Japan Engagement

November 18th-25th, 2014

By Heather Horgen

Japan again?

Van and I had an amazing trip to Japan in 2013. When it came to planning our trip for this year, we talked about visiting many different places - France, Spain, Morocco, South Korea - but I still felt drawn to Japan.

I had to go back. And it wasn’t hard to convince Van. But I had no idea that he thought I was setting him up to propose. I just wanted to go to Japan.

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tsukiji fish market

One of my favorite things to do while traveling is to visit local markets. Tsukiji is the largest fish and seafood wholesale market in the world and around the market the streets are lined with shops selling sushi, food and other snacks. It was at the top on my list since we didn’t make it last year.

Van found the best dried cuttlefish in all the world. Tender, flaky, not too salty. I found an omelette stand - Japanese rolled omelettes, that is. We wandered through the busy outer market, and finally found our way to the wholesale inner market. It was a little scary, lots of forklifts and mini trucks driving through. We were careful not to get in the way. We looked at all the exotic seafood - things I have never seen before.

tiny japanese apartment

We used Airbnb again to rent an apartment, this time in a busier area near Shibuya station. It was much smaller. MUCH smaller. But it was clean, comfortable, and close to shopping, restaurants and the train station. Actually, we were on a street with a lot of “adult” shops and clubs - all the more interesting.

around tokyo

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nikko

We did a day trip from Tokyo to Nikko, a mountain town with a lot of temples. We got a little lost, and only saw a little bit of Nikko. But what we did see was gorgeous!

robots and yakitori

We had to go to the Robot Restaurant! It was on our last year but we were too jet lagged to stay up past 5pm. This year we made it past sunset and headed to Shinjuku. The show is over the top dancers, taiko drumming, and robots battling for peace on Earth.

After the show we walked down a narrow alley on the way to the train station and this yakitori restaurant caught our eye. It was a narrow two story, with no more than 20 seats. We got a table and ordered the omakase, which basically means chef’s choice, and an order of yakisoba. I don’t know what all of the yakitori was (grilled meats) - it was possibly all chicken, and it was definitely all delicious.

kyoto

We took the shinkansen, the bullet train, to Kyoto. The fall colors were vibrant and the air crisp. One of the first things we did was visit Genkoan Temple - one of the blood blood ceilings of Kyoto. In the 1600’s Fushimi Castle was overtaken and the defending warriors had to commit seppuku, (ritual suicide). The main castle burned, but the floorboards from the bloody scene were dismantled and later distributed to other temples where they were used in the ceilings. At Genkoan you can see a clear bloody footprint stain in the ceiling, among other blood stains.

We explored a bit of the nightlife in Kyoto and happened upon this bustling restaurant. It was really busy - always a good sign, but we didn’t have to wait long. We were seated on tiny stools at a long table with a group of other patrons. The waitress stood at the head of the table, holding a large laminated folded menu “would you like to see a menu?” We nodded yes. She opened the menu - one large picture. “We serve one thing! How many you like?” Ha! We were delighted. That makes things easy. We ordered one each.

This is Issen Yoshoku - they serve a Kyoto-style okonomoyaki, a savory pancake, which, according to a sign on the table, contains: green onion, egg, dried shrimp, grilled fish paste, flour, bonito, beef, ginger, tempura batter, konjak jelly, dried seaweed, and Japanese sauce. It was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. Savory, a little sweet, salty, satisfying. It was so good we ordered another one.

Daishin temple stay

We stayed one night again at Daishin temple. Peaceful, quiet, calming - it’s our favorite place on Earth. With the fall leaves the gardens were vivid with the changing colors. At Daishin, you feel in your heart the peace and wisdom of Buddha.

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engagement story

After a restful night I awoke early in the morning and dressed. In the faint morning sun I padded around the wooden temple in my socks, breathing in the crisp air and hearing only my soft footfalls. As I came to the main hall, I heard bells softly chiming and monks chanting. I sat on the wooden deck, looking at the zen garden, hearing the buddhist prayer ceremony, and felt utterly at peace.

I came back to our room and Van was at the kotatsu, a table that has a heater under the top, to get warm. We only stayed in Kyoto for one night, here at Daishin, and Van suggested we go for a walk around the temple grounds before we had to leave. Which was slightly odd, because Van never goes for walks. But we were in our favorite place.

Myoshin-ji is unique to all of the temples we’ve seen in Japan. The temples are imposing yet understated. Van kept his hands in his pockets the whole time, and was walking ahead of me a lot. Which was also slightly odd, but it was cold, and whatever.

We came back to Daishin and stopped in front of the main prayer hall. The sun was bright, the rays beaming across the garden. Van turned to me “I need to tell you something.” Huh? What would he need to tell me in Japan?

“You’re the one.”

This was the perfect line - it’s from one of our favorite shows, Sex & the City, when Big finally realizes that Carrie is “the one” and goes to Paris to tell her. I knew right away. Van said more words before that, of course, but I don’t remember exactly what, and this was the best part.

He took a small lacquered box from his pocket. It was a brilliant solitaire diamond ring. I could not believe it. I started to cry. Van started crying. I was overcome with happiness and excitement and love, and all I could do was kiss Van and say “I love you.” I was completely surprised. I did not think that Van would propose in Japan. Sure, it briefly crossed my mind, but I didn’t think he would want to bring a ring to Japan and carry it around, and I wasn’t even sure he was going to propose any time soon. It was the best surprise of my life.

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Back in Tokyo, we spent our last night in Japan at the Park Hyatt. I realized then that I never actually said “yes.” I was so surprised by the proposal I was at a loss for all words. But of course the answer was yes! We celebrated our engagement by sipping cocktails and listening to live jazz at the New York Bar. Another amazing trip to Japan.