Susan Spann's Blog, page 15

Chapter 1: Victory–And Misery–On Misen

Mountain: Mt. Misen (弥山), Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan (The short caption directly beneath each photo matches the text in CLIMB.) My first view of Miyajima: (original photo taken in June 2015). The Otorii is visible at center left, and the mountain rising just to the left of center is Mt. Misen. Historically, the entire island was considered sacred ground. The first Otorii was built before the tenth century; the existing gate dates to 1875. The Ōtorii (great torii) measures 24 meters wide and rises 16 meters high (measured from the sand on which it sits). Torii are sacred Shintō gates that

Snow & Prayers at Hieizan Enryakuji

In February 2020, I made my third trip to Hieizan Enryaku-ji, a Buddhist temple on the slopes of Mt. Hiei (Hieizan) in Ōtsu, Shiga Prefecture, Japan.

Kegon Falls

Kegon Falls, in Upper Nikkō (Tochigi Prefecture, Japan) consistently ranks among the most beautiful waterfalls in Japan, if not the world. The 97-meter, bridal-veil style fall was created when ancient lava flows from nearby Mt. Nantai diverted the flow of the Daiya River. While most of the water cascades down the face of the lava flow, some of the water filters through the porous rock and emerges near the base of the primary fall, creating more than a dozen smaller waterfalls near the base of the primary falls. Kegon Falls is open to the public, and accessed via an elevator

July 30, 2020: TELL ME YOUR SECRETS

WHEN: 6:30pm Pacific / 9:30pm Eastern (U.S. time) on Thursday, July 30, 2020 – (10:30am Friday JST) WHAT: A live conversation about climbing mountains (real and mental), surviving cancer, overcoming fear, and why you shouldn’t eat raisins on a mountain. Oh – and why you should take a chance and dare to live your dreams. WHERE: You can watch on YouTube or via FacebookLive. (The YouTube link will remain live permanently, so you can watch it any time!) Or you can watch it live right here:

July 30, 2020: WRITE AT THE EDGE

WHEN: 6:30pm Pacific / 9:30pm Eastern (U.S. time) on Thursday, July 30, 2020 – (10:30am Friday JST) WHAT: A live conversation about climbing mountains (real and mental), surviving cancer, overcoming fear, and why you shouldn’t eat raisins on a mountain. Oh – and why you should take a chance and dare to live your dreams. WHERE: You can watch on YouTube or via FacebookLive. (The YouTube link will remain live permanently, so you can watch it any time!)

Prepare to CLIMB!

Dare to Dream, and You Can Change Your World CLIMB – the narrative nonfiction story of my journey to overcome cancer and conquer fear by climbing 100 of Japan’s most famous mountains – releases this coming Monday, August 3, worldwide. (Purchase links for online and local bookstore sources are here.) Advance praise: “Spann’s journey is a tremendous reach into uncertainty amidst a cancer diagnosis, and ultimately her summits become a reward far more than the tops of the mountains she attains. ” — Erik Weihenmayer, Athlete, Adventurer, Bestselling Author and founder of NO BARRIERS USA Due to COVID-19, I don’t have any

Rebuilding History at Kumamoto Castle

It’s my day to blog at Murder is Everywhere, and I’m sharing a little about the 400-year history of Kumamoto Castle, the massive earthquake that almost destroyed this piece of living history, and the spectacular renovation currently under way. I hope you’ll click through and join me for a virtual trip to a beautiful site on Japan’s southernmost major island: https://murderiseverywhere.blogspot.c...

Incense Clocks: Burning Time in Medieval Japan

Before the introduction of mechanical clocks with pendulums and gears, people around the world used a variety of ingenious devices to mark hours and keep track of time. Most people are familiar with hourglasses, water clocks, and candles, but fewer people outside of Asia have seen (or used) an incense clock. Incense clocks originated in China or in India (there are arguments, and evidence, for both) and spread to Japan by the 8th century (if not before). While the simpler clocks used sticks of incense that took known periods of time to burn, more elaborate clocks involved setting patterned lines

Dreaming of Mountains…

With the Coronavirus closing down all of the trails (and almost everything else) in Japan for the last two months, I’ve missed seeing spring burst through the mountains. I’ve missed the cherry blossoms. The irises, the azaleas And the start of the hydrangeas (many of which are still in bloom). I am aware that I am fortunate, that flowers and mountains are the things I miss the most. Many people have suffered, and are suffering far more than I–and it saddens me daily to think about the condition of the world right now (for many reasons, coronavirus being only one).

The Bells of Daibosatsu

The mountains of Japan have a healthy population of Asiatic black bears (Ursus thibetanus), and although they don't hunt hikers, people do occasionally suffer injuries (and, more rarely, death) after accidentally startling a bear on mountain trails. As a result, most Japanese hikers wear small bells that jingle to warn bears of their approach.