I Stopped At...

2010/11/21 The annual Katina Ceremony held at the Mejirodai Sri Lankan Buddhist temple was held on 21st  Sunday,of November 2010. It started at 7 o`clock in the evening with the Buddha Pooja at the nearby Japanese Temple.   The playing of the Sri Lankan traditional drum signifies the start of the ceremony.   Monks are seated and the listeners are seated below the monks sitting level. After the traditional Sri Lankan way of starting the Japanese chief monk starts chanting in the Japanese way. We followed the Sri Lankan chantings but the Japanese chantings were little bit difficult to follow.  Monks leave the Japanese temple in a row to the Sri Lankan temple taking the "katina poojawa" with them in a parade. Katina Poojawa means the sacred cheevaras and Pirith book kept in another place away from the temple. Monks keep them away from the temple to keep them safe from the rains in early ages, because the monks lived in caves and rain could destroy the books.

2009/06/14 Earlier , I guess there  was  a post on Ajisai (Hydrangea) some two years back. This trip to Kamakura was made on the same day. Even though its a little bit late, I thought of sharing my experience on my trio to see the world famous Kamakura Buddha Statue. This Buddha statue is situated in the Koutokuin temple in Kamakura. This Statue is one  of the significant icons in Japan. This is made of bronze and is said to be nearly 800years old. Weight : 93 tons Height : 13.35m The massive tsunami which hit Kanto area in 1923 had managed to move this massive bronze statue  a good two feet from its original position.                               Introduction  This great Buddha statue is hollowed so that visitors can enter the statue. Well , I should mention that inspite of the Coolness of the mid spring it was very hot inside. The picture below indicates the measures taken to strengthen the neck area of the  statue to save it from earthquakes. This hollow

30/04/2008 The first glimpse of FujiQ with mount Fuji in the background My friend  got his hands on a lucky package which includes a one day free pass to FujiQ and transport up an down from Hachioji, for just 6600 yen. now that is cheap!!!!So we ended up with a day full of  fun, scare, sweat and panic at Fuji Q. Take my word for it FujiQ is the best amusement park in Japan if you are up for adventure.This post is written just to share the funny, scary and truly enjoyable attractions listed I popped in. there were more, but some I could not take pictures and fro some we did not enter. Red Tower The free fall attraction where you can experience a free fall from 52 meters high with the eccentric view of Mount Fuji. Well, i rode this three times consecutively and wish I could ride/fall more times.But now I`m thinking twice before going for free falls, thanks to the Red Tower but it was great!! Panick Clock This attractions gives you the experience of clinging on to

30/04/2008 Fuji-Q Highland EE-Janaika steel rails  with a fall of 89 degrees. The roller coaster below is called Ee-Janaika meaning "isn`t this great?" This roller coaster holds a Guinness record for its 14 rotations through out its ride. This means the seats rotate while the coaster itself rotates around the rails. This coaster has a speed of 126kilo meters per hour with the highest fall point of 65 meters. This ride lasts fro good several minutes as its 1153 meters long. The steepest fall is 89 degrees where you experience the ground coming towards you with a sickening 100km/h. Well, This ride needs some guts. Ee- Janaika`s closest spot to the ground My friend at the Guinness record display. The group before us getting ready for it s ride. Before the ride begins, the staff, people who are going to ride, people while are waiting to ride all start singing "ee janika -ee janaika" in a loud voice. It helps you to gather your