Kyoto - First two days

We made it to Japan! We flew out of Sydney in the evening and after a short layover in Singapore at midnight, we arrived in Osaka the next morning at about 8:30. We all managed to catch a few hours sleep on the planes, but we did get a bit stir crazy in the last couple of hours.  

Get me off of this bird!

After we cleared customs, we found our way to the train station. Before we left Sydney, I looked around a little bit on the internet for information about what train we should catch and where to get tickets. I was delighted to find a video that showed someone doing exactly that. Having viewed the video just before we left Sydney and with not much sleep on overnight flights, I felt a deep sense of déjà vu as we walked through the airport and it was exactly like the video. It's difficult for me to imagine international travel prior to the internet age.  Anyway...

It was not a bullet train because the route between Osaka and Kyoto is too short. It was a nice ride, though and we were happy to find that we could turn our seats around to face each other. After about an hour and 15 minutes, we stopped in Kyoto. We were very, very hungry. So hungry that we slipped into the first noodle place we saw at the train station. We hesitated for a moment because of the cigarette smoke in the place but then noticed two things: It was full of people but empty of tourists and the menu had photos inside. It was delicious. Impossible to say if it's because we were so very hungry or that it was amazing but either way, we were blown away by how good it was. 

We were also happy when the server brought our check to see that it was a great value. Such a deal, right?

After lunch, we went out to join the taxi line. Another advantage of the internet age is that I was able to show our driver a photo of our hotel and the address in Japanese. 

Our taxi driver got us to our hotel in no time and in style, with white lacy seat covers and white gloves.

Our room wasn't ready for us yet, so we took a minute to sit in the lobby and figure out what we wanted to do. We discovered that we were a quick subway ride away from the Nishiki Market. Before long, we were on our way.

What a place! It's a super narrow covered lane with so many different shops and no two are alike. 

Baby octopus on a stick. I didn't try it.

Snoopy hot chocolate. Best thing ever.

Smoking only!

Matcha soft serve. It's everywhere
and I'm working on finding the best one.

I love this ad so much. Perfect.

Girls in kimono walking through the market.

We learned that everyone in Japanese schools has a compulsory visit to Kyoto when they are in high school. Often, the students will rent traditional clothing to walk around the city. It's really fun to see them. The photo above is the first group we saw.

One thing we all love so much is that our hotel (and I think many others) provides slippers and pajamas to guests. 

Allison in the whole getup

After a much needed sleep, we spent the next day with Mr. Shozo Saka, a driver and tour guide who showed us the best of Kyoto. He was nothing short of fantastic. So funny and sweet, and passionate about Japanese history and Kyoto's important role.

 As he drove us around the city, he kept a list of the places we visited as a memento for us. At every site, he knew just where to go for the best photos, how to avoid the crowds, and showed us so many interesting things we never would have noticed on our own. This was a busy, special day that we won't forget.

Shozo had a sketchbook that he used as a visual aid as he spoke to us while he was driving. He also had a tablet filled with photos that he used to give examples of things he was explaining to us - traditional dress, architectural detail, etc.

The first stop was the Golden Pavilion at Kinkaku-ji Temple. It's actually a reproduction of the original pavilion. That one was burned down intentionally in 1950 by a novice monk who was mentally ill. The building was faithfully reproduced, down to being covered in 10cm x 10cm squares of gold leaf with six layers of lacquer over the top.

From there, we went to Ryoanji Temple. At this temple, we saw a zen rock garden. In it, there were fifteen rocks, arranged to symbolize Buddhist heaven, a whale, a turtle and a crane. The monks sit on a wooden patio facing the garden to meditate. They are told that when they can see all fifteen rocks at once, they have achieved perfection. However from any seat, it is impossible to see them all. Still, they sit every day.

After the first two temples, we had lunch. When the kids said they wanted ramen, Shozo took us to Tenkaippin. We had ramen, gyoza and fried rice. It was a tiny place and not fancy (Las Cruces people, think Nellie's) but so good. Shozo would not eat with us but he made sure to find out what we wanted and ordered for us. While we were eating, he kept running in to check on us. First to make sure we knew which sauce to use for our gyoza, then to let us know that there is pepper on the table that is good on the ramen, then to make sure we had enough water. I wanted to hug him. 

After lunch, we went to Nijō Castle. There are so many fascinating details about this site. My favorite part was walking on the "nightingale floor". The flooring in certain parts of the castle was built intentionally to squeak so that no one could sneak in. Shozo took us around the side of the building and crawled underneath with us to show us the special brackets they used to create the sound. Overall, it was spectacular in scale and beauty. It was designed to show the wealth and power of the Shogun, to great effect. I wish I had more photos but I must have been too busy pulling my jaw off the floor!

Shozo noticed that John and I loved seeing the young people in kimono, so he ran over and asked a group if we could take a photo. Our kids didn't join us because we are embarrassing. 

Entrance gate

Outer moat. There was another inside.

After this, we went to the Gion traditional downtown area. This is where we were able to see where the Geisha live and work. Shozo explained to us that there is a distinction between Maiko and Geiko girls.  Maiko (translation: dancing girl) are 16-20 years old and considered to be in training. Geiko (translation: talented girl) are 20 and over. As we moved through the neighborhood, we happened to see a Geiko walk past a group of Maiko. The Maiko all stopped and bowed to her. The Geiko continued along her path, not acknowledging the younger girls. The culture is slowly dying out, with fewer and fewer girls interested in becoming Maiko. 

Next up was my favorite, the Sanjūsangen-dō Temple. This is where we were able to see the 1,001 statues of Kannon made in the 12th and 13th century. It's not permitted to take photographs, so I copied this one from the Wikipedia page linked above. I recommend a look at the page. 

This photo shows half of the statues. There are 500 standing statues on each side of a gigantic seated statue. They are all of Kannon but each has slight differences in facial features and hand positions. In front of these are statues of 28 guardian deities, with the Thunder God and Wind God at each end. These statues are there to protect Kannon and the people who believe in Kannon. All of the statues face east, as they are coming to this world from the west, Buddhist heaven.

We were early for the cherry blossoms but were able to see one or two trees in bloom at Sanjūsangen-dō.

Finally, we visited the famous Fushimi Inori Shinto Shrine. At this shrine, there are 10,000 toriis (shrine gates) that have been offered by worshippers from all over. These gates are placed one after another in a path that winds up and down the foot of Mt. Inari. This is the most popular shrine to visit and it was packed with visitors washing their hands and lips to purify before the visit, ringing the bells, receiving their fortunes and making wishes.

On the small plaques, people have written their wishes. Hanging are groups of 1,000 paper cranes that have been folded with the hope of having a wish granted. Most of these have been folded by mothers in the hopes that their children will be smart and do well in school. I'm going to start folding as soon as we are home.

Shozo taking Allison's photo.

The stone lanterns are lit only on special occasions.

Walking out.

We had about a week's worth of fun in one day. We've been exploring Kyoto since then and it's been so much richer because of all we learned and saw with Shozo. More to come!