Today we traveled back in time to ancient Japan. When I say ancient, I mean 794 A.D. to 1868 A.D. My group got on the train and moved to Kyoto, Japan this morning. Whenever one thinks of samurai, sweet looking Japanese castles, geisha's, or Tom Cruise with a katana, one should think of Kyoto. Kyoto was the capital of Japan from 794-1868 A.D., and therefore it was the city that played the most key role in shaping Japanese culture and business practices, aside from Edo (Tokyo). 
One of the coolest things about Kyoto is that you could call it the complete opposite of Tokyo. Tokyo is an international city. Sure, Kyoto has a McDonald’s at the train terminal, but any amount of venturing away from any connection with the outside world will only convince you that the city still clings to the culture it has held for 1000 years-all Japanese. Mind you, this is what excites me the most about this city. Like Dr. Londo and my good friend Dave (I haven’t found plum wine here), I have an appreciation for Japan’s ancient culture and the connection that modern Japan has with its roots. All societies have this connection, and even America in one sense can be considered a conglomerate of microcosmic connections with many different cultures.
In essence, today was to be our day off. We got off the train, headed for our hotel, the Rhiga Royal (more like the Rhiga Spoil-this place didn’t have free internet), and got a pork lunch. After this, we were on our own. Most of us opted for shopping downtown. I, however, preferred something a little more adventurous (plus I hate shopping). I wanted to go see the Kiyomizu-dera, a Buddhist temple that dates back to the beginning of Kyoto’s rise as the capital of Japan in the 8th century. Unfortunately, this place was too far by bus and about to close, so my bud Kevin and I opted for some touring of the sites around our hotel.
Before I start, let me tell you that there are 16 historic sites in all of Kyoto, which is a lot of ancient real estate. Therefore, it makes sense that there are like 5 in downtown Kyoto. Our first destination was Nishi Hongan-ji, a Buddhist temple and the world headquarters for the Jodo Shinshu sect. This place was elaborate, and in the moat on the outside were bamboo shoots that volunteers and temple workers were putting candles in; apparently this was all for a festival of some kind.
The second temple we visited was the Higashi Hongan-ji temple. We were a little disappointed when we all we saw was a massive warehouse contraption over the top of it. Apparently the temple is under construction until 2011, which means my boys and I from back home are gonna skip the Canada road trip and book ourselves a flight to Kyoto. Not really, but I do like Japan and want to come back. Th
e gardens we walked to were closed as well, which meant that Kevin and I felt like getting on the subway to SOMEWHERE. We hopped on and went down two stations. This is the point in my journey when I realized just how Japanese Kyoto is. We were the only non-Japanese people for miles. Funny thing is, I heard a Japanese flute, called a Shakuhachi, being played by someone underneath a bridge. Ironically, he was some European guy, and the last person we expected to see playing a Shakuhachi By this time, my camera battery died, so I have no pictures of our trip downtown…
…tomorrow, Nara…
One of the coolest things about Kyoto is that you could call it the complete opposite of Tokyo. Tokyo is an international city. Sure, Kyoto has a McDonald’s at the train terminal, but any amount of venturing away from any connection with the outside world will only convince you that the city still clings to the culture it has held for 1000 years-all Japanese. Mind you, this is what excites me the most about this city. Like Dr. Londo and my good friend Dave (I haven’t found plum wine here), I have an appreciation for Japan’s ancient culture and the connection that modern Japan has with its roots. All societies have this connection, and even America in one sense can be considered a conglomerate of microcosmic connections with many different cultures.
In essence, today was to be our day off. We got off the train, headed for our hotel, the Rhiga Royal (more like the Rhiga Spoil-this place didn’t have free internet), and got a pork lunch. After this, we were on our own. Most of us opted for shopping downtown. I, however, preferred something a little more adventurous (plus I hate shopping). I wanted to go see the Kiyomizu-dera, a Buddhist temple that dates back to the beginning of Kyoto’s rise as the capital of Japan in the 8th century. Unfortunately, this place was too far by bus and about to close, so my bud Kevin and I opted for some touring of the sites around our hotel.
Before I start, let me tell you that there are 16 historic sites in all of Kyoto, which is a lot of ancient real estate. Therefore, it makes sense that there are like 5 in downtown Kyoto. Our first destination was Nishi Hongan-ji, a Buddhist temple and the world headquarters for the Jodo Shinshu sect. This place was elaborate, and in the moat on the outside were bamboo shoots that volunteers and temple workers were putting candles in; apparently this was all for a festival of some kind.
The second temple we visited was the Higashi Hongan-ji temple. We were a little disappointed when we all we saw was a massive warehouse contraption over the top of it. Apparently the temple is under construction until 2011, which means my boys and I from back home are gonna skip the Canada road trip and book ourselves a flight to Kyoto. Not really, but I do like Japan and want to come back. Th
e gardens we walked to were closed as well, which meant that Kevin and I felt like getting on the subway to SOMEWHERE. We hopped on and went down two stations. This is the point in my journey when I realized just how Japanese Kyoto is. We were the only non-Japanese people for miles. Funny thing is, I heard a Japanese flute, called a Shakuhachi, being played by someone underneath a bridge. Ironically, he was some European guy, and the last person we expected to see playing a Shakuhachi By this time, my camera battery died, so I have no pictures of our trip downtown……tomorrow, Nara…
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