THINGS I LOVE vol.16

　

Well, this is a continuation of last time.

When I visited Shinjuan, I was beckoned by the monk and led to the backyard. Surprisingly, a houseboat was placed in the middle of the field. The field is set up to look like a river, and a houseboat appears boldly there. On the boat, a priest holding a bottle of red wine beckons us with a smile on his face, like the Seven Lucky Gods.

And sitting next to the priest is a woman (hereinafter referred to as "Mom") with heavy makeup who looks like she has been working at a snack bar for 30 years. I was confused as to what this was all about, but I accepted the invitation and boarded the ship. Then, I was completely absorbed by the pace of the priest's leisurely conversation. The mother next to me seemed to be the president of a fur business in Tokyo, and as we talked, the names of some of her acquaintances came up, and the conversation became lively. Thanks to my youth, I was drinking the wine recommended by the priest. When I got carried away and got drunk and said, ``Daitokuji natto doesn't taste good,'' the priest suddenly raised his voice and said, ``Idiot! Hey, have you ever eaten Daitokuji natto? ” he scolded. "This is the real Daitokuji natto!" he said, pouring Daitokuji natto onto bitter gourd grown in the field next door. "good!". Daitokuji natto is ripe and looks like blue cheese, completely different from the withered Daitokuji natto I had eaten before. It was very delicious with the bitter gourd, and also matched perfectly with the red wine. When I was drinking with the priest, I felt like my seriousness was being tested, so I gulped down the second bottle of wine. By that time, my intoxication and nervousness had reached a climax.

Just when it was becoming completely unclear what he had come for, the priest said, ``Honah, come to my room,'' and got off the ship and walked to a building in the opposite direction from Shinjuan. In my heart, I was screaming, ``That's not what I want to see...'' but there was nothing I could do. I followed the monk to the second floor and found myself in a room with excellent acoustics. It was said to be a room for listening to loud jazz music. Beyond the widest possible glass windows, the bamboo grove in the garden spreads out like a panorama. The bamboo forest blowing in the wind was both dramatic and beautiful, thanks to the high-pitched volume. There, I was made to drink grappa and vintage whiskey carefully selected by the monks, and I was completely refreshed.
At that moment, the priest's right-hand man, the tanned gardener of Shinjuan, appeared. The priest said, ``I have an appointment,'' and left, and my mom and I were taken by the gardener to a kaiseki counter in Gion. I ate the food and drank alcohol while still quite intoxicated.Afterwards, I was taken to the Kyoto hotel where I was staying, and as soon as I got to my room, I collapsed. When I woke up in the middle of the night, all I could do was look at the ceiling of my hotel room and sigh, ``Ah, Shinjuan.'' The next day, I contacted my senior and said, ``I'm giving up on Shinjuan, but is there anything I can do with Kohoan?'' and he said, ``I'll ask.'' After that, Kojoan gave me the OK with two replies. I felt like I was just passing by, but it turned out to be Kobori Enshu's garden within the same Daitokuji Temple, and the famous sub-temple there. I was relieved that Thomas would like it here.

A few months passed, and Thomas arrived in Kyoto with his partner and PR staff, a total of four people. I entered the Tawaraya dormitory ahead of the others and greeted them in my husband's yukata and haori. Thomas had apparently stayed at Tawaraya once before, so he was really looking forward to it. After checking in, we first had lunch at a tempura restaurant run by Tawaraya. After that, I headed to Kohoan in Daitokuji Temple. My heart softened when I saw Thomas being impressed by the setting up of the Kohoan. As I looked at the garden from inside the sub-temple, Thomas explained to me the concept behind Enshu Kobori's creation of this garden. I was stunned, wondering what Thomas was talking about, but the elderly priest who was guiding me listened to what the interpreter was saying and said with admiration, ``It's exactly as you said, Thomas.'' As expected of Thomas. As a Zen temple fanatic, he knew much more about Kohoan than I, a Japanese person, did. Of course, he may have been preparing for the lesson, but I felt a bit embarrassed by my ignorance, and I also felt happy that he was so interested in me. Anyway, I was glad that I was able to bring her to Kojoan. I have not been able to meet the priest since then, thinking that I will visit Shinjuan again some time. I feel like we'll meet again somewhere someday, but it hasn't happened yet.
Thomas' tour and photo shoot at Daitokuji Temple was a great success. The next day, we went to antique shops. After thoroughly touring around Shinmonmae and Furumonmae, we had a late afternoon tea-like lunch at ``Inoda Coffee Sanjo'' in the evening. Then, Thomas was impressed by the Inoda Coffee cake showcase and looked into it for a while. What was so appealing about it? Anyway, he was gazing at the showcase with the eyes of a young boy looking into snacks. When I sat down, I liked the lemon pie and ate two pieces. I was happy that Inoda Coffee seemed to resonate with him.

I learned a lot from Thomas who traveled to Miami and Kyoto. His aesthetic sense was admired by Tom and Richard from the beginning. Through these two trips, I deeply understood that Thomas's senses were top-notch. It's been about eight years since Thomas Maier left the brand, but there's no doubt that the foundation for the rebranding of Bottega Veneta was laid down by Thomas Maier's unwavering sense of style.

　　　　　　　　

■Tomoki Yuma (@stsukezane）
Born in Kyoto City in 1965. Started his career as an editor in the editorial department of Magazine House ``POPEYE''. Currently, in addition to planning and styling fashion pages for magazines, she also designs advertising costumes for artists and musicians. Before the coronavirus, he covered men's collections in Paris and Milan for over 35 years.

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