Happy to be Traveling

Lots of reminders about the rules.

When we left the Zenran-ji Temple we stopped for coffee and cake (Ella will describe).  Then we walked through neighborhoods of more upscale houses towards the center of town.  We passed a zoo.  Stopped for a crab roll at a market. After about forty-minutes we ended up at the Museum of Kyoto.  The museum had exhibits explaining the…

I am fascinated by the Japanese love of cartoon representations rather than boring old stick figures. That last photo brings up another subject. Japanese cleanliness and fastidiousness. Every car shines like new. No dents or dings. No side view mirrors duct taped on or cardboard-taped broken windows. In museums, if one touches a glass case,…

After exploring Eikan-do temple yesterday we needed refreshment. I mean I just had my whole concept of the structure of Buddhism exploded (sure, sure…maybe I’m being a little dramatic).  Just outside the entrance to the temple was a place advertising coffee. You know who (and it wasn’t me) made a beeline. On the menu was…

There are hundreds of temples and shrines in Kyoto, its hard to chose which to visit. I had stumbled across a website called  preparetravelplans.com with an article  “10 Hidden Gems in Kyoto” which is how we found the Kimono Forest the other day. Of course, the skeptics among you will be rolling your eyes and thinking “hey,…

Friends of ours (Charlie and Wynette) now on their 13th or 14th year of walking the Caminos in Spain and Portugal, were offered umeshu at a Spanish bar the other day. (Kanpai you two). I’ve recently developed a taste for umeshu here in Japan so I thought I’d say more about it. Umeshu has been…

In most of the countries we’ve traveled to on Easter, places have been closed.  Here in Japan that certainly wasn’t going to be a concern.  But in keeping with a spirit of religious observance we elected to make a morning visit to the Eikan-dō Temple.  An early local bus took us to the foothills of Higashiyama, Kyoto’s eastern…

Ella’s talked about the tea house in the Lion’s Roar Garden, but what she didn’t mention was the little “traditional Japanese sweet” that, when we were staying in Sparky’s Place back in Naoshima, I confused with a bar of soap that had the same shape and color.  On our way out the door to tour the…

Designed by Sakugen Shuryo, a Zen master, poet and diplomat in the 1500’s, the Lion’s Roar gardens of the Zen Buddhist Hogon-in temple is breathtaking. Using the principle of “borrowed scenery”, this garden folds itself into the surrounding forest using Mt. Arashiyama as a backdrop.  if ever there was a place to let zen into…

Arashiyama is an area just west of Kyoto city. Arashiyama  means “the storm mountain” and comes from the wind known as “Atago Oroshi,” which sweeps down Mt. Atago and blows away all the cherry blossoms and maple leaves at the end of their seasons. Nature’s air blower using wind power.  From our place, a city bus…

When we were visiting the Kyoto National Museum of Modern Art this afternoon, I came across a painting that made me pause then do a double take.  It was part of an exhibition of mostly 19th century Polish artwork.  The painter was Jan Matejko and the subject was Stańczyk, a famous Polish court jester (1480-1560) employed by…

This morning we took a bus to a train to the Arishiyama district of Kyoto where our first stop was the Kimono Forest. Our second stop was devoted to averting the army of tourists swarming towards the large Tenryu-ji Temple.  (Size makes a difference when it comes to attracting crowds in World Heritage sites.)   Slipping away…

First thing we did in Kyoto yesterday when we arrived was to take a stroll to the national gardens. I was excited to see a small sign in front of a tiny temple describing a 600 year old camphor tree that stood on the temple grounds. We went in to investigate. What we found…

Kyoto.  Once the imperial capital, famous for its many shrines (Shinto), temples (Buddhist), gardens, and palaces. Now draws upwards of 75 million tourists a year.  As Grubb mentioned, from Naoshima we ferried to Uno Port, took a local train (stops at every single little village) to Okayama, rode the Shinkansen to Kyoto and then a final…

We’ve moved on to Kyoto but I wanted to give a mention to this great restaurant back in Naoshima. Our second night we tried the New Olympia, a tiny sushi restaurant. By small I mean 5 seats at the counter , two western style tables and one tatami mat table. WOW. Out of this world…