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Background
 My Pages
The
Logbook Resources
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Aki Meguri The
Old
Tokaido: The Eastern Sea Road |
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September
5th-October 9th, 2001
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During
certain periods of her history, Japan was ruled, not by the emperor, but
by a military ruler known as the shogun.
One family, the Tokugawas, held power for around 250 years, from
about 1600 to the mid-nineteenth century.
The first Tokugawa shogun, Ieyasu, had won his office through a
series of battles in the tumultuous Sengoku, or Warring States, Period.
Because his position was hard-won, he immediately began making
moves to consolidate his power and ensure the stability of the peace he
had created.
One
of his first such moves was to designate the Tokaido as the official
highway from his new capital, Edo (now Tokyo) to the ancient capital of
Kyoto where the largely-powerless and symbolic Emperor still resided.
Although the highway had existed for centuries, the Tokugawa shogunate
designated 53 stations between Nihombashi in
Edo and the Sanjo Bridge in Kyoto, and provided for the construction of
inns at these post stations, as well as general improvements of the road
itself.
Although
the system was not completed until 1624, Ieyasu’s declaration was
issued in 1601, so I am walking in the 400th anniversary year
of the Tokaido.
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My
Old Tokaido background pages consist of the following:
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THE
LOGBOOK:
Where I went, What I saw
Other Logbook Stages: Prelude
Yamato
Shikoku
Postlude
September
5th, 2001(Wednesday)
- The
Route: Nippori to Nihombashi, then through Ginza to
Shinagawa; also, people's reactions to my clothing, some
promises of what I'll (try to) do each day, a haiku,
and plenty of road stories
- Words-and-Pictures: Ginza
and Sengakuji
September
6th, 2001(Thursday)
September
7th, 2001(Friday)
- The
Route: Kawasaki to Hodogaya, downsizing, and a night at
Tom and Yuka's
- Words-and-Pictures: Soujiji
September
8th, 2001(Saturday)
September
9th, 2001(Sunday)
September
10th, 2001(Monday)
September
11th, 2001(Tuesday)
There will be no entry for today, because I didn't walk due to
the typhoon. I will tell you about the word
"typhoon" though: it's Japanese! Taifu is
made of two Chinese characters. The first is the opening
character of "Taiwan," and the second means
"wind." So taifu means "the wind from
Taiwan."
September
12th, 2001(Wednesday)
- The
Route: From 1 ri before Chigasaki to Ninomiya
(between Oiso and Odawara).
- Words-and-Pictures: Joshoji
September
13th, 2001(Thursday)
September
14th, 2001(Friday)
September
15th, 2001(Saturday)
September
16th, 2001(Sunday)
September
17th, 2001(Monday)
September
18th, 2001 (Tuesday)
- The
Route: From somewhere in Yoshiwara to past Yui
September
19th, 2001(Wednesday)
- The
Route: From Yui (Satta Pass) to somewhere past Ejiri
(Shimizu).
- Words-and-Pictures: Seikenji
September
20th, 2001(Thursday)
- The
Route: From somewhere past Ejiri (Shimizu) to somewhere
past Mariko.
September
21st, 2001(Friday)
September
22nd, 2001(Saturday)
September
23rd, 2001(Sunday)
September
24th, 2001(Monday)
September
25th, 2001(Tuesday)
September
26th, 2001(Wednesday)
September
27th, 2001(Thursday)
September
28th, 2001(Friday)
- I took a day off! Read more about it
here.
September
29th, 2001(Saturday)
September
30th, 2001(Sunday)
October 1st,
2001(Monday)
October 2nd,
2001(Tuesday)
October 3rd,
2001(Wednesday)
October 4th,
2001(Thursday)
October 5th,
2001(Friday)
- The
Route: Almost Kameyama to Almost Tsuchiyama
October 6th,
2001(Saturday)
- The
Route: Almost Tsuchiyama to Past Minakuchi
October 7th,
2001(Sunday)
October 8th,
2001(Monday)
October 9th,
2001(Tuesday)
Next: The Yamato
section
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Hiroshige's
Nihombashi |
| RESOURCES:
JR
(Japan Railways) has published an interesting site with history and
comparative pictures of the Tokaido “Past
and Present." This site is unfortunately in Japanese
only; however, anyone can appreciate the map and Edo-period images of the
famous artist Ando Hiroshige, placed side-by-side with images from later
periods, found here.
All 55 of Hiroshige’s prints (53
stations plus the start and end points) in multiple editions can be seen
on this users
page. He also includes other useful background on the prints.
Beginning
in 1964, William Zacha spent over 20 years visiting the sites of the 53
stations and making beautiful, modern watercolors.
You can see serigraphs of these paintings—and, what’s more,
read his fascinating account of the project—on his homepage.
The
guidebook I used is in Japanese, but the maps are detailed enough to
allow me to follow the “original” route.
Also, plenty of landmarks are designated along the way.
It’s Kanzen Tokaido Gojusan Tsugi Gaido by Tokaido
Nettowaaku no Kai
Another
interesting resource is Shank's
Mare. It's a comic novel by Ikku Jippensha about the
adventures of a couple of wise guys named Yaji-san and Kita-san as
they travel down the old road.
Written in 1802, it is in many ways a parody of the contemporary
guidebooks being sold at the time.
Finally,
I must mention Oliver Statler’s book Japanese
Inn. (The book is
extensively summarized here.)
Dave Dutton, my trusted bookseller in Los Angeles, strongly
recommended it to me before I came to Japan.
I bought it, read it, and fell in love with the idea of walking
the Tokaido almost five years before I actually did it.
Not a guide to the road, the book gives an impression of the
importance of the highway in Japan’s history from the vantage point of
one historic inn in Okitsu, near Shizuoka.
By no small coincidence, Statler also wrote the book that has
inspired me to do the Shikoku pilgrimage as well, Japanese Pilgrimage.
Both of these books give impressions of Japan far beyond my poor
skills to impart. |
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