Uraga Shrine 12/12

Ian is such a cutie on this mini-bike at the Uraga Police Station.

I was showing LoriAnne, his babysitter around the area.  My original plan (ha!  There's a theme here) was to go to Uraga on the train, and walk to where the small boat crosses the water to the shrines there. This was a great plan 'til the sidewalks ended on a very busy road.  So, we back-tracked.

And then drove around to it!  Dougie got part-way up the stairs and said, "You know what?  God is JAPANESE!  I'll let his Christian parents know via this post.  :)

 It's only a small bay, but this is where Admiral Perry came and opened up trade with Japan (okay, we demanded they do it).  Before one Japanese captain left to sail to the states, he prayed at this shrine, and prepared himself mentally for the trip.  Many Japanese just wanted to fight the Americans (Perry's boat pointing guns at them kinda made this happen) but this guy thought it would be a good thing.
You can buy omamori or amulets for winning, as this guy was a winner, and accomplished his goal.

 Ring the bell, bow twice, clap twice, pray and bow once more.  And we did throw in some money (helps make your wish come true) but Ian wanted to get it back!  :)

This part was for women to pray who want a baby.  We avoided this one.

Ian was entranced by the water.

Dragons are a common theme for spitting the water into the vessels.  This one is a cheesy plastic.  The stone is real, however!  :)