Bone Buddhas

When I first heard about Bone Buddhas, Okutsu Butsu, I imagined statues made out of whole bones, shins, ribs etc but that is not what they are. They are made out of crushed bones. The first is believed to be from the early 18th Century and was made by mixing crushed bones with clay, but the most famous ones are at Isshinji Temple in Osaka and are made by casting a mixture of crushed bone and resin.

Since the late 19th Century, when the temple began to run out of space to store the cremains , they have made a dozen statues of Amida, but six were destroyed during the war. The ashes of about 150,000 went into each one.

The head priest at Isshinji is also an architect, and he designed the very unusual main gate into the temple.

The temple is located near Tennoji Park, and not visited much by tourists, but the place is usually very busy.

3000 Buddhas at Isshinji

Isshiteji is quite a well known temple in the Tennoji area of Osaka that is known primarily for its statues made from  bones, but just across the road, and owned by the temple, is a very modern building that houses an experimental theater group and theater.

Part of the building seems to be what I would call a "chapel", and its name is Three Thousand Buddhas. When you go through the doors  you see a large dome built in the interior, and on the exterior of the dome are golden buddhist statues. Not yet three thousand though. When enough donations have been made they will number three thousand.

The interior of the dome very much resembles a church with seats and an altar, behind which is a giant mural.

From the outside of the building you get no indication of what is inside, in fact it looks like a bank or an office building.

Keitakuen Garden

In Tennoji Park, tucked  behind the Municipal Museum of Art is Keitakuen garden.

A modern garden, built for the wealthy Sumitomo Family who constructed a mansion nearby.

The garden, a stroll type built around a large pond, was designed by Jihei Ogawa who also designed the garden at Heian Jingu Shrine in Kyoto.

It is surprisingly good, though obviously it helps if the weather is good. and only 150 yen for the entrance.

Osaka Castle

Both of these draincovers are from Osaka, and both feature what is probably the main tourist attraction of the city, Osaka castle.

The current castle is a modern, concrete reproduction complete with elevators. The original　tower was destroyed during the Meiji Restoration but was rebuilt in 1928. Subsequently damaged by bombing during WWII it was finally reconstructed in 1997.

Originally built in 1583 by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Following the Siege of Osaka in 1614, Tokugawa Ieyasu finally defeated the Toyotomi the following year.

The castle is huge and grand, but more interesting to me visually are the walls constructed in a style known as Burdock Piling which is constructed without mortar and able to withstand earthquakes.

Typical Japanese landscape 9

In Kerr's "Dogs & Demons" he writes of some first-time visitors to Japan driving into Osaka from the airport through this section of the city. The son commented "so this is where the poor people live." "No! this is where everyone lives." was the reply.

Kansai International Airport (Outside)

The Aeroplaza is a hotel/shopping complex attached to Kansai Airport's terminal building

Connected to the terminal by a covered walkway. For those who like expensive hotels and shopping malls. Never been in it myself.

Between the terminal and the Aeroplaza is the train station for connections into Osaka. Rather fine skylight.

Waiting for the first train.

Kansai International Airport (check in)

The main terminal building at Kansai International Airport opened in 1994. Designed by Renzo Piano, its designed in the shape of a wing.

Built on a man-made island, at the staggering cost 0f 15 billion dollars, the terminal feels light and airy and spacious, and this is somewhat due to the design, but also due to the fact that it is not a very busy airport.

Landing fees are very high, and with the recent increase in fuel costs the number of flights continue to decrease. Though I don't travel often, I have spent a lot of time in airports, and KIX, is the most comfortable I've encountered yet.

Giant funnels blow air up to the roof, and the air then circulates naturally, driving giant mobiles.

I've spent several nights at KIX waiting for early morning flights, and it's been very comfortable. Everything closes down for the night except a new 24-hour Internet cafe, The Kankyu Lounge.