Kyoto

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I arrived bright and early at 7 am in Kyoto, and began the hike to my hostel. The Kyoto station had some very modern looking buildings, but it wasn’t long before I came to the first temple ground. I would soon learn that Kyoto is filled with temples. I arrived at the hostel only a couple hours later, but they were not quite ready for me yet. The hostel owner let me drop off my backpack, but asked that I return at 3 pm. I was a little bitter that he wouldn’t even let me sit down in the lobby after my 8-hour bus ride and 3 mile hike, but I soon realized he was actually doing me a huge favor.

The Kyoto Imperial Palace grounds were nearby, so I thought I’d have a look and find a place to relax for a bit. The first thing I wanted to do was use the restroom, which I figured from my experience in Tokyo would be readily available. The restroom as a whole was readily available, as there was one near the gate, but it was quite busy. In fact, the women’s room had a line of about 20 people or so, and by the time I was done, the men’s line had grown to about the same length. As I explored more of the park, I noticed temporary seating was being setup alongside a broad path leading down the center of the Imperial Palace grounds. I knew something was going to happen, but had no idea what. So I walked up to the first person who looked like they spoke English and asked them if they knew. A British woman told me that this was the Jidai Matsuri, or Festival of the Ages… and I just happened to stumble upon it. As I walked around I saw many people dressed in costume. There were samurais, geishas, and many others, and I managed to get my picture taken with some samurais. Some people were gathered on top of a small hill alongside what would soon be the path of a parade. Though the hill seemed to be roped off, no one seemed to care.

The parade began and a female announcer narrated each portion. I have no idea what she was saying, but I’m assuming that she was describing each portion as different era or major event in Kyoto history. Parade participants seemed to be largely volunteers, if not completely. Some were young, some were old, some were playing instruments, some were displaying weapons, some were on horseback, and some stopped to give short performances. Each participant on horseback was accompanied by a guide to lead the horse, but a few of the horses were not as obedient as others. One horse stopped and refused to move forward anymore. The guide kept trying to overpower the horse and force it forward, but the horse stayed in position for a good five minutes before finally giving in and walking forward. It caused such a noticeable disruption, that everyone clapped when the horse finally began moving forward again. Towards the end there were floats on big wooden wheels, at least I don’t know what else to call them, but they weren’t pulled by cars. About ten or so male participants would push these floats, upon which sat one or two extravagantly dressed people. Once the final “float” traveled down the path, everyone disbanded, and the Imperial Palace grounds were suddenly very empty. I wandered around a little more, but a lot of the older features of the grounds were not open to the public. However, I did happen to find about 4 baseball fields right on the grounds. After all that excitement I headed back to the hostel where I could get some much needed rest.

For the next day, my plan was visit some of the historical preserves in the area. I started with a place called Nijo Castle, which was just a few blocks from the hostel. This castle was surrounded by a moat about 10 feet wide and a wall about 20 feet high on most sides. Within the outer wall were many old buildings and well-kept gardens. The closest building, Ninomaru Palace, was open to the public, so I started with a walk through it. After leaving my shoes behind, I walked through the hallways of this palace looking through each of the rooms, which were blocked from entry. In each room were ancient paintings depicting leopards and tigers, natural scenery, and human interactions. There were signs posted asking guests not to open the windows to help preserve these paintings. Some rooms held mannequins clothed in an appropriate fashion and depicting what could have been seen in this Palace’s day. One room held a classroom of students sitting before a teacher, all of them sitting on the floor, because there was not one chair or table in sight. Another room held soldiers at attention before a general, again with everyone sitting on the floor. The wooden floor of the hallway creeked to alarm sleeping dwellers of intruders as one sign read (right, that’s why my floors creek too).

The rest of the sights at Nijo castle were outside. At the far corner was an overlook where one could see all of Nijo and a lot of Kyoto as well. A path led from there around the inside of the castle wall, where plants were setup in order of blooming season. I followed the path until I ended up back at the entrance, but not before going through a small area where souvenirs and snacks were sold. I bought a tray of what appeared to be small balls of dough on skewers smothered in syrup. They turned out to be very gooey and the syrup was accompanied by cinnamon powder to complete the flavor.

I moved on to explore the temples of Nishihoganji and Higashihonganji. These two temples were right next to each other and were very similar. The temple grounds were surrounded by a wall of about 10 feet, and each temple sat atop stairs as wide as the temple. At the base of the stairs were plastic bags for visitors to put their shoes in while exploring the inside of the temple. Inside the temple were wide open rooms for many to gather. Across from the seating area, and barred from entry, I could see large displays of Buddhas adorned in gold and surrounded by flowers. These appeared to be about 6 feet high, and sitting in an area only slightly smaller than the seating area. Just outside the Higashihoganji temple, which was under structural repair, was a small display depicting the construction of the temple. Apparently, rope was made from the hair of the laborers and other donators because it was stronger than using horse hair, or any other fiber used at the time. One such rope was on display which was at least a couple inches in diameter, and filling a wooden a spool about 3 feet high and 3 feet wide.

