[Date and Time] Saturday, August 6, at 11:00～16:40
[Spots] Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, Hasedera Temple, and Kotokuin Temple (Great Buddha)[Visitors] 18 participants from 11 countries, with 6 from Indonesia, 2 each from Vietnam and El Salvador, and 1 each from Tonga, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Iraq, the Philippines, Mongolia, Nepal, and Venezuela
[Attendants] 16 KSGG members and 5 observers: President and 4 members of Odawara Hakone SGG Club
I was encouraged by some participants wearing T shirts with “Gambaro or Hang in Nippon” or “Tokon or Fighting Spirit” printed in Chinese characters or a headband with Japan’s flag printed. Five out of six members from Indonesia were Muslims, and behaved themselves as usual, though they couldn’t drink even a drop of water during Ramadan for one month starting from August 1st. I heard three Muslims in my group were praying near the pond in the grounds of Hachimangu Shrine while other members of my group were eating lunch. They were impressed with the huge size of the great Kannon statue in Hasedera Temple and the Great Buddha in Kotokuin Temple. After the guided tour, they were so excited about a quiz show held in front of all the participants at the exit of Kotokuin Temple. I felt we should offer this kind of memorable and enjoyable events. I was pleased that many participants gave us their gratitude after the guiding.
☆ Hoping to Improve my Guiding Skills
We had two female Indonesians and two male Vietnamese in our group, accompanied by a member of Odawara Hakone SGG Club as an observer.
One of the Vietnamese participants gazed at Eleven-faced Kannon, being deeply impressed with it, and threw some coins seriously into the offering box when I was explaining about it at Hasedera Temple. His sincere attitude was extremely great. I felt as if Kannon might have given mercy or love to him at that moment, and I was so moved. Although I was assigned as leader of our group, I keenly felt I lack guiding skill. However, as everybody was patient and kind to me during the tour, I was somewhat relieved. At the same time, I realized that I have to make a lot of effort to improve my guiding skill.
