Day 23 Visit to a Famous Pottery/Mashiko and Mooka
by Donna Charles on Thursday, March 25, 2010 at 3:54am
We know that we are headed to Mashiko and can't wait to get to this famous pottery town. On our way Noboko asks me if i like purple and I said yes purple is my birthstone. She hands a beaded necklace to her son Takahiro who gives me this beautiful necklace. Wow its beautiful and matches my outfit i have on perfectly. I tell her many times how much I like the necklace. I could not find a necklace that I brought that went with my outfit but thanks to her i now have one. Thanks to Noboko. ; -)
As we arrive into town we pass several pottery places. It seems like she is looking for something else maybe she wants to take us to first. I know they are turned around because they are using the map and had to make a phone call. Can't speak Japanese so don't have any idea as to what they are talking about. They are looking for another destination just don't know what it is. We finally pull in to this very narrow lane where a Japanese guy is standing and pull in and go down the lane. The Japanese guy then follows behind and makes his way to his home where he goes in. I am confused on what we are doing but it looks like we are visiting him. Nobuko then tells us this is her Mom's cousin and we are here to visit him. We all get out and I find out this is Takahiro's first time to be here also. We go up to this Traditional Japanese home where a bonsai tree is propped up over the sidewalk wow this place is breathtaking. Before we reached the main house there were 2 rows of beautifully trimmed bonsai trees that lined each side of the sidewalk just like you see on the movies really. There were hundreds of VERY TALL bamboo trees behind his house and beautiful flowers and flowering trees everywhere.
We finally make it up to the house where the front has 2 big doors that are open and he is sitting at a tradition table on the floor and the room is breathtaking. Looks just like an old traditional Japanese home. Pictures taken will never do this place justice. The table was low and pillows were placed on the floor to sit on. The decorations in the home was minimal but what he had were authentic; the flowers within his home were so well maintained. Again we must remember his home is 430 years old with much of the things in it passed down from generations. I take my shoes off and enter the home I start to sit down on the end but he motions me to sit on other side of table up by him. ; -) I take my seat and the others follow. He proceeds by pouring us each a cup of green tea and hands it to each of us. The flowers in the elongated dish make this home so happy and peaceful to be within it. Noboku talks with her cousin, Takahiro translates some of the conversation; which at the moment is about the rice paper doors on the home and how they are very very old. The design on the doors are gorgeous. Mr. Takeshi told a story about 2 pieces of pottery that he cherishes in his home. His wife died around 5 years ago and was a potter also. After she died he found the small vase on the edge of the table by him (white flower in it) at an pottery store and knew it was her's. She had a special design that only she made and he bought the small vase. Then he found one more piece of her pottery which looked just the little one on the table but on a much larger scale. He then told us he missed his wife very, very much. : -( We sipped our tea and he brought out the square wooden box that had a calligraphy brush in it and bottles of liquids. He had a small piece of metal and poured a small of amount of liquid from each bottle onto this block in the box. He then took the metal object and started mixing it up spreading it thin on the block. There was a card also in the box which he removed and put on the table and wrote his name on it and handed it to me, no facial reaction at all. I told him thank you very much.
He motioned for us all to get up and he went out side and showed each building on the property and what was in each one. The first building was a round building which was a 430 year old Cask house (traditional Tea Party house). I did not get very good picture of inside of house and wish I would have. : -(
Next stop was to see the climbing kiln which was used wood for heat to start the kiln. This of course is a technique that is rarely used its so hard to control the temp within the kiln. Mr. Takeshi then showed us another kiln which was huge with a door on the front that reminded me of a bank vault door, this is the kiln they use the most. But once a year they use the climbing kiln and alot of the local potters come to watch the start up of the climbing kiln.
Next stop was a building that contained many potted flowers, so beautiful........ there were lots of tools to prune his bonsai trees and misc pots sitting around. Next is to finally find out what the round building is? I am so curious Mr. Takeshi proceeds to tell us that this building used to be called a CASK house which is an old traditional style Tea Party. He opened the door and the only thing in there was a round table and pillows around the table to sit on.
Now the building made out of oya stone housed his museum of fine arts that he has made or was gifted to him. Wow when you walk in and see the beautiful pieces of pottery that is ART you feel so honored to be even in the same room with the owner Mr. Takeshi. All the pottery is made of ash and clay from Mashiko Japan. We all are very, very careful as we make our way around the room admiring every piece of pottery. The prime minister of Japan has some of Mr. Takeshi's pottery there is a picture of the prime minister up on the wall standing by 2 huge beautiful pots made by Mr. Takeshi. I feel like I have been blessed to get to meet such a talented man in pottery. ; -)
Mr. Takeshi took us into the warehouse next where there was housed many items that needed finished. Then onto another building at the bottom of the hill that was where the pottery wheel was at. Out of no where a young guy appears whom is a 4th generation Sekizawa and he follows us inside the Pottery Wheel room. He takes a piece of the clay and man handles it with all of his might and makes a design within the clay. Wow we are all so impressed with him already. LOL He then pounds on the block of clay and forms yet another design within the clay we all stand there amazed at the speed he can do this in. He jumps onto the seat located in front of the pottery wheel and places a big piece of clay on it. The next thing that happens is he wets both of his hands in the bucket of water and wraps his hands around the blob of clay. I stand and watch how he handled the clay like he was the master telling the clay what he wanted it to do. Within 5 minutes he had massaged the clay and made a cup. He massaged the clay some more and within minutes he had made a saucer for the cup to sit in. We are all standing there with our mouths open in amazement at the speed he just made those two items.
