On 9th February Retford Ladies Probus Club held their second meeting of the year with more members venturing out; some old, some new. They were quickly transported to Japan by Patricia Rayner, a retired teacher who has spent 23 years visiting this fascinating country. Her son has a Japanese wife and three lovely children. ‘Images of Japan’ was a presentation aimed at contrasting the ancient with the modern, which Patricia did most admirably.
Japan boasts the oldest royal family in the world, dating back to the 6th century. From 1603 to 1868 the country was ruled with a rod of iron by the Shogunate, the hereditary military government on behalf of the Imperial House of Japan. There was tremendous hatred of the west and visitors were banned. In 1868 Emperor Meiji decided to move the monarchy to Tokyo and the Shogunate ended. Japan’s emperor had gone from largely symbolic to direct imperial power. The law of succession states that only males can inherit so today’s royal family is in a very weak position.
Patricia showed slides of castles which are similar in style to pagodas. They are mostly made of wood and to repair foundations the whole building can be moved on a trolley. These were easy to defend, having a series of trapdoors to reach each level. Patricia contrasted this with images of modern Japan, such as the Bullet train, which travels in a straight line at 200 miles an hour. Patricia stressed that there are other, cheaper trains which are safe, clean and punctual. She spoke about courtesy rules such as not wearing strong perfume and rucksacks on their backs when travelling by rail.
With her family connections she was able to speak about the minutiae of everyday life. Different pairs of slippers to enter the toilet. Rooms which double up for different purposes, possible due to the flexible nature of the futon. There was a slide of her son’s house. He has the luxury of a lawn on which the children and friends play football, and for which privilege he must pay as everyone is supposed to grow their own vegetables on any land they have.
The AGM saw President Jean Winder pass the ‘baton’ to Judith Goodall. The next meeting is on Wednesday 9th March, 10.00am at Westhill Community Centre.