Today I was interested in getting out and seeing a few things, so I got in touch with a friend of a friend who introduced me to the Tokyo subway system and took me to the Shibuya station area for a walk. We started with the Meiji Jingu shrine, which is reached after a serene walk along a gravel path in a wooded park.
I don't know much about Shinto (the religion of the emperors) but there was an opportunity there to write prayers on pieces of paper and "submit" them in a little wooden grated box. Lacking a petition of my own, but interested in "participating," I jotted down a favorite poem, Ryokan's death poem, placed it in an envelope with a few coins, and made my offering:
Everywhere you look
The crimson leaves scatter
One by one
Front and back.
How will the gods respond?
From there we walked to Shibuya station with its famous crossing, big-screen TVs (so to speak), and the statue of the little dog who waited 10 years in the same spot for his deceased master to return.
We had noodles for dinner. Mine had chives and a raw egg in miso (I think) and something white squeezed from a bottle. What? I don't know, but it was good.
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