Harvey and Lori Ferguson Ch. 5 Takemizu Village

Harvey was true to his word about going to Takemizu Village for a vacation. It was only two weeks after the block party/street dance that Lori and he were up early and ready when the shuttle bus arrived to take them to the airport for their trip to Takemizu Village. It was only the middle of September but already the leaves had started to fall in Pleasantview.

In Takemizu Village it was like taking a step back almost six months because it was just like spring—a very warm spring. Once in their room at the Golden Orchid Resort Lori waited while Harvey changed into cooler clothes; for once she was ready first.

 

Takemizu Village was nestled between mountains on two sides and it faced beautiful Lake Shigeta. 

(The resort is the group buildings with green roofs in the lower right corner of the third photo.)

After going to the Takemizu Pagoda and Market where Lori eagerly bought local get-ups for them to wear, they went back to the resort to use the sauna and try out the massage therapist on the hotel premises. The method popularly used  here was the accupressure massage. There was a large pool as well and since it was hotter than they thought it would be there in Takemizu they went swimming sometime after lunch.

The next day they were off to new places. They were anxious to sample the local fare and headed to a place for lunch that according to the natives was one of the best. Lori loved to taste new foods--and if possible get the recipes--and Harvey just loved to eat. Chirashi was a dish that would become an especial favorite of theirs over the next few days. 

After more leisurely shopping and taking a guided tour, they hurriedly put on their new outfits as they hoped to get to the Immortal Zen Garden before dark. But the sun had just gone down when they got there where Harvey raked in the garden while Lori was content just to quietly watched him.  In fact, she seemed just a little too quiet to Harvey. He was on his guard.

Often when Lori tried something new she jumped in feet first, so when she decided to try her hand at eastern meditation, Harvey was not pleased.  He left off raking the garden and went up to sit on the bench where he could keep an eye on her. To his shock after a while she began to levitate up off the ground. In a few minutes she seemed to slowly become transparent only to reappear a few seconds later a few feet away. Facially, she appeared to be in some sort of "altered state". Harvey couldn't believe his eyes. When she seemed to disappear completely, he finally spoke up in his calm and deadpan way,

“Knock it off, Brat, we have dinner reservations at the Lotus Room for 9 o'clock.”

He was not calm of course; she was scaring the heck out of him. What if she didn’t come back?

It was on the opposite side of the garden where Lori came back into view looking solid at last and Harvey hurried over to hug her in relief. Hugging him back tightly, she was disoriented and a little frightened so Harvey cancelled their reservations for dinner and they went back to the room.

He  still had high hopes for the rest of the evening, but first Lori wanted to stop at the hotel gift shop where she had seen a book on the history of Takemizu Village for sale. Harvey got it for her as soon as they entered the hotel lobby. Once in the room they ordered room service. He asked Lori if she could tell him anything that would shed light on what had just happened, but she was vague, she said she didn’t have much memory of it at all.

Unfortunately for Harvey, by bedtime he was left to either watch TV or just daydream because Lori had become totally absorbed in the historical book. Harvey was a patient man, though. He knew she would put it down before too long. She frequently got totally immersed in new subjects but her favorite interest by far was Harvey. And that was just fine with him.

They had almost chosen another hotel for the vacation that was called the Flaming Dragon. Now they decided they would move there for the last two nights to see which one they liked better. Lori watched Harvey sign in and thought for the millionth time how much she loved him and needed him.

The rooms in this hotel were quite different and had a separate little alcove for in-room dining.

The hotel also boasted its own zen garden, as well as stream fishing all around the perimeter of the property. Harvey just had to see what he could catch, even though he’d have to throw it back.

When Lori began to meditate again on this day, Harvey shook his head,

“Not again, honey. Try something else. Please, if you love me.”

So she found someone to help her learn the Takemizu Village gesture, which was a graceful bow. It took her a while to get graceful, but finally she had it down.

When Lori wasn’t looking Harvey had to try meditating himself to see what was going on with this phenomenon—how could she possibly have teleported? Soon the same thing was happening to him. He was levitating a bit--for all he knew he was becoming a little opaque as well. With that, Harvey stood up and walked away. He had no intention of going to some unknown place chosen by an unseen hand, no sir.

They went back to the Pagoda to purchase trinkets Lori wanted and yet more Asian clothing when she happened to notice a redheaded woman eying Harvey with hungry eyes. Totally unaware, Harvey was paying for a souvenir he’d chosen. Glaring at the girl, Lori walked over to his side and whispered to him that maybe they should go back to their room to rest before tonight’s visit to the Village Hot Springs. He gave her a big smile and she looked back to see the crestfallen redhead shrug and move on.

They loved the spa here at Takemizu almost as much as the Whitesand Mineral Spa at Twikkii and were learning the accupressure massage technique.  Harvey told her that he was now willing to give up his hot tub—for a while anyway—so they could have a massage table at home. After all, they’d learned both hot stone massage and now the accupressure massage so they might as well keep up with their lessons at home. With his rigorous workouts and jogging he could use a good massage a couple times a week. Lori smiled, she loved it when Harvey got enthusiastic about something new. He didn’t do it all the time whereas she, Lori…

The food available at the spa was especially delicious as well and had become their favorite place to eat.

From there they made a quick stop back to the Immortal Zen Garden where they had tea in a little gazebo. 

 

That night Lori was again reading her book on Takemizu history when Harvey climbed into their bed and began distracting her. This vacation at Takemizu was almost like a second honeymoon she whispered to Harvey. Harvey could be very romantic when he wanted to be.

“Listen, you beautiful brat, our whole life together is a honeymoon,” he grinned, “At least, so far.”

They had breakfast looking out at the water from their dining alcove window. On the schedule that day was a visit to the Lucky Shrine Park. Harvey, who did not believe in luck, was nevertheless persuaded by Lori to drop a coin in the wishing well there. It did not go particularly well; he was not showered with money as had been hinted by the brochure, but he did begin to itch all over for no accountable reason and it lasted an hour or so. Meanwhile, Lori dug for treasure but found none.

They learned to play Mah Jong—as always Harvey not only picked it up quickly, he soon excelled at it as he did every game. Even when others joined them in play, he still bested all of them.

After they got back from the park they decided to try one of the tours offered by the guide; “Bamboo Forest Tour”. The helicopter that came for them was deafening. Things didn’t go exactly as planned on the tour and some other tourists had been bothered by bees, but not Lori or Harvey. Not then. 

As they arrived at the hotel Lori again noticed another woman ogling Harvey. Really, the nerve of these natives and even some of the tourists. No one at home ever did this; but then most of them knew Lori and that she’d been Harvey’s girl since forever, long before they married. (Or maybe it was just that they knew Lori all right and had no interest in provoking her). The woman in question had simply given Harvey a flirty look and kept on walking, Harvey didn’t even seem to notice, but as the woman walked away Lori stuck her tongue out at her even though she knew it was childish.

Suddenly both she and Harvey were surrounded by bees as they stood in front of their hotel. Luckily they did not seem to be stinging bees and were finally chased away. It was time now to say goodbye to Takemizu Village. Their second honeymoon was over, Lori thought sadly. She stood by rather helplessly as Harvey called the shuttle to pick them up. He hung up and looked over at her and smiled at her woebegone face.

“Remember, Brat, I told you—this is not the end of the honeymoon. It’s only the end of the trip,” he said in a husky voice and kissed her. 

Then the bus arrived and they were on their way home. What further adventures lay ahead, neither one knew. As long as they were together they both were content.

Next update: Harvey and Lori Ferguson Ch. 6 After Takemizu