[Day 2] Tsuppyon Pilgrimage Journey

Continuing from the above.

Day two dawned. I slept reasonably well, but it seems Harupyon's sleep was light. Notonya, the only man among us, seemed to have slept peacefully alone. Since Chirorin and Wanko Bancho shared a room, they apparently spent the night chatting away and didn't sleep a wink. Even so, everyone greeted each other with bright faces. When we are all together, sleepiness doesn't matter at all.

Today, at Tsuppyon's suggestion, we decided to go to a tea party. It was a fresh and exciting adventure for me, as I have never experienced the tea ceremony. Since we are a large group of eight, we split into Tsuppyon's car and Wanko Bancho's car. Motoko Jr. became completely captivated by Harupyon Jr., and once they sat next to each other in the car, they started playing shiritori and rock-paper-scissors (where the loser makes a funny face). Surprisingly, Harupyon Jr.'s funny faces were of a very high level. To be able to roll her eyes back and express a ghostly, yokai-like quality with such a cute face—she is a promising child.

We arrived at a tea room deep in the mountains. I was worried about having to sit seiza since my legs go numb easily, but the tea room was equipped with U-shaped tables and chairs. I felt comforted by the bright and generous atmosphere of the teachers, who wanted even complete novices to enjoy tea. I don't know the hierarchy or customs of the tea ceremony world, but a man who seemed to be the master and a woman who seemed to be his wife managed the space, while women who appeared to be their subordinates took turns whisking the tea, and many young women who seemed to be apprentices were busy carrying sweets and such. Naturally, they were all wearing beautiful kimonos with different patterns. The thin, clean, and translucent kimonos were stylish and perfect for summer.

The matcha was honestly delicious. The first bowl was light, and the second bowl was thicker, paired with sweets that were light at first and heavier the second time. I learned the joy of 'mouth seasoning' by eating sweets while drinking tea. It felt a bit like the Chinese term 'Kekou Kele' (the transliteration for Coca-Cola). I interpreted this stylish way of enjoying tea—'being able to put it in your mouth and enjoy it'—in my own way and found it amusing.

After enjoying wonderful matcha and hojicha, the teachers suggested that the juniors try whisking the tea themselves. Under careful guidance, the juniors whisked the matcha. I then received it. When receiving it, as I had been taught, I rotated the bowl horizontally by about 45 degrees to avoid the crest (pattern) drawn on the front of the bowl, and drank it slowly. Then, I put on airs and said, 'That was a wonderful serving.'

I was also encouraged to try it, so I gave it a go. Sitting in the chair, I held the bowl on the table with one hand, held the chasen (whisk) with the other, and gently stirred the tea. Since this tea room follows the Omotesenke school, the method for stirring is at the 'one o'clock and seven o'clock' angles. If you look at the bowl from directly above, it's circular, so you treat it like an analog clock and move the whisk back and forth between the one o'clock (30 degrees) and seven o'clock (210 degrees) positions to create foam. By the way, if this were the Urasenke school, the angle would be 'twelve o'clock and six o'clock,' and you would use faster strokes to create a thick, frothy foam. The teacher said that the soft mouthfeel of that is also delicious, and I was moved to feel their respect for the Urasenke school. I had assumed that the Omotesenke and Urasenke schools were at odds with each other.

Furthermore, after leaving the tea room, the teacher and his wife showed us their garden. In the water basin right in front of the tea room, water flowed endlessly from a bamboo pipe, and small birds took turns coming to bathe. Beyond that, there was a bamboo grove with lush Moso bamboo and Madake bamboo, as well as beautiful trees like colorful crape myrtles and hydrangeas. There were also many ingredients that could be used for meals, such as shiitake and nameko mushroom logs, Japanese pepper, and myoga ginger. One could probably achieve self-sufficiency here. The teacher let us dig as much myoga as we wanted, so we put them in a bag to take home.

After that, we headed to a botanical garden. Inside the large greenhouse, there were many tropical plants, terrariums, and aquariums, which we enjoyed at our own pace. On the way home, the juniors played a capsule toy machine for natural stones and took them home. Harupyon Jr.'s had more pink rose quartz, and Motoko Jr.'s had a larger amethyst.

For lunch, we bought sushi and ate it at Tsuppyon's house. Since the supermarket is run by a fishmonger, it was well-stocked with fresh seafood, sashimi, and sushi. Motoko, a foodie, was delighted by the bluefin tuna.

After resting a bit, we went to a roadside station. They sold many delicious local specialties, so I bought souvenirs for my husband and had soft-serve ice cream with Wanko Bancho.

Here, we said goodbye to Chirorin. It was sad to part, but she had other plans and had to go home. While Tsuppyon drove her to the nearest airport, I took charge of bathing the juniors. Motoko Jr. wanted to bathe with the girl she had become friends with, so they enjoyed it like a major attraction. While I washed one of them, the other would spray her with the high-pressure shower, causing a huge commotion. Once in the tub, they each took a washbasin and a hand bucket, splashing water at each other and having a blast.

When we got out of the bath, Tsuppyon had returned, and she and Harupyon boiled some soba noodles for us. It was so delicious that I had many helpings, just like wanko soba. Furthermore, we had dinner with the fried shrimp, crab, and octopus that Wanko Bancho had bought at the supermarket earlier.

After that, Harupyon and I once again took on the task of putting the kids to bed. Harupyon and I said we hoped they would fall asleep quickly today, and that wish was easily granted. It seems the juniors were exhausted to their very cores, as they flew off to the world of dreams in just 30 minutes.

Now then, the fun banquet begins again tonight. When I went to join Tsuppyon, Notonya, and Wanko Bancho, who were already enjoying themselves, they welcomed me, saying I was early today. Harupyon and I joined in and were served sake and wine. We drank, drank, and drank, along with delicious snacks. Then, Wanko Bancho, who was sitting across from me, started nodding off, so I suggested she go get some sleep in the bedroom. Bancho hadn't slept the night before. Realizing this herself, she quietly retreated to the bedroom.

After that, I sent an email to Kao-chan. Since she couldn't join this pilgrimage trip, I invited her to a video call. Kao-chan had sent us some mugwort balm for this gathering. I've been using her mugwort balm because it healed my burns beautifully, so I treasure it. I wanted to thank her for that too. She agreed immediately and said she would join once her family was asleep.

The video call with Kao-chan connected around 1:00 AM. I had told her in advance to have some alcohol ready, as the four of us on-site were already nicely tipsy. We lined up so that the four of our faces would fit into the small smartphone screen and greeted Kao-chan on the other side. Kao-chan was fair-skinned, beautiful, and a cute person. Although she is older than me, she had a unique girlish quality that seeped through, just as we had teased her endlessly on the bulletin board as 'the person who looks good in strawberry panties.' At the same time, she kept the conversation going with a constant, carefree smile while making each of us feel special.

Even after the call with Kao-chan ended, we continued to talk about many things—fun stories, sad stories, painful stories, and funny stories. I wonder how much we drank while using all those topics as snacks. At the very least, I grabbed a bottle of Argentine red wine by myself and finished half of it. Tsuppyon, Notonya, and Harupyon were energetically drinking several types of sake. That night, we each retreated to our beds around 4:00 AM.

Continuing to the next