I'm not that great at this whole blogging thing

here are all the pictures I've taken since I posted last...

the following are from a class trip to Ryouzengokoku Shrine (霊山護国神社)

it is interesting to note that in the English version of the website and the brochure there is no mention of the WWII and other more modern war dead that are honored at this site and that it focuses solely on the martyrs of the Meiji restoration. This is Kyoto's equivalent of Yasukuni shrine which some of you may have heard about in the news in the context of various east asian countries not approving of Abe and other Japanese politician's visits... Technically they are both "nation protecting shrines" that honor the dead buried there, but they have become cause for controversy as they honor a variety of war dead including war criminals.

Stuff about WWII

the pillars on the left commemorate soldiers who died in wars after the Meiji Restoration including the Sino-japanese war and WWII

The original important people/samurai the shrine is dedicated to

I thought I had taken more pictures of this section, but apparently not
there were large plaque listing all the names of soldiers who died when Japan decided to colonize Korea and those who died in WWII and one about Judge Radhabinod Pal who said that the Tokyo war crimes trial was unjust.
This section of the Shrine decidedly promotes the opinion that Japan's part in starting WWII was a just war and not a war of aggression.

 Snack time!!!

this one is a green tea flavored mochi with anko(red bean paste) in the middle

 here there are three pieces of mochi two covered in red bean paste and one covered in what I think is powdered peanuts... you stab them with the little stick thing

 A distinctly larger piece of mochi covered in anko though this anko is the equivalent of crunchy peanut butter as the beans haven't been completely turned into paste

 this cookie has green tea flavored filling

 I just found this place amusing

 this is toasted mochi in read bean soup

this I bought  today from the shizuya bakery in the station near my house... I also bought a doughnut that was filled with anko... the doughnut was good with tea otherwise it would have been a bit too sweet... this had cream cheese and raisins in it... it was okay but I probably won't get it again

the other thing that I got from Shizuya the other day and ate before remembering to take a picture was a roll that had satsumaimo (japanese sweet potato), azuki(red beans that can be made into anko), and sesame seeds... it was delicious... I might have to learn how to cook using recipes that measure entirely in weight (grams) not volume(tbspn, cup etc)... so that I can make some when I get back


If you've noticed a theme in my snacks it's probably because I mentioned to my host mom that I like mochi and anko...