Saturday, May 10, 2014

You are here

We are in Kyoto. It's early Sunday morning (happy Mother's Day, mothers) and we arrived yesterday around 3 pm by way of the Shinkansen. 

There are many more non-Asians here, but at the same time, far fewer signs with Latin letters/English translation. We explored by foot the section of the city surrounding our hotel, using a map provided by a very, very kind and sweet woman at the tourist information office at the Kyoto train station. 

We didn't always know where we were, but we found our way. Through D's Magellan-like sense of direction we even made it to the specific noodle restaurant we were looking for, even though neither the street signs nor the restaurant name were decipherable!

This was the meal that was my reward:
Oy-ishi katta!

The city is full full full of temples and shrines. We visited Kiyomizu Temple--up a steep hill past a huge Buddhist (possibly?) cemetery. And at the top a magnificent view and a complex of structures including the main temple and many shops, too. Here are a few pictures;
Ignore the green traffic cone. There was some restoration going on. 

The rabbit is the messenger. Pass it on. 

Now do you believe we're really in Japan?


On our walk back, we stopped in at a small grocery store because it's always fun to see what's on the shelves. 
Who wants Blendy Sticks?
Yay!

Today, instead of closing with a funny t-shirt or an ever-popular toilet photo, I will leave you with a Zen koan (of my own making) that popped into my head last night:
You don't have to know where you're going to know where you are. You are here. 

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