm not a marathon runner, mind you! But maybe I should try to cover 10km within an hour the next time!

Washing Legs

This photo was taken at Senzoku-ike (洗足池), one of the most famous spots in Tokyo known for cherry blossom viewing. It's a small pond with a serene view, situated right next to the buzzing Nakahara Highway. (By the way, Nakahara Highway was a main road linking Edo - now Tokyo - to Kanagawa in the olden days.)

During the cherry blossom season, stalls are set up by the pond and the place is crowded with people, though it's far from the likes of Ueno's. You could either choose to go up the small hill to enjoy the breeze, or sit by the pond watching the ducks and carps and gulls, or rent a boat to paddle or row in the pond. Either way, it offers a chance for city folks to relax and unwind.

All this while, I've been confused with the name of the place, for Senzoku can be written in two ways - "千束" and "洗足". I did a search and found out that, coincidentally, the history of the place is related to that of Honmonji. See previous post: The Last of Sakura (Friday, 10 April 2009)

During the Heian Period (794-1185), the place was known as "千束" (literally "thousand bundles"). The paddy fields there belonged to the monastery, so up to 1000 bundles of paddy were exempted from tax each year.

Then one day during the Kamakura Period (12th century), a monk by the name Nichiren (the founder of the Nichiren sect of Buddhism) passed by the place in his journey. He stopped by to rest and allegedly washed his legs at the pond. Henceforth, the place has been known as "洗足池" (literally, "leg-washing pond").

I don't know about you but it doesn't sound like an elegant name to me.