Happy New Year!!!!

How was your last year??
Well, I met so many people, maybe a lot more than ever in my life!!
It was very inspiring and fun! I should say..

At the end of the last year, I spent very memorable time at a local shrine.
Because I had a chance to work as MIKO around the New Year holidays..!!


Miko is a shrine maden, dressed in kimono and skirt!
I applied for the temporary Miko at a local shrine in November.
Because I wanted to know a lot more about Shintoism.

So this is the shrine I worked for..
The building on the left is a "temporary" main building.
Because there was recently repair work on the "regular" main building next to it.
It would be not safe for GODs who are enshrined there, so they moved them to the temporary one.

These are some of the mikos.. oh, there is me in the middle:)

We are selling good luck charms(on the desks),

and offering a little sake for visitors from the barrel on the left.

Real, or professional mikos do some purification rites as well.

But if you want to do that, you have to get a qualification by going to a Shinto college.

So temporary mikos end up being just a sales clerk:)

Often times why girls apply for temporary miko is that they simply want to wear

the traditional costumes. But of course among them there are some who are interested in Shintoism like me.

By the way I had some sips from the sake barrel too,,, wow,,, it was sooo good!

To be continued...