The Quaich's Journeys Through Japan

[CDNSushi]

The pics make me long to return to Nippon. Glad to see that it got there in great shape and with due speed. Now you'll have to let me know what I might have to do to score a bottle of that whiskey ;)

Send a lot of ¥¥¥. (No, really. It's pretty pricey stuff... I'd be glad to send you some, but it wouldn't be cheap). The Whisky Exchange out of the UK has it listed at £70 for a bottle, and I think that's less than what I would pay locally.

[CDNSushi]

First of all, I am pleased to report that the Quaich has completed her Japanese quest with great success, and as of this afternoon, she is on her way to her next destination..... Australia, where she will be hosted by DownunderKilt.

Now, on to the important stuff. When I emptied my digital camera's memory card, I counted 282 pictures that I took in the span of the two weeks that the Quaich was visiting in Japan. Although I've already whittled that down quite a bit (many duplicates), posting them up will take a bit of time, so I'll have to do it in bite-sized pieces.

Today, I will be posting my logbook entry. I don't want the rabble on the other side of the world to have to wait to read it, so I have reproduced it exactly as it appears in the Quaich's logbook, complete with the photos I interspersed with my writing. I've copied the logbook entry verbatim, although the original is handwritten.

In the coming days, I hope to post up many more photos as I finish editing them and making them web-ready. There is tons of really cool info and some stories that I can't wait to share with you all, that couldn't possibly all fit on the pages of the logbook. Fortunately, pixels on a screen are cheap and plentiful!

Without further ado, I present the Quaich's journeys through Japan.

[CDNSushi]

I was thrilled with the arrival of the Quaich on Friday, April 1, 2011. Having been a member of the XMTS rabble for several years now, it was with great honour that I accepted Steve Ashton’s kind invitation to inaugurate this vessel’s journeys around the world.

For the past two weeks, it has been my goal to share the Quaich as a token of international friendship with as many people as I could, from close friends to future friends who just don’t know it yet. I also took the Quaich with me on several cross-country adventures, with the intent of showing my clansmen at X Marks the Scot and the whole world, some of the most beautiful and scenic spots Japan has to offer.

On March 11, 2011, Japan was irreversibly changed when a massive 9.0 magnitude earthquake rocked the northern shores near Miyagi Prefecture, which was then quickly followed by a enormous, devastating tsunami that flattened entire towns to the ground and took the lives of tens of thousands of people. In the wake of the recent tragedy, we mourn with those who have suffered loss but amidst the loss it is truly a blessing and a privilege to interject with a small token of joy and hope, expressing the duality and fragility of life itself.



One Japanese word: hakanasa captures the essence of the symbolism the Quaich’s coincidental arrival during the height of the blooming of the cherry trees. The awe we experience from the incredible, fragile beauty of cherry blossoms is fleeting and rapidly lost; at the height of their beauty, cherry blossoms fall from the trees and die as quickly as they arrive, reminding us of the razor thin, and fragile thread that separates life from death.

As I traveled throughout Japan with the Quaich, the cherry blossoms accompanied me everywhere I went. Now, fourteen days later, as I prepare the Quaich for her next recipient and adventures in Australia, a snow storm of cherry blossoms fill the air and carpet the ground with soft, pink petals. How apt.

Japan is known as the Land of the Rising Sun, and so my journey began on the East coast, in the crashing waves of the Pacific Ocean. Miho-no-Matsubara in Shizuoka is one of the most amazing spots from where Mt. Fuji can be seen. Ironically, it eluded my camera lens for most of the time that the Quaich was with me, staying shrouded in the clouds or haze.


Miho-no-Matsubara, Shizuoka Pref.

Upon my return to Kofu, Yamanashi Prefecture, I attended a hanami, which is a traditional, Japanese cherry blossom-viewing picnic, held beneath the cherry trees. There, I carefully explained the Quest of the Quaich to some of my best friends, and shared a “wee dram” with all of them. I felt that it brought us closer together in friendship as I reminded them that they had taken part in something much larger, joining a global clan of friendly, open-minded, (kilted) people.


"Hanami" party: Kofu, Yamanashi.

Friday, April 8, 2011: Mt. Minobu, Yamanashi. Minobu Temple is the ancestral and global home of Nichiren Buddhism. On the monastery grounds are several ancient weeping cherry trees, one of which is over 450 years old! I brought the Quaich with me and had the unique experience of arriving in the middle of a ceremonial procession into the main sanctuary hall, where a special service was held to commemorate the Buddha’s birthday. Then, I also ascended to the top of Mt. Minobu for a few more photos.




Minobu Temple, Yamanashi Pref.

[CDNSushi]

Saturday, April 9: Tokyo. The St. Andrews Society of Tokyo and Yokohama had organized an evening dinner cruise on the river near Tokyo Bay, amidst the cherry trees lining the banks. It was to be a fundraiser for the earthquake and tsunami-devastated areas to the North. Over 50 people attended this event, and I was given the go-ahead to share the Quest of the Quaich with everyone in attendance. We all enjoyed some wonderful Glenfiddich, and as I went around with the Quaich to each table, I took to heart the suggestion posted by CameronCat on the XMTS forum, that we solemnly drink a toast “to the spirits and memory of those lost in the recent disaster.” And so it was done.


Evening dinner cruise on the river, Tokyo.

Wednesday, April 13: I realized that my time hosting the Quaich was nearly over, and that I had yet to make two more symbolic trips. Since I began this journey on the shores the Pacific Ocean, I felt it appropriate to ascend into the Japanese Highlands, in recognition of the fact that the thing that brings us together – our love of kilts, is most closely associated with the Scottish Highlands. I climbed to the summit of one of my favourite peaks in the near vicinity of Kofu. It’s not a very tall peak, just over 1056m, which makes it a bit less than a third of the height of Mt. Fuji. Of course, when I reached the peak, I drank a quick toast and took some photos. It was then that I realized that I still had one final destination.


The Quaich, with the XMTS tartan, at the peak of Yasaburo Dake (1058m)


Kofu City, with Mt. Fuji in the distance. Yamanashi Pref.

For the duration of the Quaich’s sojourn in Japan, Mt. Fuji hid herself well; on this day however, she loomed in full view and she looked awesome! Without a cloud in the sky, the timing couldn’t have been more perfect. I descended the peak with the vigour of a mountain goat on crack, jumped in the car and sped down the mountain in hopes of reaching one of the Fuji Five Lakes for a final farewell with the Quaich at sunset. I made it to Lake Yamanakako just as the sun descended beneath the hills, and as I posed with the Quaich, I raised my flask for one final toast.

Farewell to the XMTS Quaich. May your future adventures take you to the farthest reaches of the world, make all the people you meet your friends, and return home safely at the end of it all.

Thank you, and Slàinte mhath!


Sunset at Lake Yamanakako, near Mt. Fuji

Warm, spring breeze whispers

Peacefully, cherry blossoms

Float into the Quaich

Jim Dunlop
April 15, 2011
Kofu, Japan