Tea time at an ohenro farmhouse.
Kochi Prefecture
I am walking on the ohenro and thinking about the upcoming holiday. Excitement is in and on the air. Television commercials, newspaper articles, innkeepers, other ohenros, everyone and everything reminds me that Golden week is coming. I am seriously considering taking a break during this time. The work it takes to find a place to stay is daunting. If I can find one and make my own little holiday. I can relax and reduce the stress.
My Plan Comes Together
Well, some of it does.
In anticipation of the distances, scarcity of accommodations, and Golden Week, I implemented that plan.
I searched for a place that I could use as a base to visit a few temples. That would relieve some of the pressure of looking for a room each night during the holidays.
I found a guesthouse near Temple 33 that seemed a perfect spot. I went on the website and sent a message to the host that I wanted to book multiple days. That would be the entire Golden Week and a few days leading up to it.
I got a reply from the owner.
Correspondence:
Thank you for contacting the women-only guesthouse ohenrohouse33. I have a room available for tomorrow. You can stay from tomorrow, the 26th, until the 2nd of May.
Accommodation costs 6000 yen per night but for pilgrims it is 3300 yen. Since normal pilgrims only stay one night we set the price at 3300 yen. From the second night onward the cost is 6000 yen per night. Stay 6 nights and get 1 night free.
Ohenrohouse33
We did a little more negotiating and a bit of tweaking, I had a place to stay during the first half of Golden week! I’ll take it. Now I just have to find something for the latter half of the holiday – the last 3 days. That was disappointing but not entirely a disaster. The owner and I worked out a good rate. Then I received the key code.
I took a moment to be thankful and grateful.
One thing at a time
Don’t be afraid of the space between your dreams and reality…
– Belva Davis
After visiting temple 33, I set out to find this place in Nagahama, an ohenro house for women only.
The Farmhouse
I let myself in.
It is a beautifully reclaimed farmhouse used exclusively as a guesthouse for women. Henro women are especially welcome. It is also used for wellness retreats.
The gracious owner arrived shortly after. She and I got acquainted. There were no other guests booked (there was a cancellation) for the period that I would be there – six days. She asked a few questions. Some owners and hosts want to know more about me and my desire to complete Shikoku 88. This allows both of us time to evaluate each other.
It is an opportunity for me to ask questions, too. I want to feel secure in the place. Often personal facts are revealed that soften and revise a misinterpreted first impression. In that moment of interaction, we established trust in spite of the language differences. She showed me around, then left. I had the entire farmhouse to myself.
My intention was to rest and visit Temples 34 and 35 while I was here.
The next day
I visited temple 34 and backtracked to the farmhouse.
Walking around the town, I saw weary ohenros making there way to Temple 33. I know by their arrival times, which of them will likely stay at a local accommodation or move on.
Back at the farmhouse
I bought food at a small but well stocked market in town. I had access to the kitchen, bathing and laundry areas, I mean the entire farmhouse.
Planning Ahead
So, I have to consider that Temple 35 is a little further away and I will have to backtrack from there including the distance from Temple 34. I don’t know if I want to do that much backtracking. The temple after that, 36, is even further away. Accommodations are not plentiful in this area. Plus it’s Golden Week, remember?
Right now, I am still searching for accommodations for the second half of the week. Another guest will be arriving here. And I will have to leave.
I just try to stay calm and focused. Reconsidering my situation, I will not walk to Temple 35 from here. I can do that when I finally check out of this place.
Right now, I’ll relish the moment in this beautiful, restful farmhouse. I will exercise a little. stretch a lot, and rest my mind.
I will treat my feet to a well deserved massage.
And wake up an hour later than usual!
This place is really peaceful and nice. I feel lucky to have this experience in the middle of my pilgrimage. As always, I appreciate this gift of life on this planet at this space and time.
Thoughts for the day
Nothing is permanent. Not the good or the bad. Things don’t always go the way we want them. If I keep an open mind and open heart, other things that I had not anticipated bring more joy.
Let me take advantage of the lessons life is teaching me. And remember that answers are available to me if I am open to seeing them. Importantly, I must be willing to use them.
I’m not there yet but I’m closer than I was.
Baadaye and Mata Ne (ăžăă)
Shirley J đ¸
â˘
During the spring of 2024, I began a pilgrimage in Japan where I am walking 1200 kilometers or 720 miles on the Shikoku trail from Temple 1 RyĹzenji to Temple 88 Ĺkuboji and beyond. Read my original announcement here.
I am excited, and I am here, still walking. And just know this, I will return to tell the tale!
