Author Archives: CJ Salapare

I have been in Williamstown the past couple of days and have collected some of my thoughts in the midst of jet lag. The first deals with disbelief: in the mornings, walking down Spring Street for coffee rather than wandering … Continue reading →

I had the most wonderful day by myself! I spent it with one of the everlasting loves of my life: art. Even a disaster of a morning did not stop me from enjoying the rest of my day. My debit … Continue reading →

Today is the penultimate day of our trip, and we spent the first part of the day revisiting Tofuku-ji with Yukei-san. We were given a koan, or Buddhist riddle, on the first full day of our trip and were tasked … Continue reading →

Our eighth day was the culmination of weeks’ worth of research and exploration, and boy, was I nervous — we had met with two out of the three artisans we were tasked with interviewing the day before and consequently had … Continue reading →

We were finally able to wrap up our portion of the artisan visits today after checking off Ohtsuki Kokun, the Noh mask maker, and Sasaki Yoji, the Noh costume maker. Like Miyamoto-sensei, Kokun-sensei was eager to show us his carving … Continue reading →

A sense of peaceful melancholy came with the rain and gray skies, which blended in with Kyoto’s concrete skyline beautifully. Each droplet of rain against colored walls or windows felt like drops of sky falling toward the ground. I don’t … Continue reading →

Kyoto is continually surpassing my expectations — with every day that passes, I seem to have a new favorite day, though I’m unsure if this is because of the city itself or my tendency to be easily swayed. Even with … Continue reading →

This morning did not involve any solitary excursions — I sat in the hostel common area and typed emails, worked on internship applications, and read a little. Even when across the world, I am still tethered to Williamstown. We then … Continue reading →

Just when I think my interest in Kyoto has peaked, the city gives me even more reasons to love it. The only downside is that the thought of leaving this place, a looming and inevitable affair, grows more painful with … Continue reading →

Today was even more incredible — Kyoto continues to surprise me. We were given a lecture by Monica Bethe, a leading expert on Noh, and were then left to our own devices, for Miyamoto-San had to postpone his lecture due … Continue reading →