GALLERY — JAPAN, NOVEMBER & DECEMBER 2008
This is an account of events relating to the Shinjinbukan Honbu Dōjō by Shinjinbukan Deshi Melanie S. Petrak .
Trip To Tokyo / Latvian National Day
Trip To Tokyo / Latvian National Day
As the Honorary Consul of Latvia for Okinawa, Onaga Kaichō attended the celebrations held in Tokyo for conmemoration of Latvia`s independence from Russia in 1918. I had the pleasure of accompanying Sensei on this trip.
As a guest of honor, Onaga Kaichō participated in the Kagamiwari / 鏡割り, which is the "Sake Breaking Ceremony". It is a Japanese custom to break a sake barrel or bin at the beginning of a major festivity. Kanpai (cheers)!!!
Info: Latvian independence from Russia and Germany was declared on November 18, 1918.
It was recognized on January 26, 1921; and suspended on August 5, 1940.
Re-independence was proclaimed on May 4, 1990 and completed on September 6, 1991.
Tour of Tokyo
During our visit to Tokyo, Mr Susumu Tanaka, the cultural advisor to the Latvian Embassy in Tokyo, gave us the invaluable gift of a personal first class tour. We saw Asakusa Shrine, Kōkyo (the imperial palace) and the Meiji Shrine. As an expert on Japanese culture and history, Mr Tanaka provided detailed background information on all the sites we visited; thus making the trip a most memorable experience.
Back to Okinawa
After our short trip to the mainland, Okinawa greeted us with warm pleasant weather and I had a chance to visit Nakijin Castle, the fortress of Hokuzan (北山). Hokuzan was the northernmost of three principalities that the Ryūkyūs were divided into in the late fourtheenth century: Nanzan (南山) in the South, Chūzan (中山) in the central area and Hokuzan in the north.
Naha, too, was in full bloom. Albeit a very urban little city, its flora and parks are ubiquitous and fascinating.
Test and Promotion
On December 18, 2008, I was promoted to I Kkyū / 1st Kyū 一級 . When I got to Okinawa, I started all over from Ju Kkyū / 10th Kkyū (white belt). Not only had I previously practised a different Ryūha (sytle) of Karate. It is also that Onaga Sensei`s Ti is immensely different from anything I have experienced before, it is breathtakingly deep and strikingly impressive. So, really, there was no alternative to starting again from scratch. Sensei seems to know everything from the exact amount of force your forefinger, or even your little finger must exert at certain points to the correct position of your toes. He will teach me incredible facts about body mechanics, all those little and big things that make so much of a difference to any technique. I had never even dreamt of merely meeting a master of his caliber and here I am, trying to absorb as much of his knowledge as I can.
Click on the image below to view the pdf file
Sayōnara Party
On the eve of my departure to New York, Sensei invited me to a feast of exotic Okinawan food: several parts of the pig`s gastrointestinal track ("interesting") and a sausage which is packed in its casing together with a rib bone that so serves as a handle. Oishii (delicious)
