Today we got our JR passes! We left Jon's house a little later than planned, but made it to the train station on time just the same. The station was unbelievably busy, so we were concerned getting around would take some time. We didn't realize how easy it would be to get our rail passes, but it was a breeze! Once we had those, we reserved some seats on the shinkansen, picked up some food, and waited a short while until the train arrived. The train itself was spacious, and it was really cool looking at the countryside as we traveled west. It seemed that the tunnels to get through the mountains were strategically placed between patches of beautiful water and rural views; every time we exited a tunnel, it was like staring at a painting through the window, and then back into darkness. A very neat experience indeed.
Kyoto station seemed much more difficult to navigate, but we made our way out and walked down the mile or two to our hotel. After getting complimentary drinks while we waited for them to finish the room, we dropped off our stuff, relaxed for a bit, and then headed out on a temple-rich hike. Fortunately for us, Kyoto allows night visitation of various temples and shrines during March and April, during which they light up the temples for locals and tourists. Unfortunately, the first temple was about an hour out from their shift change, which meant we were rushed through the temple grounds, and many of the shrines and buildings were already closed. Notable landmark, though: the Temple of the Aborted Fetus. So...there's that.
After the first temple, we headed further along the path, getting cream puffs on the way. I was distracted by some really nice looking chopsticks in a shop, so we went in. Fortunately, Katie found two different models of kendama, which I bought. (Duh.) We also checked out some of the other toys and trinkets they had, including weighted rocking dolls, wooden helicopters, and dog-shaped chopstick rests. Toys in tow, we walked down a beautiful side street, which was as quiet as it was pretty. It was nice to be removed from the bustle of the city for a moment. When we returned to the main street, we decided to check out another temple, and walked up a bunch of fairly steep stairs. When we reached the top, we saw the largest Buddha statue I have ever seen. It was breathtaking. The area in which it sits was closed, so we couldn't get closer, but it was so amazing I snapped photo after photo. Its size was humbling; it could be seen from most places around the temple, and from afar as well. We walked through the temple, visiting the main house, the tea house, the rock gardens, the bamboo garden, and finished by heading down to the street to find the temple museum. It was really interesting to see old letters displayed in shorthand, and comparing them with the modern writing displayed alongside.
We continued along the path into a busy park, where the most famous cherry tree in Japan lives. Seeing the tree, we were not surprised at all; it was very big, and certainly pretty. There were street vendors all around, stalls with carnival games, hanging fires, and hundreds of people were hanging out and having a good time. Katie and I walked down to Gion-san, a famous shrine, stopping at a smaller shrine along the way as well. We finished up walking through the park and headed north to a tempura restaurant called Asuka, which was both delicious and slightly intimidating. Up until this point, all restaurants had been Western seating; this restaurant was sans chairs. It was cool sitting on pillows and mats and eating a full meal again - it reminded me of Dushanbe.
After dinner, we stopped by Lawson's before heading home. Again, I was distracted by shiny things, so we headed down a street in the famous Gion district while Katie looked up where we were. We decided to take a chance, and looked for what our guidebook claimed was "one of the prettiest streets in Asia". We were NOT disappointed. We found ourselves walking down a perfectly canopied tree-lined boulevard, surrounded by gorgeous cherry trees on both sides. Though a little out of the way for us to head back, it was probably the best decision we've made on our trip so far, and absolutely worth the extra few minutes' walk. Finishing in Gion, we caught an express train (which we did not realize was express) that dropped us off just a few minutes away from the hotel; lucky break, considering we were about 2 miles away and the temperature was still dropping!
All in all, today was amazing. Between the temples and shrines, buying toys, and seeing beautiful streets, our first day in Kyoto was lovely. Tomorrow, we are going to a tea ceremony with some geisha, and then will watch the geisha dance before heading to Osaka! I. can. not. wait.
-B
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