From the Higashihonganji temple, I headed back towards the hostel, but along the main shopping corridor of Kyoto. Here all the high-end fashion shops were distributed in between large gaming venues boasting pachinko and slot. I entered one such gaming venue to find a trash can to discover that pachinko machines are very loud. This game consists of dropping a steel ball through a vertical arrangement of bars directing the ball in random directions in hopes that it will fall into one of a few pockets before making its way to the bottom. It’s like plinko, from the Price is Right, combined with a slot machine, and people will play it obsessively. In fact, you can see baskets full of the steels balls sitting on the ground around these machines. I continued down the corridor for about a mile where the energy calmed back down to the normal features of Kyoto streets.

That evening I asked the hostel owner where the local flavor was. He directed me to an authentic Japanese restaurant just a few blocks away. Upon entering I removed my shoes and stepped up on the platform that spread across almost the entire restaurant. The platform stopped just before the tables so people could sit on the edge of the platform. Oddly, the food was all sitting out in big dishes for patrons to select from, but this was the Japanese tradition. I was served by the only girl who spoke English at the restaurant, who had studied abroad in Los Angeles for a semester. I asked her for her recommendations, and she suggested a root vegetable, minced meatballs, and eel. The root vegetable was cubed and mixed with a few hot peppers making it spicy. The meatballs were made from bits of chicken and fish breaded and fried and served with a small mound of salt and pepper for dipping. The eel was swimming in a sweeter sauce, and was very tender. I noticed as I was eating it that many of the bones were still in the eel, but way too many to try and pick out. I talked with the server while dining about our experiences abroad, and she complimented me on my chopstick proficiency. After the meal, she served me a small cup of Japanese green tea. Once I finished, I thanked her and the rest of the staff, which I assumed were all of the same immediate family, for a great authentic Japanese experience.

For my last day in Kyoto, I set out to hike up Mt. Diamonji. Mt. Diamonji was part of the mountain range on the east side of Kyoto. Kyoto sat in the middle of a few small mountain ranges which separated it from the surrounding cities. The layout of the area reminded me of Los Angeles, and how areas like Hollywood and Burbank are separated. Mt. Daimonji was famous for a gigantic symbol of power comprised of walkways carved into a large clearing of the face of the mountain viewable from Kyoto. Along these walkways were many small fireplaces, and once a year these are lit to produce a fiery power symbol burning through the night. Along the hike I was greeted by many passing locals with a simple “Konnichiwa”. As I approached the summit I came to a small shrine on display in the middle of the power symbol. From here I was able to see all of Kyoto and more, but I followed the path to the top of the symbol before stopping for pictures and a snack. Past the top, the trail led even further, and though it didn’t lead me to a view of the water which I knew was on the other side somewhere, it did lead me to a view of the cities of Nara and Osaka. At least you’re supposed to be able to see Osaka on a clear day, but this day may not have been clear enough to see that far. At this distance, it was hard to tell where one city ended and the next city began. I took a different path on the way back down, which turned out to be much more difficult than the hike up.

That evening I ate a small place advertising meat skewers for cheap. Though they had an English menu, no one spoke English very well, but that didn’t keep the local patrons from engaging in conversation. Slowly, and with the help of the college student, I told them about myself and how I ended up in Japan. The meat skewers were small, but I got the impression a normal meal consisted of about five to seven. I had the beef, asparagus wrapped in bacon, and breaded pork and cheese. It was all very delicious, and I could have eaten twenty. One older patron, who was enjoying the conversation, insisted that I try some shoju, which was a kind of Japanese rice wine. The shoju, which was served on ice, was largely tasteless, but smooth. The owner and main chef was very friendly, and I complimented him on the delicious food.

Kyoto was much calmer than Tokyo, as was expected, but still quite urban. The city was absolutely full of temples, and one could spend days just exploring them alone. However, I got the feeling that if you had seen one, then you had seen them all. Many of the restaurants were closed in the afternoon, as if the town had an unofficial siesta. However, I think owners just found that with little to no business at these hours, keeping restaurants open during these hours was not profitable. The mountains which surround Kyoto give the city great scenery in pretty much any direction. The highlight my experience was definitely the Festival of the Ages. Stumbling into that was one of the reassurances that I should just keep wandering around and keeping my eyes open when traveling. I will surely never forget that.

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Photos

Festival of Ages
I'm the one on the right, if you couldn't tell.

Festival of Ages
The overage fees back in those days were just horrendous.

Festival of Ages
The opening

Festival of Ages
This horse has his own plan.

Nijo Castle
Ninomaru Palace

Nijo Castle
View from the corner lookout.

Higashihonganji
Hair rope

Mt Daimonji
You can see the fireplaces every so often to the right of the foot path.

Mt. Daimonji
View of Kyoto and the northern mountains.

Mt. Daimonji
View from the Imperial Palace