Everyone's A Fruit And Nut-Case

Setsubun went ahead. Just. We braved it through the ever-freezing blizzard and trudged through the sludge to Housenji Temple.



Worrying images of about 50,000 or so temple-goers (the usual annual turn-out) were soon put to rest this year as a whole 10 or so other people made it down there. In fairness, by the main event, about 2/300 turned up. The Pirate parade didn't happen - the Fire Department put a damper on things by deeming it too unsafe to march around in the thawing snow. They did, however, pose for pictures inside one of the prayer rooms.

I've got to stop at this point and say that they're hardly yours or my idea of a pirate; the Johnny Depp guyliner and parrot in tow. Rather another case of being lost in translation, with pirate substituting monk. Strange monks still, so good enough for me. And I give credit to the 30-ish men, woman and children in the Year of the Rat (this year turning either 12, 24, 36, 48 or 60, and 72? 84?) who donned their costumes.

The event then began as we crowded around outside to see the Pirates march to their seating places in time for a strange ceremony. The shoes looked hard enough to walk in without a slippery ground.

The ceremony was a mix of every religion I've encountered and others. A shofar? Buddhist chants? Burning rituals?

The end result - somewhere between The Temple of Doom sacrifice and what I can only imagine to be (blasphemous as this is) the Japanese version of... The Lodge.

The chanting and the subsequent burning of the tree and charms went on for about 10 minutes. We were sheltered under umbrellas and the Pirates under a tent. I felt sorry for the organisers who crouched uncovered the whole duration.

Then we moved in a line and were handed out small cups of sake, followed by two mikan each -size-wise between a satsuma and an orange. Delicious, fruity, healthy and free!

After that, the crowd gathered in front of the main temple where the bean-throwing ceremony happened. It was a free-for-all, children and adults with bags open scrambling for the peanuts and mikan that the Pirates threw.

Yes, you read that right, they threw oranges at us. I was worried about my camera but I felt in on the action, and luckily it wasn't damaged. My head took the brunt of an orange (not what I expected would be an accident that I'd be on the receiving end of when I woke up this morning). Accident number 2: an old man went to pick up some nuts from the ground and decided he'd prop himself on his umbrella by digging it into my foot.

The faces of Western tourists who stumbled upon the place by accident were a real picture; holding oranges that had been thrown at them.

After that, we lined up to be given more mikan - and took home 23 in total! No scurvy for me. Maybe they were right about the Pirate theme after all.

Tonight, I will eat the customary food - ehou-maki, long sushi rolls . And eat my age in beans. Maybe I should do it in mikan - there're enough. Great day! Can't believe I can still be shocked by the Japanese after being here this long.