Last weekend, I had to go to work on Sunday. I would complain, but I've been on vacation for the last 3 weeks, so I have NO basis for complaint here. So, I had only one glorious day of weekend to use as I chose. Luckily, Ms. Tanya, of Treehouse fame, was vacationing in Kyoto at that very moment! So I took the slowest, cheapest train I could find, and after only 4 1/2 short (and relaxing) hours of riding, I was there!
We had a great time. The cherry blossoms had just come out, and it was just pretty darned lovely. I was supposed to be the Japan expert, since I've been here for no less than EIGHT months, but Tanya knew where everything was and generally led me around Kyoto. I realized I had forfeited my title after I forwent the map in favor of some good old fashioned 'visual recon' and led us in precisely (really) the wrong direction for a while until I decided to, like, check where we were going. Those mountains I saw in the distance weren't the ones I thought they were, it would seem. So much for visual recon. I guess Science majors really are smarter. Damn!
As I was saying, the beginnings of the cherry blossom bloom were lovely, and so was the weather, and I guess a lot of people predicted this very thing happening, because I got very intimately acquainted with the butts and elbows of about half of Japan on the train ride. My arm was literally just sitting on some kid's neck for like 20 minutes because I had nowhere else to put it. When the doors opened at Kyoto, it took--no kidding-- 30 seconds before ANYONE could get out the door. We all pushed together and created so much pressure that we literally wouldn't budge. It was amazing. Everyone was relatively calm about it, though. Anywhere else and someone's teeth would be getting knocked out.
So most of these pictures are from Kenninji, a beautiful temple in Kyoto. I'd never been there before, but both Tanya and the Japanese teacher at my school recommended it. They weren't wrong. I really love the layout and the feel of the building, because it almost feels like a sleek sort of Japanese home, instead of a temple. Pretty much every room was wide open to the outside, with really beautiful woodwork and gardens. The whole environment was very...harmonious.
One of the back alleys of Kyoto. We strolled around for a while, aimlessly. It was great. By accident, we even found Kiyomizudera temple, one of the most famous in Japan.
A little shrine at the Kiyomizudera temple.
Yeah, I don't know either.
