I had a GREAT day! I somewhat randomly picked a temple on the Western side of the city to go to, but the bus I picked skipped the stop I anticipated getting off at. No matter. I could have waited 20 minutes for another bus or walked to another street to get one that was more direct. I chose to walk the 30 minutes it took to get there instead. Best decision! My walk was absolutely delightful and led along a large, lovely pond. I saw several families out on a pier fishing for crayfish. When I asked if they were going to eat them, they gave me a strange look and said that these were for their children to play with and raise, not to eat. I told them that theyre typically eaten in the Southern U.S. all the time and they responded with shock/disbelief (finally, a non-processed American food that Japanese wont eat!). I finally got to Daikakuji Temple and absolutely loved it. It was just spectacular and with only a few tourists there (until a bus load of elderly tourists arrived and I decided it was really time to head on!). They had a special rate where I could spend an extra 100 yen (~$1) to go to another temple about a 25 minute walk away. Did I really want to meander for another half hour through rice paddy roads to a temple that I never would have gone to if it werent for this special rate, especially since it looked like rain? YES, I DID. It was a wonderful walk, and the temple was fantastic. Small, but set in the middle of a moss garden and surrounded by bamboo. And I stopped by another temple next door too because, you know, it was there. Now came the difficulty of finding out how to get back to Kyoto. I was told to walk about 10 minutes and Id come to a bus stop. But instead I saw another temple and decided to go there. At this point, I was starting to get tired. I thankfully came to a train station just as I knew that I could not possibly see one more - ooh, 5 minutes up this path is the Heavenly Dragon Temple! That sounds promising. Turns out, that path led through the famed bamboo-lined path that tourists from all over the world come to this part of Kyoto to see. It was late in the afternoon but still lovely. The Heavenly Dragon Temple was also really gorgeous, but I was starting to feel a bit light-headed and headed out early to find the train station. Oh, but, well, may as well stop by this shrine too while Im at it. After this I played a game of going back and forth between signs promising me that there was a nearby train station which I was unable to find. I did, however, locate a suitable bus stop, directed some Australian tourists to the train station that I could finally now locate, and headed home. Great afternoon. Still dont want to do my homework.
Posted on: Sun, 13 Jul 2014 09:06:54 +0000
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