Saisho clan

On January 6, 2012 we met Yayoi's cousin Atsutada Saisho who mapped out the Saisho family tree from memory. After going to Fukuoka on the island of Kyushu, January 19 we went to Nagasaki for a day trip and were taken to the Saisho o-hakka (burial site within graveyard) in Nagasaki by another cousin Atsuyuki Saisho.
On January 25 Junichiro Arima (another cousin) picked us up for a whirlwind tour including a visit to the Saisho and Arima o-hakka (side by side) within the largest most amazing graveyard I have seen in Japan. Apparently it is very well kept and it appeared that 90% of the o-hakka had fresh flowers.
Then we went up into the mountains to a national park in which is a famous shrine (jingu) called Kirishima jingu. On the grounds is the small Saisho jingu which looks after financial matters for the more colourful Kirishima jingu.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yayoi and her mother Nobu

Yayoi knows that her mother's father died when her mother was 4 years old. The widow (Yayoi's maternal grandmother) from a wealthy family was immediately found another husband and Yayoi's mother and infant sister were then adopted, her mother by her uncle (Saisho clan of Kagoshima where we are staying currently) and the infant sister's adoptive family is unknown. When Yayoi's mother (Nobu) was getting married to Konno, she contacted the remarried mother who told Nobu she had a new life and not to contact her again. On Monday the 23rd we went to Kagoshima city hall to try to trace things, but with records only going back 80 years and adoptions not always official, we were not successful.
At some point the Konno family and the Saisho family went to Formosa (Taiwan today) and sparks flew when Nobu met Ikuya. After World War II ended, Yayoi was born and shortly thereafter Yayoi and family moved to Komatsu in the prefecture of Yamagata.

Rhododendron garden

Only in Japan would they set aside about 5 hectares and plant exclusively one species of flower such as this rhododendron garden seen in winter here, guarded by a large recently built Buddha. In May this amphitheatre with it's pastel shades of pink and violet, I feel is one of the most incredible gardens in the world.

 

Volcano and the deep blue sea

The city of Kagoshima is located at the end of a bay and in the bay is Sakurajima (cherry blossom island). But thanks to eruptions it is no longer an island. People live on the island, but live in a constant state of preparedness in case of a major eruption. Today is January 22, 2012 and already this year there have been more than 147 eruptions of which we witnessed at least two.

 

 

 

 

 

Ate everything but the feathers!

First night in Fukuoka after flying in from Haneda airport our nephew Kaoru took us to a businessman's hotel near the train station and then three of us walked to a famous restaurant (French president ate here) to meet Kaoru's wife Keiko. On the way we noticed Valentine's Day decorations. We were served various parts of the chicken (referred to as hormone meats) such as the gizzard. We also ate gristle and the tail cooked until soft. The final step was a pot of soup "nabe" we cooked on a burner in the centre of the table. It was a very good meal!

Kyushu bridged to Honshu

Kyushu is the southern-most main island of four and connects to the largest island Honshu by a bridge and under ocean tunnel, both of which we traversed going to and from Shimonseki on Honshu. This port city is famous for it's "fugu" or puffer fish. Most puffer fish are extremely poisonous, but of course we along with the Japanese people love to eat it (very carefully when raw). The fugu is cut in a flower shape in thin slices when it is to be eaten raw (sashimi). The photographs are of a fish market.

Weekly Mansion in Kagoshima

Yayoi's mother comes from this city of about 350,000 people. It is located on an elongated bay which contains the island of Sakurajima and on it an active volcano of the same name. The ash emitted every day appears everywhere as a coarse black sandy looking ash. We hope to see Sakurajima and the Saisho Shrine which is Yayoi's mother's family name. Today we checked into a weekly mansion (similar to an American bachelor suite). It is suite 401 which means hauling a heavy suitcase up 4 flights of stairs. The pictures include the name of the building and views of the interior and NO we can't afford to stay here long term. It is warm outside, about 15'C and will drop to about 4'C.