Kamakura, Bird Cookies, and the TV Crew
Kamakura, Japan
Kamakura is a must-see in Japan, filled with significant temples, including Kotoku-in Temple. Kotoku-in is home to the giant Daibutsu (Buddha) cast in 1252 A.D. The Daibutsu has survived through a tidal wave in 1498, an earthquake in 1923, and improvements made in 1960 to strengthen the Buddha’s neck.
The Daibutsu is impressive, but what made an even greater impression on me when I visited nine years earlier was the Hase-Kannon Temple. This Wikipedia description provides a good summary: “The grounds of the temple are home to hundreds of small Jizō statues, placed by parents mourning offspring lost to miscarriage, stillbirth, or abortion. These statues remain in place for about a year, before being removed to make way for more statues; it is estimated that some 50,000 Jizō statues have been placed at Hase-dera since World War II.” All those tiny statues make me think of all those mourning mothers.
The town of Kamakura is on the coast, so the train ride from Tokyo turns into a great view. When you get off the train, you emerge from the station on to a bustling street. Nine years after my first visit, I was looking forward to seeing the sights again. It was a Friday, so it may have been a little less busy than it would be on the weekend. Still, as we walked through the red gate (arch) on to the pedestrian Dankazura Street, we were part of a crowd walking up a hill past colorful storefronts with fans, chopsticks, dolls, t-shirts, bowls, and noodle shops.
Our first stop was a Shinto shrine at the top of the street, Tsurugaoka-Hachimangu. It was a beautiful day, especially for December, and we took our time wandering around the park-like grounds by a pond, across a bridge, and past ancient trees.
To see the Great Daibutsu, we had to get back on the train to go a couple of stops back to another part of Kamakura. On the way back to the station, we popped in and out of a few shops. I got to a street corner and a young woman with a clipboard approached me.
“Where are you visiting from?”
“Texas.”
“What do you plan to see here?”
“We are on our way to the Giant Daibutsu.”
“Could we ask you a few questions?”
I saw that she was with two men holding cameras. She explained they were with a TV station. I may have more patience than most for people with clipboards. After being in PR and marketing for most of my career, I was sympathetic to the many reasons clipboard-carriers might be asking questions. And so I got pulled into one of the longest, most tedious interviews ever. Through the girl’s interpretation, I explained that I was visiting Japan with my siblings and that one of my brothers was here teaching music at a military base. One by one, my family members wandered over to join me in the interview. As the questions continued, one by one they peeled away to continue their shopping.
I assumed the crew was doing some type of feature on tourism. But then she pulled out the package.
“Have you heard of this?” I hadn’t. “It is very famous in Japan. What do you think it is?” I didn’t know. “What do you think of the package design?” It was fine. I didn’t say it, but I thought it was rather plain. “Will you open it?” I did. “Will you smell it?” I did. “Will you taste it?”
I was picturing all those man-in-the-street interviews where someone tried a product. I figured they expected me to be enthusiastic, but I still wasn’t sure if this was market research or promotion. I decided to be as honest and straightforward as I could.
“It’s good.”
“What do you think is in it?” I didn’t know. “Do you have anything like it in the United States?” I told her it reminded me of Nilla Wafers.
She spent some time explaining to me that the packaging was very sturdy, and the cookie was very sturdy. It seemed like an odd feature to point out.
“Would you buy it as a gift to take home to your friends?” Ah, here it was, the big payoff. She probably wanted an enthusiastic endorsement. She didn’t know that she was talking to the ultimate reluctant shopper and avoider of souvenirs.
“No, I don’t think so. We have similar cookies in the U.S., so it wouldn’t be worth it to carry home.”
And with that, we wrapped up the interview. I signed a waiver allowing them to use material from the interview, and we returned to our sightseeing. I know how easy it is to pull a few seconds from video to suit your purposes, and I wondered what, if anything, they ended up using from the interview. I’ll probably never know, but somewhere in Japan I may be showing up on a tourism video or an infomercial.
The funny thing is, we actually ended up buying some of the cookies as gifts. My brother bought me a package as a joke, and my sister-in-law bought some to give as gifts to her friends.
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More Information on Kamakura & Hato Sabure Cookies:
Kamakura is south of Tokyo, along the coast. Here is a the tourism summary of Kamakura.
Kamakura is a great place to experience a variety of temples and shrines. Here is a list to help guide you.
Hato Sabure cookies are butter cookies originating from the Meiji period, 1868-1912. In this post, the Japan Guy gives a quick anecdote about his experience.
The cookies really are tasty sugar cookies. Here’s a recipe from a Japanese ex-pat who recreated the recipe in San Francisco. She provides some history on the cookie and a simple, five-ingredient recipe.