Kyoto, Japan 25.04

Four trains later, we arrived in Kyoto at about 5pm. We had our first experience of travelling on the famous Shinkansen bullet trains - 270km/h! Artur was thrilled like a little boy filming the trains as they passed us on the platform, and staring out the window for at least the first 30 mins of the actual train ride.



On our first train ride, we rushed onto the train just in time. We didn't realise that we'd wandered into the first class carriage. We just assumed that the Shinkansen trains must be pretty flashy on the inside as well as the outside. Eventually we got kicked out, and moved to one of the normal carriages. The trains were incredibly punctual, arriving and leaving at the exact minute they were scheduled at.

Downtown Kyoto

Once we arrived, we settled into our new hostel. Artur was impressed by their use of space. The hostel was about 3.5m wide, but they could fit in 64 beds over 4 floors! Surprisingly they still managed to fit in 2 TV/sitting areas, an outdoor sitting area and a little kitchen.We were very happy with our location, we were right in the centre of everything, so we could walk anywhere that we wanted to go. That evening, we walked to the city area, to get a feel for the place. Loren immediately thought that the city reminded her of Melbourne. The city was located on and around a couple of rivers, and the there were lots of little hidden alleyways with good restaurants and clubs

We had dinner at a beautiful little restaurant which was hidden in a little alleyway. It was decorated in a very traditional Japanese way, and it had an earthy feel to it, with all the stones and wood used to build and decorate it. We ordered some kebab skewers, which are sold everywhere in Japan, and also another hotplate meal, where you cook the food on your own little stove. The food was absolutely delicious! The only problem was that it came in 'Japanese size'- extremely small! Once Loren had cooked the food on the stove, it barely filled the plate that she had, which was the size of a tea saucer.

After dinner we explored the nearby shops and one of the games arcades that you see on literally every corner. The one we visited was 6 stories tall! The first floor had simple games like the ones where you move a claw which drops and hopefully picks up a prize for you. Loren had a go at this game and the bag looked like it was about to drop off, but as usual it never did. Artur played a simulator game which had a curved screen that almostsurrounded him. He had a great time playing it, but there were so many controls, it was hard to master.

They also had several floors dedicated to casino games. There were some pretty cool ones! One game had a big screen set up and lots of desks facing the screen. It was for betting on computerised horse races. It really looked like you'd wandered into a racing venue.
In a nearby store, Loren found her paradise. It was an umbrella store that sold umbrellas in so many different colours, patterns and shapes, with frills, lace and polka dots! She had noticed that everyone seemed to have one in Japan, but these were seriously adorable and intricate. She could have taken the entire store home with her.

We wandered along the river where most of the bars and clubs could be found. It was packed with immaculately dressed people. We also wandered along another little alleyway hoping to spot a Geisha. No luck though. We decided to wait until the following night to participate in the night-time celebrations, as we had a long day of explorations ahead of us.

Shoren-in Temple
The next morning we set off to on a walk recommended by lonely planet. The first place we visited was Shoren-in. It was a beautiful temple set in even more spectacular gardens. The main building had painted screens from the 16th and 17th centuries.

There were many rooms separated by the traditional sliding doors. The rooms were open to the outside gardens, and you could just sit there looking out on the flowers and trees and listen the water flowing down the waterfall into the pond.

There were lots of displays of artefacts from the days when the temple was in use. Several rooms had little shrines set up, and one room had an old wooden person transporter, where one person rides inside a box compartment on the shoulders of four other people.

We wandered through the beautiful gardens, where the cherry blossoms were still in full bloom. We saw a monument of a samurai amongst the trees. The pond was filled with huge carp, and everything was so peaceful.

Tea Ceremony

We came across a tiny house in the gardens, and it said you needed to pay to enter. We figured out that they were holding tea ceremonies in there. It was such a beautiful place, so we decided to try our first tea ceremony. They didn't speak English, so we were a little unsure of what to do. We sat down waiting until they had a room ready for us. There was another couple in there, who were Japanese, but also visiting Kyoto. It was their first ceremony too, and they helped us by translating things for us.

It was incredible, right from the beginning, the hosts and hostesses serving us, were on their knees and bowing very low, just to pass something to someone inside. If they entered the room, they also did it on their knees. We also had to sit on our knees, which was very uncomfortable. After a while, all four of us found more comfortable ways of sitting.

