Oct 202007
 

I just got back to Okazaki from Kyoto, and today was great.

Sun! Beautiful sun!

I dumped my luggage in a locker at the station, and talked to the very helpful ladies on the 9th floor of Kyoto Station in the tourist office: by all means, go there.

Try to get to Kyoto well before 6 p.m. and use that office. They’ll tell you how to get around, they’ll give you maps and all kinds of useful information. They’ll even hook you up with a cheap hotel, if you need one. It would have saved me so much headache if I had gone there first on Thursday night, but it was closed.

The best thing they taught me was how to ride the buses in Kyoto. Generally, it’s cheaper to get an all-day ticket if you’re going to ride more than one bus. The fare covers the route, not the distance traveled, so the fares are all the same.

Kinkakuji

I took a crowded bus to Kinkakuji, which was incredible (it’s also called the Golden Pavilion, if you’re scoring at home), then I walked to Ryoanji to see the impressive Zen rock gardens there.

Kinkakuji is a gorgeous temple. First, the golden pavilion itself is stunning:

Oh yeah, this is why I came here...

Golden Pavilion

Asking people to take your picture is kind of risky. Not that they’ll steal your camera, but that they won’t be able to figure out how to get you in focus:

Golden Pavilion obscured by a Dork

Not that I was looking all that dapper, anyway.

The crowd waiting to take pictures:

Golden Pavilion

This one came out really nice:

Golden Pavilion-- This one came out nice.

Here’s where I would put the rocking chairs and wave back at the crowds:

Golden Pavilion

And here’s a shot of the back:

Golden Pavilion

I figured out what everyone does with their 1 and 5 yen coins. They throw them here:

Where 1 and 5 yen coins go...

And here is where you pray:

Altar

Altar closer up

At Kinkakuji, I bought some souvenirs, then spied a Haagen-Dazs vending machine, and purchased an almond-vanilla bar.

Another World Heritage?
Refreshing.

I finally sucked up my courage and got an omikuji (it’s a fortune they sell at shrines.)– I drew a shoukichi— which means I’ll have a little luck. That’s fine for me. Friday I would have pulled a daikyou— big bad luck. No thanks.

The Road to Ryoan-ji

Ryoan-ji is pretty close to Kinkakuji. It’s about a 15 minute walk away, and definitely worth it.

I started by going down this road:

On the way to Ryoanji

I saw these flowers by a utility pole. I guess they do roadside memorials in Japan as well.

Flowers by the road

I passed a place that had a lot of those stone (or maybe concrete?) statues that I’ve seen a lot:

So that's where they come from...

Lots of moss on the walls. It was really pretty:

Rock wall

I thought this garage door was cool.

Your Hobby Adviser Should Be a Freak 2

Ryoan-ji

Ryoan-ji is gorgeous in a different way from Kinkakuji. It’s a wonderful contrast between the two temples. Kinkakuji is hectic and crowded, while Ryoan-ji feels more tranquil.

Ryoanji Grounds

Ryoanji Grounds

There’s a large pond, or a small lake on the temple grounds, and it’s very nice to look at.

Ryoanji Grounds

There’s a small island on the lake, and a small shrine on the island:

Ryoanji Grounds

Ryoanji Grounds

Ryoanji Grounds

Here is the place where you wash your hands and mouth to purify yourself:

Ryoanji Grounds

As you enter the main building where the rock garden is, you have to take off your shoes. Then as you enter, there are two really stunning pieces of calligraphy:

Calligraphy

Calligraphy

And then you come to the famous Zen rock garden:

Wide shot:

Zen Rock Garden

Some closeups:

Zen Rock Garden

Zen Rock Garden

Of course it’s crowded. It’s pretty famous:

Zen Rock Garden Crowds

I went around the back of the main building, looked at some of the other scenery. I really liked this water feature:

Ryoanji Grounds

Here’s a shot of the rooms around the rock garden. There were a lot of really pretty screens on the walls:

Ryoanji Grounds

On the way out, you walk around a lot of the grounds again, about a 15 minute walk. I thought this Japanese maple tree was especially pretty:

Ryoanji Grounds

Persimmons and ducks on the way out:

Ryoanji Grounds

Back to the Station (More Kyoto Station Photos!)

Back at Kyoto Station, I took some more photos. The Kyoto Tower, reflected on the side of the station:

Kyoto Tower Reflection

One of the main facades of the station:

Kyoto Station

 

Inside the station, things are hectic on a Sunday!

 

Kyoto Station

 

Going up to the roof.

Looking Down on the Station from the Roof

 

Roof detail. I love detail shots.

Kyoto Station Roof Detail

 

Here’s a panorama I took of the roof area.

kyoto station pano

 

Look! Another band! I’m a old band nerd, so I’m always happy to see kids learning to perform music:

Kyoto Station

While I was at the station, I made some hotel reservations with the help of the Welcome Inn people at the tourist office on the 9th floor. I got a room for 6,300 yen a night for the 26th, 27th, and 28th. That’s a weekend in October. Amazing. I couldn’t find anything available on my own.

October is leaf-viewing season, so it gets booked up here pretty fast.

Next weekend, I’m going back to visit all the places I couldn’t get to, like Gion, Arashiyama, Eiga Mura (it’s the cinema village they use to shoot samurai dramas… I want to see it if time permits), plus I want to look at some handicraft stuff.

After that I’ll go to Nara, Hiroshima, Beppu, Osaka,  and then we’ll see.

I’m up to over 1,050 photos so far.

And I have learned a ton about traveling.

Rick Steves was right. You are always carrying too much crap.

You can always find one thing to get rid of.

Two bags is one bag too many. Three bags is insanity.

Digital anything is great.

Now I’m going to take a shower, go to ZigZag, then do some laundry.

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