It was in 1986 that Mr. Tarumi Gen, the boss of the Hollywood Lunch Market, invited me to go trekking in Nepal, who was surfing at 0 meters above sea level every day. Until then, speaking of mountains, it was about the back mountain in the neighborhood or Mt. Yatsugatake that I climbed when I was in high school, so I decided to go with two answers with the desire to look at the world thousands of meters above sea level at least once and the expectation that I could travel with Mr. Tarumi.
Nepal in November. It was not until sunset that I arrived in the capital, Kathmandu. The next day, we start by going to a square outside the town in the morning fog and hiring a guide and porter. Far beyond the square is the Himalayan mausoleum that we are about to climb. Nature was spreading, which was completely different from the majesty of surfing. The itinerary is a trekking route that climbs for 3 days and gos down in 2 days. Passengers, luggage, and chicken baskets are packed tightly on the carpool bus that goes to the entrance. When I got off the bus, I thought it was like walking in Satoyama at first. When I got out of the old countryside scenery, thatched huts, dried radishes, bright red chili peppers, and the idyllic atmosphere, it gradually became rugged, and I thought, "Oh, it's starting now," and I regretted not bringing a cane. Looking back on the road I've been walking for a day, the scenery is hazy in the distance. Suddenly, when I look under my feet, one of the porter uncles is barefoot. The soles of the bare feet are as hard as the soles of shoes. Walk with heavy luggage such as tents and food on that foot. I was reminded of my weakness. Dinner at the camp that night was lentil soup, but even though it was not too cold, I couldn't forget the ward deliciousness. From the next day, the road became more and more rugged, and to get to the mountain across the nearby valley, you have to go down to the bottom of the valley and climb again. If there is a river, cross the suspension bridge. I was afraid of heights anyway, but it was comforting to see the distant mountains of Annapurna gradually coming close.
On the night of the second day, when I was about to sleep at the lodge, I heard the sound of a whistle from somewhere. Guided by the sound, when I went out of the dark from the room where the lamp was lit, someone was blowing a flute in the silhouette of the pagar. The world of the mountains where there is no sound. Starlights in the dark sky. It was a fantastic time, as if only the sound of the flute drew a clean thread in the clear air. On the third day, the road becomes even more intense. Although it is said that you should not drink raw water, we also brushed our teeth, thinking that it would be beautiful because it was a Himalayas. It will be ridiculous later. The small lodge we arrived at that day. Because it would be quite cold at night, in a place like a fireplace, the landlady made me drink Roxy, a local Nepalese sake, on the fire. It's also very delicious. When I drank heavily and went to the bathroom outside, the mountains of Annapurna were illuminated by the moonlight and emerged up close by.
The scene that it is not surprising that there is really a god, I forgot the cold and looked at it. The next day, as the altitude increased, the cold became more severe, and it rained mixed with sleet. I didn't have enough equipment, and I couldn't do it anymore, so I decided to go home from the small village I stopped by. On the way back, I had time to enjoy the scenery, but on the way, I think I have a bad stomach. The pain was unusual, and when I realized that it was caused by the water from which I had brushed my teeth, it was an afterthought. "Down" the mountain every 5 minutes.
As you approach the village at the foot of the mountain, the number of people coming and going increases, and it is a daily routine to greet people when they meet on narrow mountain roads. Throw a smile at everyone. After a while, the smile of the girl from the other side was so natural and cute that both Gen-san and I couldn't help but look back. When I really wanted to take a picture of this child's smile, Gen-san thought the same thing, so he suddenly put the bandana he was wearing around her neck. It was really a momentary event. I always have a camera, but it's more important for me to see beautiful scenery than to take pictures, so I don't remember taking a lot of pictures, even though I think that the camera is a luggage. Anyway, only this girl's smile was special. In this bleak world right now, I think that's why I don't need a smile like this. She may be old enough to have grandchildren now, but I'm sure he's smiling with the same face.
The smile we forgot. SMILE. Every time I see this picture, I want to always smile. That's why the Hollywood Lunch Market may still be using this picture for advertising. The slogan used by Gen-san. " Travel is a signpost of life. Life i a Journey Towards the Guiding Light. I am grateful that you are using this photo.
Mr. Tarumi Gen,
The boss of the Hollywood Lunch Market, Mr. Tarumi Gen. It's been 50 years since we met. The first store was in Sendagaya, and when there were only two or three employees, my sister was the shopkeeper, so I often visited her. Mr. Tarumi, who worked in second-hand clothing in the United States before that, started a store after returning home, but as far as I know, there were no stores that sold incense, turquoise, and Native American accessories at that time. It's the head shop I'm talking about now. In that era when there were no cool second-hand clothing stores, Gen-san and we surfers who were wearing Aloha and Levi's 501 were ethnic minorities. Yokosuka has a base of the U.S. military, so even we high school students were able to get American casual at nearby stores. Mr. Tarumi may have been amused by us who went to Tokyo dressed like that. When I was making and importing shirts from Balinese fabric from my 30s to 40s, I received an order from Mr. Tarumi and it was also available at the Hollywood Lunch Market. It was around the 80s. Gen-san, who is from a traditional fashion VAN, went to San Francisco in the 1960s, stayed at a cheap inn where the neon sign shines, and became a flower children and a hippie. He is a person who has had a great influence on my fashion and lifestyle. When we first met, Gen, who was wearing an old Dungary shirt and Levi's 501 jeans, wearing long hair, a Panama hat, and a bandana around the neck of an Afghan hound, was more handsome than anyone else when I recall now.