The ceremony itself involved a pot of hot water, several tea utensils and some smaller bowls. The hostess went through several ceremonious procedures before putting ground tea leaves in a bowl of hot water, and whisking them together slowly. We each had a sweet bread to eat, then one by one a bowl of tea was made for us and each person bowed along with the hostess when they received it. The tea was beautiful, and very healthy, as you actually drink the ground tea leaves.

Chion-in Temple
Next on our walk, we visited Chion-in. It was another temple, but this one was enormous! The temple and its surrounding buildings were spread across a huge area of land, with the beautiful mountains just behind. As you entered the grounds, you passed through a huge gate, with massive doors. It was several stories high and very wide. You could pay to go up to the top and see the view.

Inside the temple grounds we found several temples, including a very big one where a group of monks and other important figures were chanting. It sounded really cool, they changed the speed at which they chanted and got faster and faster. It sounded like the chanting in Latin from secret ceremonies like the freemasons.

There were several gardens to visit, but we had already enjoyed one beautiful garden at Shoren-in. There was a huge bell and the typical altar-like water fountain, where you used a long handled scoop to fish out water to cleanse your hands before entering the temples.

Central Park

We continued on our walk and found ourselves in a beautiful park with flowers and cherry trees. There were lots of local people here, just strolling, relaxing or having picnics. There was a guy doing a street show with balloons with a big crowd watching him. He sounded like he was on one of the famous Japanese game shows. Sadly we didn't see any of these crazy game shows while we were in Japan.
As we walked out of gardens, we started to reach a little road filled with courtyard restaurants and little shops. On the side of the road we bought a fish shaped pancake with chocolate custard in the middle. Right next to his stand, someone was selling something that looked like thin noodles or fried rice. Loren tried a sample, and when looked closely, it was actually tiny, tiny little fish! You could just see the eye and the shape of the body, very weird!

As we continued walking, we got a huge shock. Two geishas were walking along the road toward us! Everyone stopped and stared, and took as many photos as possible. We figured out that they weren't real ones when they started pulling out their cameras and taking photos of each other. We had read that you could pay to be dressed up and made up like a geisha.

We kept walking and joined a beautiful cobblestone street that was filled with quaint shops. We had a look at some kimonos that were on sale at a store - very expensive! The problem with kimonos is that you don't just buy the one piece. The outfit is made up of several layers, with at least 3 different sashes for the waist. Then you also need the traditional sandals and socks, and it you really want to look authentic, decorative hairpins, fancy bags and a fan. One outfit not including accessories was sold at about USD 650.

Kyomizu-Dera
After wandering through the little streets, we eventually reached the most famous temple in Kyoto - Kyomizu-Dera. Just as we reached the top of the stairs leading to the temple grounds, we were approached by three local Japanese uni students. They asked us if they could guide us through the temple grounds, so they could practice their English. They were on an excursion for their university's English Club. In most countries, we would of have been suspicious of a scam, but in Japan, people are well off and don't need our money, so when they want to chat, they are genuinely interested in learning English.

We had a great time chatting with them. They told us the meaning of their names. One was 'summer boy', another was 'wealthy smell', and the third was '1000 backgrounds'. At first they took us around to different pagodas and explained what they were and pointed out some of the carved symbols and the roofs. They had a script to read from and an electronic translator, and they answered any of our questions. They were very sweet :)

At the entrance to the main temple they showed us these heavy iron rods which were used to test people's strength. If you were able to lift the heavier one, you'd be popular with girls. So Artur and 'summer boy' lifted it together and succeeded!

There were lots of pieces of paper tied at the front of the temple. They told us that people buy pieces of paper with fortunes on them, and if the fortunes are bad, they tie them to the temple. The view from the temple was absolutely beautiful! We could see the city of Kyoto on the horizon and the forests that covered the mountains beneath us were so lush and green.

Elsewhere in the temple grounds, we came across the famous stones of love. If you walk from one stone to the other with your eyes closed, then your love's desire will be fulfilled. If someone assists you to reach the other stone, you will need someone else's assistance to attain your love's desire.

Artur made the walk between the stones, which was quite difficult as the path between was filled with crowds of people. He was on track the whole way until the very end, when someone had to direct him back to the path.

Next we came to a temple with lots of stone carvings of babies. Each has a different face, and most people who have lost a child can find a statue that looks like their child. Each statue is given a red bib and other little toys to appease their departed souls.

