Haru Yasumi Pt. 3 – Osaka and Sumo

3/19/09

Hello Everyone!

So sorry it’s taken me so long to update. Too much traveling and then I had school work and exams to deal with. But, I am trying to get completely updated by the end of this week.

So, Osaka! I went with my friend Stoja (the same friend I went with to Mt. Koya) to Osaka. We actually went with an Experience Japan! Program. These are programs that Kansai Gaidai Japanese students put on to help international students learn more about the Japanese culture. And guess what, my friend from High School actually went with this group too. It was great to really catch up even more with my friend. I still can’t get over that we haven’t seen each other since high school and here we meet up again in Japan. What are the chances?

So, we met at Hirakata station at 10 am. It took us about an hour total to get to Osaka (we also grabbed some breakfast on the way). I didn’t realize, but the Sumo tournament actually went on all day. It started at like 8 am and went until about 5 pm. Once we got to Osaka, you could tell that a Sumo tournament must be taking place. We saw sumo wrestlers just walking around the street in what looked like Yukata (or a light cotton robe).

Here are the sumo wrestlers, waiting to cross the street.

What I didn’t realize was that we weren’t just seeing any Sumo match, but it was actually a tournament! Once we got to the tournament area we began to realize that the Japanese take their sports very seriously. While there weren’t a lot of people there at first, you wouldn’t have guessed by listening. People were yelling and cheering. You really get swept up into the cheering. This is what the sumo match area looked like:

This is what the arena looked like. It is supposed to resemble a shrine. The different colored ropes on each corner symbolizes the different seasons.

Sumo is actually a quite ‘spiritual’ sport in Japan. Everything occurs for a reason. To learn more about the origins of sumo check out this site. Also, I found out that the salt is thrown by the Sumo wrestler’s into the arena to purify it before a fight.

The whole thing was amazing. I never went into the stadium expecting to come out a fan of Sumo, but it happened. I think it’s not so much that I’m a fan of sumo, as it is how into the game the Japanese supporters are. Their spirit is contagious!

You know, I always thought that Sumo would be expensive too, but it was relatively cheap (about $20). And you can buy tickets at any Lawsons (a little convenience store that dots the side of every street in Japan).

One thing I regret is that we didn’t see a lot of Osaka, so I will need to go back and really visit the town to get a better feel for Osaka.

As always,

Love and Miss you all!

~Steph