Japan has an excellent public transportation system (born out of necessity due to the need to move 127 million people around islands with a combined land mass roughly equal to Montana). Tokyo, for example, has tons of taxis, buses, trains, and an enormous subway that can take you to any corner of the city. Intercity travel is similar, with buses, regular trains, and high speed trains or "Shinkansen." Driving time between Tokyo and Kyoto takes about 5 hours and 40 minutes. The bullet train we took shaved 3 hours off that time, and we weren't even on one of the newest trains that can reach speeds in excess of 370 miles per hour.
After arriving in Kyoto and getting settled into our hotel, we went to the observation deck of Kyoto Tower to take in the sights.
Osaka is visible in the far distance.
We then made our way to a street festival called Gion Matsuri, which has events taking place throughout July. This is one of the oldest and biggest festivals in Japan (which loves its festivals), and began as a religious purification festival sometime in the Heian Period (794 - 1185 CE) as an attempt to halt a series of plagues. It eventually morphed into a way for the various craft guilds and merchants to compete and show off their wealth with parades containing elaborate, multistory floats.
This first night, we focused on food from seemingly endless street vendors set up for the festival.
Chris clearly enjoying squid tentacles on a stick.
Japanese cucumbers.
An amazingly delicious stuffed pancake with sweet Azuki bean paste. One of the best things we've tasted so far.
Tons of people filled the streets, many in traditional Japanese attire.
We also got a chance to peek at one of the floats for the upcoming parade. More on these in a moment.
The next morning, we grabbed a quick breakfast and then went temple hopping. Here is Chris enjoying a "Breakfast Hot Dog," which in the U.S. is more typically referred to as a "Hot Dog."
Kyoto was the capital of Japan from 794 to 1868, and today it contains about 1,600 Buddhist temples and another 400 Shinto shrines (not to mention museums, palaces, gardens, etc.). We made our way to the Southern Hiyagashima neighborhood to tour a number of temples and related sites.
Kiyomizu-dera, first the site of a Buddhist temple in 798, the current buildings date to around 1633.
Much of the complex is held up on the hillside by enormous wooden supports constructed with traditional joinery techniques (no nails, screws, etc.).
Kyomizu-dera roughly translates to "Pure Water Temple," and refers to the natural waterfalls and springs coming off the mountainside. You can see the streams in this picture as they fall into a pool. Visitors wash their hands and drink the water for good luck and prayers.
We stopped part of the way into our day for some tea and sweets. On the left is sweetened shaved ice and the right has several mounds of sweet rice covered in two different preparations of bean paste and the third in powdered nuts.
Kodai-Ji, a temple complex founded in 1605 by Kita-no-Mandokoto in memory of her late husband Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Bamboo groves.
You are, unfortunately, not allowed to take pictures inside most of the temples and shrines, but this picture from Yasaka-Jinja gives you an idea of what lies inside many of them.
Visitors to this shrine say prayers and then rings the bells hanging near the tops of these large ropes.
Main gate of the impressive Chion-in temple, which is the largest temple gate in Japan. This temple was established on the site that Honen, one of the most important figures Japanese Buddhism, taught his particular philosophy.
One of the main buildings at this complex was in the middle of an 8-year restoration. The fact that they build massive semi-permanent structures completely above and around temples during restoration speaks to how seriously the Japanese take their cultural properties.
A buddhist cemetery on the Chion-in grounds.
View from inside Shoren-in, which was originally the home of the chief abbot of the Tendai school of Buddhism.
A small portion of the complex.
Say what you will about the Japanese, these people know how to landscape a yard.
We then grabbed an early dinner of Sashimi for Chris (slivers of raw fish) and Tempura for Sean (various items fried in a light batter).
That night, we returned to the Gion Matsuri festival to see another side of the festival. The traditional floats had all been assembled, and you could see them up close.
In fact, you were allowed to go on some of them by walking up through merchant buildings and across temporary bridges.
Here is what this float looks like in the daylight.
The traditional tapestries and decoration were draped in clear plastic because rain was expected.
As you make your way through the buildings up to the floats, this is also an opportunity for merchants to show off their family treasures, such as this 16th Century Flemish tapestry showing the Trojan Prince Hector bidding farewell to his wife and child.
Coming soon - videos and pictures of the parade & much more from Kyoto!!
Hot dog.
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