After we hiked through the absolutely amazing bamboo forest, we came across the other side of the shrine. We came out at an end with a ton of mini shrines and people praying and burning incense. The shrines were so interesting because even though much of them all looked the same, they all had something a little bit different. Many of them had food on them or drink, which was placed there as an offering. They all had some sort of Fox statue, some had many(as in my photos from my last post; hundreds of foxes). As we walked further down the mountain back towards the front of the shrine, we saw more and more mini-shrines.
We realized that we had been walking this shrine for a couple of hours and wanted to try to get some other site in before everything closed at 4pm. That is the only downside of Kyoto and the historical castles, temples, and shrines; they all close early!
We hopped back on the JR train to Kyoto station where we tried to figure out the city bus system. To our frustration, we couldn't figure out how to buy a ticket. We went to an information center in the Kyoto Station, which is the most beautiful train station I have ever seen. There was a man there who spoke English and he suggested that since it was already 3pm, we probably wouldn't make it to the Golden Pavilion, which was one of our top choices. The only place that would be open later, until 6pm, was Kiyomizu-dera Buddhist Temple. This was one of the other places of interest that we discussed, so we thanked the man and hopped onto the number 100 bus towards our destination.
When we arrived at our stop, we saw no real direction to where we were going so we decided to walk uphill. We knew that this Temple was famous for a night view so it had to be up the hill. We knew we were in the right place when we started to see the streets narrow and the crowds grow. Everyone was eating ice cream, despite the wind and chill in the air, as well as various snacks on sticks. And then we rounded a corner of the street and there it was, standing tall, the gate to the Temple. It was beautiful as the sun was shining on it, setting in the west, and a single plum tree sat to it's right with it's flowers in full bloom.
We walked up the steps and couldn't help but feeling amazed as we turned to the west and saw the amazing view we had of the city. Everyone that had told us that this Temple had the best view of Kyoto was dead on. It was simply breathtaking.
Next, we paid our 300 yen entry fee and walked through the Temple. We saw the Holy fountains and watched as people washed their hands in it's water. We walked around the Temple and stared at the amazing view. This is when, for both of us, it really sank in how amazing this all was.
That is something that I have noticed. On a day to day basis, it doesn't always feel like Japan. Even with the language barrier sometimes, it just feels like I am home. But on certain days, special days, you feel something unique. It all just clicks. "I am in Japan. Look at how beautiful this is. I really am so fortunate to have this opportunity."
Another awesome thing about visiting all of these historical places in Kyoto is that they are intertwined in the modern aspects of the city. You can be shopping in a department store of walking out of a McDonald's and right across the street there is a temple or a shrine that is thousands of years old. The juxtaposition is mind-blowing. Plus the simple fact that all of these historical sites are far older than the United States. It's a very humbling and surreal experience.
When we decided that we had spent enough time looking at the view, the Temple, and the garden, we headed back down towards Gion. Gion is the only place in Japan where you can still see the Geisha and Meiko if you are lucky walking to work between the hours of 4pm-630pm. We thought we would head down this way to try out one of the restaurants that seemed to be abundant in this area. On our way down the hill, we passed a Takoyaki stand. Takoyaki is famous in Osaka and is simple some sort of flour mix with octopus (tako) on the inside. They are octopus balls (not literally, but you know what I mean). They put sauce on the top and then fish flakes and parsley and finish them off with a toothpick so you can eat them while you walk. I still had not tried them and Anthony was in an adventurous eating mood for once, so we purchased some to try it out. They were soft and strange tasting. Not terrible, but probably not something I would fancy frequently eating.
No Geisha were spotted in Gion, and no restaurants either. That is another cultural difference I have found very difficult in Japan. If you want to eat something, say perhaps a late lunch/early dinner, you can't unless you want fast food or take out. There are no restaurants that are open until 5 or 5:30 in most cities and they close after lunch. So we were in Gion at the wrong time. We decided to walk around until we found something that looked both appetizing and affordable and after walking for what felt like days, we decided to go to a 280 bar.
This is another interesting experience in Japan. Everything is 280 yen on the menu. This includes all alcohol and food. You choose a lot of small portions and share. It is awesome, especially when you want to try new things and not spend a lot of money. We tried all sorts of yakitori and I even had a mango beer!
Next, we hopped on a train to take us to Osaka where we walked around the 'famous' (haha) Yodobashi Camera. This is the largest department store for electronics. You think BestBuy is big, BestBuy has nothing on Yodobashi. This place is probably 15 times or more the size of Best Buy with over 7 floors of items. It is way too overwhelming to just browse and you would surely get lost for days.
We walked around Namba, tried our luck at some UFO machines, Took a few photos down by Dotonbori and were on our way back to my Tarumi apartment, but not before a quick stop in the local 24 hour Yoshinoya for a gyudon, nami size*! What an amazing visit.
Gyudon-(beef and rice bowl...japanese fast food. Very thin sliced beef with onions and broth...so SO amazing)
Nami- Medium/ Regular.
looks like a wonderful life.keep going.
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