If I were to claim that Japan was a "quirky" nation, I would suspect that few people would doubt me. Grown adults read comic books on the train, grown women sport things with Mickey Mouse or Winnie the Pooh on them, men carry "purses" and sometimes wear high heel "sandals". They bath together at the hotspring completely naked but scamper off to the change rooms at the pool and I could go on and on... but I'll get to my point.

I saw during a stroll in town the other day and irony so sweet I could not let it pass without notice.

Looks like Salmonier Nature Park but these rocks and that moss were deliberately placed that way.

I come from Newfoundland, affectionately or not so affectionately known as "the Rock". Now this humongous rock in the sea is well named. One cannot dig too far (let's say, for argument's sake, the depth of half a tent peg) before hitting at least a small boulder if not an entire sheet of bedrock. My own father must have given half of the budget of the house to Mr. Tilley, the local rock blaster, to explode and cart away the boulders around our house. Rocks were a way of life for us. We played with them, on them, used them as tools, toys and as weapons. They were as constant as the wind the blew. Then I came to Japan. I guess I first noticed the dearth of rocks when I set up a tent. Not one but ALL SIX pegs went in without a hitch and I could use my hands to drive them down. Goodbye mallet, I pack lighter now on my outings.

Now Japan is not completely rockless, no siree... we have a few out back, nice fist sized things that I'd like to keep around for sentimental reasons. And the seashore has some nice cliffs of rock and some cliff faces have lovely boulders too, but they just aren't the same in-your-face rocks that we have at home.

Then I noticed on my walk, some rocks. They seem to have been laid there as they were surrounded by grass and seemed rather awkwardly placed. As I neared them I couldn't help but notice the PRICE TAG. They were actually selling these things and when I looked closer I saw the actual price. This plain old rock about the size of small toddler was selling for \50 000! (about $550 Cdn) and the one next to it about the same size with a streak of granite down it's side was going for a whopping \70 000 (about $800 Cdn)!

The rocks were no doubt placed and the pond may be man-made as well.

Omigosh, and to think my Dad was paying to have these treasures toted away!!!! Why on earth were/ are Newfoundlanders scrounging around for a few fish and squid to sell to the Japanese? We should be meeting them in the ports with our backyards in dump trucks. We could pay off our mortgages! Newfoundland would be a rich and enterprising island (though maybe a little smaller).