The Road Less Traveled

I got up around 8:30, sat down in the common room to breakfast, and chatted with a man from Singapore who was taking his family to Nara. I took the bus directly to Kyoto Station, this time taking a different bus and passing some new temples along the way. I got on the 11:20 train again towards Nara, but this time I would get off halfway at Uji.

I walked through three different cars looking for a completely empty seat, and instead I ran into the couple I’d seen at Higashi Hongan! They recognized me and invited me to sit down with them. It was nice having familiar face to chat with, even if only for 20 minutes. I got off the train and went to the tourist center, where a worker gave me an English-language map and highlighted a recommended walking route and sights for me.

Uji was a breath of fresh air. Pastoral, tranquil, and small, more so than Nara in my opinion. I walked down a narrow passage of shops and restaurants. The food was starting to look good, and it was nearly lunchtime. I ended up in a restaurant where I could see a man making green tea soba noodles by hand. I stared at the pictures on the menu for several minutes before settling on a simple green tea soba plate. The soba was cooked and served on a bamboo mat, similar to the kind used to roll sushi but round (to fit in the bowl) instead of rectangular. On the tray was also a small cup. The lid of the cup held a small egg (quail, perhaps?), green onion, and wasabi. Following the lead of the nearby diners, I lifted the lid, poured everything into the cold liquid below (miso or fish broth, I’m not sure), and mixed it up. I then picked up the noodles with my chopsticks, dipped them in the liquid, and ate. Simple but delicious!!! At the end of the meal, a server poured hot water into the remaining liquid so I could drink it as a soup. All of that cost 800 yen, and it was worth it.

After I lunch, I paid the 600 yen to enter the Byodin Temple. I walked around the grounds and took pictures outside the Phoenix Hall rather than paying the extra 300 yen to enter. My ticket included admission to the Byodin Museum, a glass and stone building that was home to an exhibit on the restoration of Phoenix Hall and a collection of statues depicting “Bodhisattvas on Clouds”.

After the temple, I walked along the Uji River. There were food and tea shops on the trail (if I had realized how special Uji tea was, I would have stopped and tried some), and boats floating by slowly. I walked to the stone pagoda, crossed a bridge, walked up to Eshinn temple and then to Ugami Shrine. My words, however, can’t do justice to the natural beauty and serenity of the surroundings. I thought I’d never want to leave. All good things must end eventually, though. I headed down the hill, across the wooden bridge (which is actually reinforced now with concrete), and back to the JR train station.

Afternoon in Kyoto

I caught a local train to Kyoto instead of an express train. This time, nothing seemed familiar when I got off the train. It took me a while to find my way to the usual train station exit. To build up my energy for the afternoon round of sightseeing, I decided to stop for 4:00 coffee and cake at Café Veloce, a bustling coffee shop next to the central post office. I then went back into the train station and, per the instructions at the tourist center on the second floor, took the elevator inside the adjacent department store to the 9th floor for the tourist center for foreigners. I got directions to Kiyomizudera temple, a building strongly recommended by the man from Singapore and Manami and Koichi because it is set in the hills and has a great view of the city.

I hopped on bus 206 and got off at the Gojozaka bus stop. I walked 1 kilometer up a steep and narrow hill with all the other tourists. I agree the pagoda complex and its hillside view were breathtaking, but I was too cheap to pay the 300 yen entrance fee. I took pictures of what I could outside the entrance and found a quiet place slightly downhill to write my journal.

I walked back downhill past souvenir shops hawking silk, jade, pickles, tea and more. I ended up once again walking through the Gion district, but again I didn’t see any geisha. Oh well. I reached the main shopping area, and decided to go up to the “Bistro” floors of the Hankyu department store because I was trying to conserve cash and was desperate to pay for something with a credit card. A very American approach I know, but I couldn’t help it. There were several restaurant to choose from. I immediately ruled out the Italian food at “Miami Garden” and the dim sum at the Hong Kong restaurant (I’d be eating Hong Kong food soon enough). I settled on a restaurant serving different kinds of omurice (cooked rice with a thin omelette wrapped around it). For about $14 I got a “dream set” (combo): omurice with ketchup, salmon salad, and “ice tea” (tea with ice cream in it). I know it was expensive, but each course was delicious.

I headed to the bus stop to get home. When the bus came though, it was very crowded. I decided to wait for the next one. I walked on towards the next stop, and ended up finding a shopping arcade (covered shopping walkway) I hadn’t seen before. The Shinkyogoku Arcade had several stylish clothing stores, restaurants, a movie theater, a bookstore, and souvenir shops. I was glad I had missed that bus.

In the morning, Manami took me on the train to Shin-Yokohama (New Yokohama), where I could catch the Shinkansen train to Kyoto. Shinkansen is better known in English as “bullet train”. There are actually two bullet train lines: Hikari and Nozomi. The Nozomi makes fewer stops, but the Japan Rail Pass is not valid on the Nozomi and the Nozomi only saves you half an hour between Tokyo and Osaka. I didn’t feel deprived taking the Hakari train. Manami spoke with the attendant in Japanese to get me a seat reservation (free with my rail pass). My train was again leaving in 10 minutes, so there was no time for a long goodbye. At least we had had the hour on the train from her house to Yokohama to visit.

The train was sleek and smooth outside and comfortable inside. You can see pictures of the outside at: http://www.japanrail.com/JR_shinkansen.html. The view was also lovely, alternating between oceanside and rice fields. Two and a half hours later, I arrived in Kyoto. It was about 1:00 pm. I asked for directions to the city buses, and found enough English signs to direct me to the buses going in the direction of Guesthouse Bon, near Daitoku-ji (Daitoku Temple). I saw two lines of people waiting for two different bus numbers, only one of which I could take to the guesthouse. When my bus arrived, I watched to see which line moved and joined the line at the end.

