1st Kilted outing in Japan

[auld argonian]

re: Ron's comments about being photographed...let me tell you a story...

The one time I was in Kyoto...and I saw the ONE time lest I give the false impression that I'm some kind of world traveler...I experienced a brief moment that I'll never forget.

We were headed to what turned out to be a really big drinking party (God, I love the Japanese!) that was on the grounds of a shrine that had a weeping cherry tree that was said to be hundreds of years old. Our group came to a very wide street...more like a boulevard...about four lanes in either direction with a big divider in the middle...extremely busy...traffic everywhere...people everywhere. Out of a small side street came...no foolin'...two Geisha in full regalia...they were going to cross this very busy street.

And time literally froze. I have never seen anything like it. Everything stopped. Every car...every pedestrian...everybody stopped and watched these two almost divine women cross the street. It took a while because they were taking very measured steps...between the restrictions of the ceremonial dresses and their wearing those wooden elevator shoes that you see in old block prints they had to walk very carefully. And everybody was standing there watching...like there was an opening in time and these two visions walked through it and no one was ever going to see anything like it again...and this was Kyoto...I figured that this sort of thing must be reasonably common but it wasn't...it was a gentle brush with the grace of a past time and all were affected.

So maybe there's a phenomena that also happens when some folks see some of us in the kilts...maybe, ideally, they get a sort of a vibe of the history attached to the garment and it stirs some of those deep ancestral memories...visions of times gone by. And I think that an appreciation of this feeling is more acceptable in some cultures and societies than it is in others and that Japan is one of those cultures where that is the case. Hard to reconcile the images of kilted men and geishas but...

So if the tourists are surreptitiously taking your picture, I'd take it as an appreciation of someone who's honoring his culture and heritage. Maybe they want to show the folks back home that there is still some diversity and color in this too homogeneous world.

Best

AA

[flairball]

I'm new to the kilted world, so I haven't had occassion to wear one in Japan yet. I know that kilts aren't new to Tokyo, as they have a St. Paddys day parade with pipers and the works every year. The rest of Japan might not be exposed to them as frequently. I think wearing a kilt in japan would be great. Though a few people might ask for a picture or inquire about celtic ancestry, I bet I'll get more questions, and comments from my friends over there. None of whom have seem me in a kilt. I'm such a newbie my friends here haven't even seen it yet. Got it on Monday. Wearing it right now. Anyway, comparing my experiences in Japan with what I know about life here (in Boston), I'd feel more comfortable wearing one over there, than many places here.