Long Walks Against My Better Judgement
The phone was scheduled to arrive between nine and eleven in the morning. He pushed the envelop and got here at 11:58. He started chatting with me like I knew the language. My message to Jimmie may not have been relayed. Jimmie is the English speaking representative I have been emailing about my net connection. From what I gather a phone is only a few bucks more and makes getting online a speedier process. I spouted off my longest Japanese sentence “I understand Japanese a little” and the phone guy was silent for the duration of the hookup. It cost me twenty-one bucks as a connection fee but I have a phone line. All I need now is a phone. You know, one that doesn’t carry the price tag of over $400 because it is attached to a fax machine because that’s all I can find so far.
I still felt terrible with the throat inflammation worse then the day before but I did not plan on staying inside all day sulking because the sun was high and bright and I decided to do the opposite of what was probably best for me. At 1130am I walked out the door for a two-hour hike to the Kashihara Shrine but first a stop at the ward office to pick up my alien status card. This card now basically means I am in the free and clear to stay in Japan for a year without worry of deportation unless I do something really stupid. It also means I no longer have to cart around my passport everywhere I go. I have no been stopped and questioned by the police yet but this card will come in handy should it ever happen.
The hike gets under way at a sign near the Hanairaka building of Imaicho directing me to the shrine 2.4k away. You have to walk down the highway for the better part of the jaunt avoiding cars speeding a little to closely to the dirt sidewalk and under large overpasses. 
The landmark of this walk, where you are aiming for, is Mt. Unebi which stands tall above the city and farms. Japanese markers along the path tell you where you are going. They did little good to me but thankfully this spot is popular enough to merit English signs every now and then.
You can turn off the highway midway through and continue down the more peaceful small stone path cut into the surrounding woodlands. 
Some steps tempted deep woods hiking but this was not my preference today. 
The Ancient Tomb of Emperor Jimmu Japan’s mythical first emperor, sounds like an interesting place to visit on paper and indeed my map honored the site with a bold font. However, this place is a bit underwhelming as it is gated and inaccessible. If you squint you can see something through the trees but a view of the gate was the best I got today.
The way I entered the site the shrine by walking under another one of these large wooden gates just off the road which takes you down a stone path.
I think the more popular point of entry is an identical gate a little farther on which allows you to pass under the more lavish gate of wood and stone to the view of the shrine and mountain. 
The Kashihara Shrine, the biggest tourist hotspot of Kashihara City, sits at the base of Mt. Unebi. This is one of the three Yamato Mountains, the other two being Mt. Miminashi (the place with that winding path of lanterns) and Mt. Amanokagu. In the ancient times (or what Des would call “the olden days”) it was believed that Unebi was a woman and the other mountains were males vying for her attention. 
This shrine dates back to 1889 so it is not the oldest in Japan. Most of its buildings were transported here from Kyoto Gosho. The Kashihara Shrine bears a striking resemblance to Japan’s most sacred shrine located in Ise, both which give you a good sense of Shinto architecture. Emperor Jimmu is a popular guy around these parts and this shrine is dedicated to him. I just missed the annual festival held at the shrine honoring the day Jimmu claimed the throne. 
I enjoyed the lanterns that hung above and they made for some interesting photographs with the shrine in the background. 
Beautiful girls in traditional dress sell prayer markers in the shops and the monks rake the stones, clean the steps and kneel to pray at the home of Jimmu. 
A collection of slippers was found in a corner neatly lined and pointing outward.
Next to the main shrine is a path of red arches that take you to a smaller site in the woods. The red on green made for interesting contrast. 
The area around the shrine is a large park with hiking trails and a small duck pond. It is actually a very nice view.
The ducks quack around awaiting handouts.
And where there is food there are pigeons. 
A boating dock in the pond unintentionally displayed religious symbolism. 
More stray cats were found at this shrine and I believe now they are kept there to get rid of mice.
Hunger and this flu started to get the better of me and I figured I’d seen all there was to see today at the shrine. It was not as far a walk as I figured and I can always come back. Back home I found my gas bill waiting for me and the sum pretty much cleared up my speculation. At just over $18.00 from the period of February 19th to March 5th I am clocking in at over a dollar a day in gas usage. When you consider that I don’t use my stove every day then the figure over $2. Factoring the high price of produce and meats here it is cheaper to just eat out be it at a small noodle house or giving in to the temptation of Western fast food. I am going to put this theory to the test and try to continue March on a strictly dining out basis except for whatever I can make with hot water. I learned this trick early one that the water heater gets things to a boiling temperature enough without having to heat the water on the stove. This is good for coffees and teas and cup-of-soups. With the small toaster oven to cook bread and small bits of meat in I am sure I can do without the gas stove as I can certainly do without the money the thing incurs.
(Closer study of the bill shows that it was actually an electricity bill. This makes more sense because I keep that little heater of mine going none stop although I don’t use any other lights as that thing casts enough glow to fill the room. The laptop is on quite a bit, though and the fridge is going constantly. Humm, I wonder if this adds up properly for what my usage is? Having never had to pay separate bills for utilities I find myself now trying to conserve and save. The good old days of leaving the lights on and water running all day are back home. Still with the gas, though, the notice I got clocked in at about a dollar a day. I will monitor the whole gas thing and see how taxing it is on the wallet when I get a full bill)
With that the three days off have flown by and it is back to the kids tomorrow. This would be my easiest week with only one class tomorrow followed by a day where I don’t teach but spend my time doing lesson plans and such however they nixed that day and are sending me on a long train ride to substitute on Wednesday. Of all days and schools they pick a school partaking in the final parent observations and they pick the day to send me there where the lions are unleashed. Well, I have another three days off to look forward to come Sunday and hopefully by then I’d have shaken this cold.
