Obaachan

From Fraise, we drove to the house of my host mother's mother for afternoon tea. She lives in a very traditional style Japanese house, with the washitsu rooms, tatame mats, shoji (the sliding doors), tokonoma (the small raised alcoves), and kakejiku (hanging scrolls).

A picture of me and Obaachan (Japanese word for grandma) in her garden. She spoke absolutely no English but was thrilled to meet me none the less. She gave me some really cute gifts: a miniature traditional Japanese fan, and a tiny purple coin purse with a little bell on it. She said they were representative of how small everything is in Japan, which is oh so true.

There was a small shrine set up, where we payed our respects to the deceased family members, in traditional Buddhist custom. A candle is lit, incense is offered, and then a small gong is rung twice before saying a short prayer.