Further down the mountain we saw a waterfall with three streams that fell into a pool of water. People collect the water in long-handled spoons and drink it. The first stream brings beauty, the second brings longevity and the third brings wisdom. You can't drink all three though, you can only choose one.

Paparazzi
After seeing the temple, we parted ways with our guides and exchanged email addresses.
After our sightseeing walk, we headed back along a similar route until we reached Miyako Odori. As we made our way along a little street, we noticed that everyone was standing around holding cameras, as if they were waiting for something. They looked like paparazzi. We decided to wait around and see what the excitement was. After a few minutes, a geisha slipped out of a building and hurried along her way, with everyone chasing her for pictures. Our picture wasn't that great. It was our first sighting of a real geisha though! Seconds later we saw another slipping into the back door of a house.

We realised that we had wandered into the district where you can see geisha dance performances. We tried to get tickets for the last session of the day, but it was completely sold out.

Kimono Shopping
Loren was still keen on buying a kimono, and we had heard that you could get them for decent prices if they are second-hand. After a great deal of searching, we found a store that was packed full of kimonos and all the accessories! It was a great shop, but we realised just how much room a kimono and attachments would require in our luggage, so we browsed, but didn't buy anything.

International Manga Museum
Our next stop was to the Manga Museum. For anyone that doesn't know, manga are japanese comic books. They have a distinctive drawing style, and they are written for all demographics. You are just as likely to see a businessman reading manga as a school-kid. Most manga are written like tv episodes, and you have to keep buying the next book in the series to continue the storyline.

The museum had a 150m wall of bookshelves filled with manga. There were also drawings and posters and early versions of manga. In one room we were able to watch manga on a computer. You had to click everytime you wanted to go to the next frame. It was pretty cool!
The museum also offered to draw your portrait in manga style. We were unlucky though, we missed it by about an hour. At the end we sat down and read some manga that had been translated into English. We wanted to buy some, but they didn't have any in English.

Gion Corner
We rushed back to Gion Corner at Miyako Odori where there was a performance of many different types of Japanese art, music and dance. The first thing they did was to perform a tea ceremony, but it didn't quite have the same feel to it, being performed in front of a crowd of tourists.

The second act was a performance of Koto music. Koto is a thirteen stringed instrument that is played by someone sitting on the ground behind it. While the music was playing, a lady arranged flowers in a vase in the traditional Japanese style. It is a very simple and natural style, with only a few flowers and leaves put into the vase. It seemed strange to be watching someone arrange flowers on a stage, but it was done in a very ceremonious manner, much like the tea ceremony.
The next performance was quite amusing actually, although it wasn't supposed to be. It was called Gagaku and it is a style of music accompanied by a masked dancer. This music has died out everywhere else but Japan. If you heard it, you would understand why. Our ears were a little sore afterwards.

The next performance was Kyogen which is a comic play. The play was about a master who needs to leave the village for business and is afraid that his servants will get into his stocks of sake while he is gone. He ties them up and leaves, and they try to find ingenious ways of drinking sake while being tied up.

We watched a performance of Kyomai, which is the style of dance performed by geishas. The dance is very slow and graceful, and was meant to be performed in small Japanese rooms. Their movements tell a story about a young girl and her lovelife. The costumes were beautiful and very colourful.

The final performance was Bunraku, a puppet play. The puppet was quite large and the movements looked quite realistic. Several people crowd behind the puppet to move different parts of its body. The story that she performed was a love story, it was based on a true story and is very famous in Japan.


Gyoza and Sake!
After the performance we headed out for dinner and found a beautiful area with flowering hedges lining the river. We ate at a tiny restaurant that served only gyoza - which is pretty much the same as the fried dumplings we had in China. Delicious! Apparently they're a Chinese dish, but they serve them everywhere in Japan, so we didn't feel too guilty. We had some hot sake which is surprsisingly cheap! A bottle of sake is the same price as a beer, and sake is very strong!

We decided to visit some of the little bars that are in every alleyway. We struggled to find one that had English menus, but eventually came across a tiny one that we liked. It was so small it only had one couch and some bar stools. Two guys sitting next to us introduced themselves, although they didn't speak much English. They were maths teachers at a girls school, and they were very surprised that Artur was older than me, because apparently in Japan, most guys date older women.