Today was a big sightseeing day. Three stops
were on our agenda: Kinkakuji, Nijojo Castle, and Kiyomizu-dera. At each one we
kept wondering why there were so many foreigners getting in the way! Only to
realize... we were still, and would forever be, foreigners too.
First off was Kinkakugi, the golden shrine, and man was it shiny! The building was a serious bright yellow, like gold, and it was also sitting out in the pond so its reflection was double the gold. It was also sitting at the edge of another great garden, which would have been more enjoyable minus the 50 or so tourists and dozens of children on school trips. In some ways I think the experience was dumbed down by their presence, but we of course added to it... so I can't shed all the blame.
A short walk away was Nijojo Castle. It was a beautiful and well kept building that we actually got to go inside (after taking our shoes off, and only on the wooden hallways. Many of the curtains were drawn to preserve the highly decorate tapestries and paintings inside. I don't think we were allowed to take pictures on the inside, but given the chance again I wish we could.
Finally, Kiyomizu, the location I was tasked with researching before our trip. I didn't know about the walk there however. After we finally found the start of the street which led up to Kiyomizu we quickly learned it was all uphill and at least a mile long. Both sides of the street were lined with souvenir shops, kakigori (shaved ice), ice cream, and other small stores, but we kept pushing forward (I already bought my fill of presents for home). We did see a couple of the guys who pulled the carts... it would have been a nice ride up, but we walked anyway.
Eventually we saw the stairs up to the temple, several levels of them. I looked at Lynnette, who I was walking with, knowing that we could stop for a moment after the trek up the hill. "Let's keep going!" I said determinedly, then I started up the stairs, swearing not to stop till I get to the top. We made it in one piece with minimal regret.
Kiyomizu was place on a cliff's edge, with a deck that overlooked the drop down to the forest below. From there, you could see a full line of trees before the cityscape and the mountains behind it. Honestly, this was the moment that I really felt like I was IN Japan. It was my top moment, at the top of a huge hill.... really.
After the main shrine area it was a long winding (but enjoyable) walk down through the woods. Once we reached the bottom of the cliff we found the three fountains, of which you are only supposed to drink from two (wikipedia Kiyomizu-dera, there's a ton of info on it). We didn't drink because the line was clogged with touring students, so we started a much slower, relaxed walk down the hill back to our hotel. The ice cream we got on the way was pretty good too :)
First off was Kinkakugi, the golden shrine, and man was it shiny! The building was a serious bright yellow, like gold, and it was also sitting out in the pond so its reflection was double the gold. It was also sitting at the edge of another great garden, which would have been more enjoyable minus the 50 or so tourists and dozens of children on school trips. In some ways I think the experience was dumbed down by their presence, but we of course added to it... so I can't shed all the blame.
A short walk away was Nijojo Castle. It was a beautiful and well kept building that we actually got to go inside (after taking our shoes off, and only on the wooden hallways. Many of the curtains were drawn to preserve the highly decorate tapestries and paintings inside. I don't think we were allowed to take pictures on the inside, but given the chance again I wish we could.
Finally, Kiyomizu, the location I was tasked with researching before our trip. I didn't know about the walk there however. After we finally found the start of the street which led up to Kiyomizu we quickly learned it was all uphill and at least a mile long. Both sides of the street were lined with souvenir shops, kakigori (shaved ice), ice cream, and other small stores, but we kept pushing forward (I already bought my fill of presents for home). We did see a couple of the guys who pulled the carts... it would have been a nice ride up, but we walked anyway.
Eventually we saw the stairs up to the temple, several levels of them. I looked at Lynnette, who I was walking with, knowing that we could stop for a moment after the trek up the hill. "Let's keep going!" I said determinedly, then I started up the stairs, swearing not to stop till I get to the top. We made it in one piece with minimal regret.
Kiyomizu was place on a cliff's edge, with a deck that overlooked the drop down to the forest below. From there, you could see a full line of trees before the cityscape and the mountains behind it. Honestly, this was the moment that I really felt like I was IN Japan. It was my top moment, at the top of a huge hill.... really.
After the main shrine area it was a long winding (but enjoyable) walk down through the woods. Once we reached the bottom of the cliff we found the three fountains, of which you are only supposed to drink from two (wikipedia Kiyomizu-dera, there's a ton of info on it). We didn't drink because the line was clogged with touring students, so we started a much slower, relaxed walk down the hill back to our hotel. The ice cream we got on the way was pretty good too :)
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