E Honda Wins!

well, i don't know if it was E Honda, but i sure saw some sumo! i woke up very groggy from my sleeping pills, and pulled myself out of my capsule to face the day at 7am. luckily, the soup + pills + sleep cure i attempted did the trick - i felt wonderful! i hit up the next door Denny's (!!) for a japanese style skillet (2 sunny side up eggs, bacon, carrot slaw, rice and miso soup - all eaten with chopticks. isn't japan awesome?!).

the sumo tournament runs from the 1st to the 3rd sunday in july in nagoya, at the aichi prefectural gymnasium. a short train ride later, i was following to sumo in their robes into the gymnasium entrance. each day, from 8:30-2 are the amateur bouts, and 2-6 are the pro bouts. general admission tickets are 25$ and you can sit anywhere you want in the bleacher seats, which are not far up and provide a great view of the action. now, i've only seen sumo on tv or in movies. seeing it live is a new experience. the cries of the crowd, the customs and traditions of the ring, and the sheer rawness of the live spectacle made this another unforgettable experience. two large men, garbed in their oni (i think that's what the waistbelts are called) step into the ring and do some fun stretching/intimidation exercises where they lift their legs high and smack their legs and chest). then, after being called into action by the "referee" they run at each other and attempt to throw the other out of the circular ring. sometimes its just a push, sometimes a throw, sometimes both wrestlers go tumbling off the side. it's wild, man. i have some videos and a tshirt. i enjoyed that this sport is quite ancient - really, all wrestling is - and that its traditions have persisted over long amounts of time, in a way different than western sports. alike to baseball or football, the big sumo stars have their fans, who stand and cheer and photograph and whistle, but the art itself is longstanding. i really have a desire to discover its origins and its roots - i imagine that the history of sumo would provide another incisive perspective into japanese culture.

one side note - i was down in the basement of the gymnasium watching the sumo wrestlers some into the arena. some were in robes and some were in their waist belts. some of them were big - and i mean fatty fat fat man boobs (though, to their credit, and unlike fat americans, they are in shape) - some were thinnish (built) and some were stocky built. i actually found one of the stocky ones quite sexually attractive. his face was beautiful and his build was at least proportional. i have never been with a big guy - never wanted to, and really don't want to - but this athlete walked with such confidence and poise, it made me wonder what sex with him would be like. i am still thinking about it. next trip to japan - find a gay sumo.

after many hours at the sumo tournament, including my break for some snacks and noodles (kishimen - wide wheat noodles, a like to fettuccine, but thicker, and in broth with fried tofu), i went next door to Nagoya Castle (Nagoya-Jo). the castle originally dated back to the time when Nagoya stood as Japan's castle, but like much of the city, it was destroyed in WW2. the rebuilding of the castle was done in concrete, so it is not as impressive as other castles that still exist in their original wood, but nonetheless, the grounds, the walls, the architecture - it brings you back in time. one thing i've noticed, and it is far mroe apparent in temples and say, in kyoto, is that japanese elegance and grandeur differs so much from the west. castles and palaces and churches in the west (e.g., europe) are massive stone structures with ornate glasswork, precious metals, tapestries, and other elements of what may be called "high royalty." such examples exude an opulence of almost pompous nature. japan's approach to palaces and castles is far more understated, but no less elegant. made of nothing but wood and paper, these buildings are superb monuments to innovation and beauty that never fail to incorporate the world's natural, unadorned, beauty into themselves. again, this provides a wonderful contrast to the ego of the west, and heightens my adoration of this culture.

after my sumo and castle visit, i hit up the internet cafe for some chat and email. then, some washup and dinner. i will save my night adventures for my next post.