On Sunday morning, Ayako and I made a last minute decision to go north of Hamamatsu to see a special parade and to look at the cherry blossoms that have started coming out. Lots of people turned up since it was a beautiful day to view the cherry blossoms:
We continued walking through the small town of Hosoe where a parade was taking place. Ayako was surprised to meet a friend (with husband & son) from high school there.
We stopped along the street to watch a parade go by. There were people dressed in traditional costumes:
There was also a 'princess' chosen for the town each year. She is chosen by being pretty but also for being small & light since she might be carried sometimes.
There were also people with baskets over their heads playing flutes. They are dressed as a type of Buddhist monk(called Komuso) who wore baskets over their heads to suppress their egos and played flutes for meditation. Samurai spies were known to have also dressed this way as a disguise but could be found out if they couldn't play the flute well for another monk.
Finally, Ayako got to pretend she was the princess:
I am hoping the cherry blossoms last through the week since next Saturday we are to join a cherry blossom viewing party. If it rains hard during the week, there won't be many flowers left though.
P.S. This is my 150th post...Yeah!!
During the camping trip, I also proposed to Ayako to marry me. She luckily said yes. Since she never wears jewelry, I had no idea what type of ring she would like. I did know that she likes anything baked, and so I had made her a gingerbread ring. A little silly, but she liked it. On Sunday, we looked around at different jewelry stores to find a nice ring. Since she is like me in that we like practical things, she was looking for a small, simple ring. It was hard to find something here like that, and so she decided to forgo having an engagement ring, and instead for us to find nicer wedding rings when we get married.
I tried wall climbing once (about 5 years ago) and this was Ayako's first time. It was a bit hard for both of us. I could get to to the top, but only on the easy levels. Still, it was nice to try it again. Here are some pictures from our day:
As you can see, I decided to make a couple of big ones. I knew Ayako would like them since she really enjoys looking at a website called Pimp That Snack, which has some amazingly huge popular snacks. You can see them at the link: http://www.pimpthatsnack.com/projects.php
We continued walking through the small town of Hosoe where a parade was taking place. Ayako was surprised to meet a friend (with husband & son) from high school there.
We stopped along the street to watch a parade go by. There were people dressed in traditional costumes:
There was also a 'princess' chosen for the town each year. She is chosen by being pretty but also for being small & light since she might be carried sometimes.
There were also people with baskets over their heads playing flutes. They are dressed as a type of Buddhist monk(called Komuso) who wore baskets over their heads to suppress their egos and played flutes for meditation. Samurai spies were known to have also dressed this way as a disguise but could be found out if they couldn't play the flute well for another monk.
Finally, Ayako got to pretend she was the princess:
I am hoping the cherry blossoms last through the week since next Saturday we are to join a cherry blossom viewing party. If it rains hard during the week, there won't be many flowers left though.