Month: March 2016

Jack(a)ass!(u)

jackass ˈdʒakas/ noun Soon after we climbed into the taxi on our way to Kyoto station, the driver suddenly twisted around to look at us and gruffly ask, "You like Trump?" Initially surprised, Danny lost not a moment replying, "Jackass!" "Jackass?" "Jackass!" Our driver was fascinated, hearing an English word, he'd never heard before.  He mulled … Continue reading Jack(a)ass!(u) →

Hanami Overload?

We (The trees and I) peaked today.  My insatiable appetite for cherry blossoms is seemingly satiated.  Cherrymania was at its most intense today when we traveled a bit out of town to visit the World Heritage Site Daigoji Temple, on everyone's best-dressed list.  The weeping cherries at this temple are mostly an irresisible delicate pink. They cover … Continue reading Hanami Overload? →

A DAY FOR SMILES

I felt like Goldilocks today.  Everything was just right.  Not too cold, not too hot, not too early, not too late.  I'm talking sakura (cherry blossoms)!  This year, our timing is good and it was a day for smiles, not only ours, but, it seemed for everyone else on this side of the world too. … Continue reading A DAY FOR SMILES →

Now on to the Cherry Blossoms

It's not an exaggeration to state that cherry blossom season in Japan is a Big Deal.  A VERY BIG DEAL!  The Japanese celebrate their beauty in every conceivable way.  Hundreds of trees are illuminated in temples and shrines in the evenings. Lively picnics are held with friends and family under the flowering trees.  Copious amounts … Continue reading Now on to the Cherry Blossoms →

The Second Most Challenging Holiday for a Nice Jewish Girl

Hard on the heels of Passover, Easter would arrive. The window of our downtown Woolworths would herald the holiday's arrival by placing a few dozen pastel downy baby chicks inside the store's front window to spend their early and most likely final days milling about with their doomed brethren. I was too young to understand the long term implications of this tradition,