Mr. Takeshi tells the young man to get up and ask me if I wanted to try the pottery wheel. I say YES and sit down on the seat. Well no experience except what I'd just seen the young man do i knew i needed to get my hands wet to mold the clay. I molded the clay the best I could but I broke the cup I was making from the lump of clay, He told me to throw away and I did. I started to get up from the wheel but he said NO try again. I got my hands wet again and started all over with the lump of clay. All eyes are on you and i felt under pressure to perform. I let myself relax and massaged the clay forming the shape of the cup then the young man made his hands move the way I needed to mine. I watched his hands and tried my best with the wheel turning to do as directed. I needed to thin out the walls of the cup and looked over and he was showing me how to move my hands. What a teacher very good without speaking a word. i completed my cup and the young man only had to smooth out the rim of the cup and cut from the lump of clay my piece he then sat my piece right beside his 2 and if I say so myself I did a good job for my first time. : -) I got cleaned up and we left to go back and get our car and leave for lunch in Mashiko. This will be an experience that i will never forget as long as I live. Thanks to Noboko for making this wonderful event happen. : -)
We went into town and found a place to eat, Takahiro explained the menu to us and we all picked what we would like to have for lunch. We ate lunch and talked about the wonderful experience at Mr. Takeshi's home and how we wanted to buy a piece of his pottery. Noboko said she would call him and see if he had any for sale. She got his phone number and finally got through to him he said he would sell us some pottery. I am on top of the world as is my hubby. ; -) Noboko then told me that they would follow and I could go anyplace within the town I wanted. We first shopped right there where we had eaten, Noboko bought me some handmade coasters that have cherry blossoms on them wow so beautiful thanks so much Noboko your the best : -) Marlon and I went into a few shops and i bought something for Jammie and something for myself. We did not want to spend much money because we wanted to spend our money at Mr. Takeshi's.
Noboko said lets leave and go to his house and we were all on our way to the car. Now on the way we see this big statue of a raccoon. I start laughing so hard as I see the private part of the raccoon sticking out, why? I don't know but it sure is funny they say the raccoon brings happiness looks to me like he already found his happiness LOL
We are in the car and headed back to Mr. Takeshi's. We all get out of the car and he is waiting for us in front of the museum. He takes us in and we start to look around to make this shorter he does not want to sell anything except some tea cups we decided this is better than nothing we have something that he has made and we feel good about that. We pay him $7 a piece for the cups and he wraps them up very good for packing to take back to USA. Marlon and I are happy with our purchases and ready to leave. Good bye Mr. Sekizawa hope our paths may cross again some day. : -)
In the car and Noboko tells us we are going to the sake house where we will learn how they make it and sample the sake they have for sale. When we arrive the place has a large wall surrounding it and there are 2 people standing out front and a policeman. They all help us get across the street and enter the sake house. Noboko takes us to the factory first and show us the big drum that houses the sake, we see the big paddles that they use to stir it with. The process of making sake has a hand drawn display of how sake is made, very interesting as Noboko explains the process to all of us with some interpretation from Takahiro.
We leave that building and start our way to sample the sake. Noboko had already set it up for us before we all got there. Even Takahiro enjoyed the tasting with us : -) Noboko did not touch the alcohol if you get caught driving in Japan while intoxicated they take your license for LIFE. We all enjoyed the sake tasting. Marlon and i bought 3 bottles of sake 2 which were strawberry flavored and only have this time of year and 1 bottle of plum sake which also is seasonal flavor. I like plum best. ; -)
We leave the sake house and are now on our way to Mooka to meet Noboko's friends that own their own strawberry farm. ; -) Noboko's friends are very sweet people and the couple both greet us with big smiles and Noboko introduces us. The nice lady and Noboko are chatting and and her husband leads us back outside into a long huge plastic building where there are thousands of strawberry plants. They give us some containers and tells us to pick and eat all we want so thats what we did. LOL We so enjoyed picking and eating the sweet delicious strawberries. We all talk and have fun and we are finished picking and eating berries. Its time to go back to the other building and pay for the berries. The lady told us we did not have to pay but Noboko paid her anyway. The lady gave Marlon and i 4 quarts of strawberries and by the time all was said and done we received 4 more quarts from Noboko.
I know this one is a long short story LOL but I felt like the details of visiting Mr. Takeshi's home of 430 years old had to be talked about in some detail.
End to a beautiful sunny day spent with Noboko and Takahiro. : -) Great memories were made today for sure.
Ate dinner tonight at our famous chicken taco place here in Utsunomiya. I will stay in touch with my new found friends ...................... after dinner Marlon looked up Mr. Takeshi Sekizawa on the internet and he is a well known potter in Mashiko famous for his unique firing method
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for making comments. Just click on the linked Labeled post a comment!