In September 2016 the
Portland Japanese Garden put on a traditional
moon-viewing event, known as
O-Tsukimi. This was the perfect opportunity to get back into the swing of monthly visits to the Garden after my one-year hiatus.
Because it was a moon-viewing event, it is appropriate that the highlight of the evening was a full moon rising over the 11,249-foot
Mount Hood, the highest peak in the state, about 50 miles away. It was quite clear, and the pastel colors were delicate and lovely.
In addition, Japanese food and drink were being served as part of the admission price. I treated myself to the samples of
Japanese beer and
sake. They were not exactly my cup of tea, but it was a good cultural experience!
Once it got a bit darker and people had finished eating, the evening’s moon-viewing entertainment began. First up was
Mitsuki Dazai playing a
koto, which is Japan’s national instrument. I had never seen or heard of such an instrument before, which goes to show how culturally ignorant I am. The outside setting, with the gorgeous view of the full moon, Mount Hood, and
Portland, was a perfect accompaniment for her dreamy, relaxing music.
After about 15 minutes of koto music,
Larry Tyrell took the “stage” to play traditional Japanese music on a
shakuhachi (bamboo flute). He was standing under a woven bamboo arch, a piece of artwork entitled
Moonlight Arch by
Shigeo Kawashima.
By 8:00 he was done, and I was done as well, even though the event did not officially end until 9:00. I had experienced everything the event had to offer, and I still had a long drive back home. I took 36 pictures during my 45 minutes at the Japanese Garden. Only seven of them were found worthy to be included in this album, but I am quite happy with each one of them.
For more pictures taken at the Garden, see the listing of
all my Japanese Garden photo albums and/or the conglomerate super-album
Portland Japanese Garden (All Years). For more information about each individual outing I made to the Garden, check out
the list of related articles.