Day 10: Sleep in Late, Explore Kamakura

After a rainy first day, I sleep in later than usual, not ready to leave until 10. When I finally leave, I decide to explore the main street that runs from the beach to Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, the main Shinto shrine in Kamakura. The walk is quite beautiful on this sunny day. Shops and restaurants line either side of the street. A raised medium has grass, trees and a stone walkway, splitting the lanes of traffic. I walk down this center path for a little bit, looking for an interesting shop. I find one that has some beautiful stone jewelry, and decide to browse the items. I find a necklace with a purple stone, tinted with orange, in a shape I don’t quite recognize. I am not usually inclined to buy souvenirs, but this stone sticks out to me, and is pretty inexpensive, so I purchase the stone, equip the necklace and continue down the center path.

​Tsurugaoka Hachimangu

I approach the temple, which has constructed a lovely grounds with stone walkways, ringing bells, and a clearer than normal koi pond. I walk the grounds and enjoy the scenery, crossing a bridge that goes to a smaller shrine on the grounds. I find an air-conditioned rest area and take a seat, again feeling the heat and humidity of a city right on the ocean. I am starting to get used to the sweltering, wet heat, but I take any cool reprieve I can get. I’ve even begun carrying a small towel with me to continuously wipe the sweat from my brow and keep myself as dry as possible.

After a quick rest, I climb the steps to the primary shrine. It is a large building with architecture and size similar to that of a few temples that I found in Kyoto. After experiencing Ise Jingu, it is hard to get too excited about this particular shrine. I walk around the building, then descend the stairs, realizing that I haven’t eaten breakfast and am starting to get hungry. I walk back down the main street and find a place that serves cold tempura soba and a good draft beer. With a full stomach, I walk back to the hostel and decide to change into swimming trunks and hit the beach.

Beach Life

I rarely get the opportunity to lay on a beach, so I savor the day and lay out on a towel, listening to podcasts. The beach is lined with drink and food stands, and there is a concert tent not from where I lay. Several of the food vendors have some Hawaiian theme associated with their name and logo. As I sit and gaze out into the ocean, couples flirt by splashing water at each other, children build sandcastles, and friends throw a plastic ball back and forth. A little further out, I see a few boogie boards surf the top of waves. Far away from the beach, wind surfers grab gusts and glide across the water. The whole beach makes me feel like I’m in California, on a party beach that just happens to have a bunch of Japanese people.

After a bit I dip my feet into the salt water and swim out into the waves. The salt water inevitably gets into my mouth, and I remember a similar taste from swimming off the Hawaiian coast. I realize that I have gone farther than I like from the shore when a lifeguard swims up and asks me not to swim so far away. I return to the beach, walk along the wet sand back to my towel, and drip dry.

In my sandals, I walk up and down the beach some more before making my way back to my hostel. I shower, change clothes, then walk down the residential area until I find a hole in a wall udon joint. I walk in, the only customer, and order a bowl of hot vegetable tempura udon. No matter how many times I have a warm bowl of udon, I never get sick of it. In fact, I tend to enjoy it more and more, realizing that it is quickly becoming one of my favorite meals. Ready for the end of the day, I go back to the hostel to read a book and relax. However, I meet an interesting duo who stay in the same room as myself. I begin talking to two young ladies named Hinami and Natsume, who both are very gregarious and know a fair bit of English. They plan to walk along the beach with a friend of theirs that lives in Kamakura, and ask if I would like to join them. I jump at the social opportunity, throw on my shoes and walk out the door.

A Trio of Friends: Hinami, Natsume, and Akika

We meet up with Akika, who works at one of the beachfront stands. We have some conversation about careers, countries, and more. They ask me where I have been so far, and I relay my adventures in Kyoto, Himeji and Tokyo. I learn that Natsume, who looks no older than about 25, is actually 40, and I am blown away! I find out she has a 12 year old boy who is camping just outside Kamakura with the guys in her family. I also find out that Hinami, aged 23, is a nurse, and spent a year studying in London. It shows, as her English is the best among the trio. Akika, aged 28, and tallest of the women, seems free spirited, not tied down to a career or family, but living day to day in the moment. If I didn’t know better, I could swear she grew up with the same mindset and culture as myself. In fact, she actually reminds me of one of my friends back home.

Eventually, they ask me what I think about Japanese government and politics. Caught off guard by the question, I have to compose myself and reflect on what to say. They seem to want to know how foreigners view their government, since, as an island nation, they don’t get the foreign perspective very frequently. I talk a little bit about Abe-nomics, a funny moniker for the economic policies of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and how the entire diet can be released. I talk about how I think that this ability can be extremely helpful when it isn’t being overused, and that I wish the US had something similar. I also make a brief comment on the nuclear divide among Japanese, especially the anti-nuclear sentiment that comes in large part from my own country dropping two nuclear bombs on Japan. Hoping this is enough, Hinami fills in the gaps that Natsume and Akika may have missed in my comments, and they thank me very much for my viewpoint.

We continue walking, ending up back at the hostel a short while later. Akika bids goodnight and heads back to her house, while Nastume, Hinami and I go inside and get ready for bed. We sit in the lounge area at a long table and talk a while longer, but exhaustion hits me hard, and I go to bed, looking forward to an active day tomorrow.