I thought I had packed pretty lightly for a two-week trip: A wheeled carryon and student-sized backpack. On a crowded bus, though, they seemed enormous. Two elderly women took pity on me and motioned for me to squeeze in on the seat between them. Another woman still standing asked in English where I was going. She said she wasn’t sure this bus would go to my stop. She and the elderly women started chatting in Japanese. I couldn’t help but smile at the idea of all these people trying to figure out for me whether I was on the right track.

I found out later that the woman who spoke English was named Junko. She was from Osaka and visiting her son who is a student in Kyoto. She told me she had a couple of hours before she had to meet with her son, and she offered to go with me to check in at the guesthouse and go sightseeing. I agreed, and am eternally grateful that she made such an offer and I accepted. She helped me get the day pass for the bus system, and helped me understand that you board the bus at the rear and pay as you exit through the front (a very logical system, in my opinion). When we got off at Daitokuji-mae, we followed the guesthouse map along the wall of the Daitoku temple. But then the street ended in a T, which I couldn’t have comprehended looking at the map. Junko looked at the map and found the barber shop marked on the map. She asked and found the tofu shop marking the street for the guesthouse, which I also would never have found because the sign for it was not in English.

When we finally arrived at Guesthouse Bon, Kazo, the owner, came out with his infant son on one arm. I took off my shoes and he showed me my room, the kitchen, toilet, shower, and common room, all with the baby still on his arm. The layout felt like a traditional Japanese house with tatami mats on the floor and doors made of wood and paper. When I first heard about “Japanese style” sleeping rooms I thought I would be sleeping directly on the floor, but Manami had correctly assured me that this means sleeping on a futon. In Japan, “futon” means a firm flat mattress without a bed- or sofabed-frame. The futon was perfectly comfortable without a frame, though.

After I set my bags in my room, Kazo, Junko and I sat down at a patio table with a bus and city map of Kyoto. Still with the baby on his arm, Kazo gave us advice on what to see and how to get there.

Temples and Markets of Kyoto

Junko and I walked back to the bus stop and, following Kazo’s advice, went first to Ryoan-ji (Ryoan Temple). The temple is famous for its Zen rock garden. Maybe if it hadn’t been so busy with people, it would have been more impressive or meditative. Instead, I was impressed by the miniature version that blind people can touch, and another garden that looked like waves of moss-covered ground. It seemed to be a metaphor for life—bumpy but worth it.

We went through the inner sanctum of the temple, then walked around the gardens. Junko was surprised to see Buddha statues with a bowl in front. If you make a wish and toss a coin into the bowl, your wish will be granted. No luck from the Buddha for me, but I had all the luck I needed for the day anyway. We left, got on the bus again, and headed to Kinkaku-ji, aka “Golden Temple”. This temple has earned the title fair and square; according to an English-speaking tour guide nearby, 280,000 sheets of gold cover the temple. We couldn’t enter the temple, but we had a nice view of the temple across the pond and the grounds we walked around were lovely.

Near the exit, Junko stopped to buy me a souvenir. I was shocked; she was the one helping me, I should be the one to buy her something. For her, though, I was an English teacher helping her practice her English conversation skills. Compared to English teachers in Hawaii who charged her $50 an hour, buying me a souvenir was a bargain. She also bought me some kind of shaved ice with green tea syrup. Yum!

Once again we got on the city bus, this time heading downtown to the Shijo Kawaramachi stop. We walked past fashionable shops to Nishiki Market, a long, narrow covered passage with stalls where you can buy fish, pickled vegetables and fruits, tea, and more. Junko led me to her favorite takoyaki stand. Takoyaki is made from a pancake-like base similar to okonomiyaki, but the cook formed the dough into balls as it was heated. It was a good deal too-a set of 6 for only 180 yen ($1.50). I’ll never forget sitting on a bench in that small red stall, the heat rising both from the grill and the takoyaki that I had to pierce with a chopstick before eating so I wouldn’t burn my mouth. Even though it had been a warm day, I and many locals were willing to sit in that heat to enjoy this cheap street treat.

Junko walked me back to the main street, and finally we said goodbye. I went into one of the big department stores, Takashimaya, and was blown away by its style and sophistication. I was equally impressed by the underground food market, and understood better why Manami’s students said they missed the department store food floor in America. I’d had my fill of food at Nishiki Market, so again I didn’t buy anything. Instead, I wandered down Shijo-dori (Shijo street) to the Gion district, a shopping area with many lanterns and dark wooden buildings. (Sorry, I didn’t take any pictures). I later learned from Kazo that many Geisha still live in Gion, and around 4 or 5 p.m. you can see them walking to the teahouses to begin work. I didn’t see any, or if I did I wasn’t aware of it. There were occasionally people wearing kimono or yukata (a summer kimono made of cotton), but they didn’t have make up on so I don’t think they were geisha.

I walked through Gion to the Yasaka Shrine, a beautiful shrine set up into the hills a bit. There seemed to be more to see up the hill but it was dusk and I was exhausted. I walked back to the Shijo awaramachi stop. I just missed a bus, but that gave me time to watch the neon lights come on and watch the people walking by a little longer. I got on the bus, miraculously found my way back to the guest house even though the tofu house was closed up, and went to sleep.

In the morning, Tina and I got up and got ready to head out. I mentioned to her that I wished I had a better hat for warmth; I’d underpacked a bit. Tina took out a traditional fur ... [Continue reading this entry]