Kyoto / Hakata - Day 8

---

Well what a weird day!

For a start off, guess who spoke too soon? Anyone reading yesterday will have spotted my attempt to tempt fate by mentioning the gloriously hot and sunny weather we're enjoying - well today it poured it down and when I say poured it down I mean welcome to the monsoon season!

We went first to the Higashi Honganji - the mausoleum of Shinran Shonin, the founder of Shin Buddhism. We entered the Amida Hall, which once again was stunning, but no photography was allowed and then we walked around through the renovation works in the Founders Hall and down into their basement galleries. This was the first religious place we'd visited that was not just for display but also recruitment.

We left the mausoleum and the rain was even heavier, so we opted to get something to eat and found a sushi bar at Kyoto Station. Anthony had fried beef sushi and fried tofu rolls. I opted for raw tuna sushi and chicken sushi. We both ventured to have boiled octopus, which was extremely chewy. Anthony managed just one of these, which left me with the other five to eat. A very interesting experience and one not to be forgotten in a hurry.

That concluded, it was still pouring down and after another bout of school children interviews and photographs we decided to be completely reckless and use our Japan Rail passes to jump on a Shinkansen to Hakata station in the city of Fukuoka on Kyūshū island, a journey of 413 miles west that took just over three hours and was not a single minute late at any point of the journey (GNER & Virgin please take note).

By the time of our arrival in Fukuoka we had got into clearer weather as the clouds were heading east, so we had a short stop in the city, did a bit of electrical shopping, visited Starbucks as Anthony fancied a HOT coffee, as much as he'd been enjoying iced coffee all week and I fancied a hot chocolate. We then jumped back on the train to Kyoto and again there wasn't a single minute of tardiness.

The weather is set for better for Saturday, which is Anthony's 35th birthday (he catches up with me again), so we'll attempt to hit the remainder of our target spots in Kyoto then, as it's our last day here. It hasn't been a particularly picturesque day, but we had fun doing something mad on the spur of the moment and we got off Honshu and onto Kyūshū, even if it was briefly! Enjoy the bank holiday weekend, we understand it's meant to be the usual - raining on Bank Holiday Monday!! Nighty, night all x

---

Photos

Higashi Honganji
The Amida Hall in the rain! The buidling to the right is the temporary building built over the Founder's Hall for its restoration.

Higashi Honganji
Part of the building left exclusively for worshippers and not for visiting non-believers

Higashi Honganji
One of the smaller entry gates at Higashi Honganji

Kyoto Station
The impressive interior of the Japan Railways station at Kyoto

JR Station Kyoto
More of the massive and imposing station that greets you as you arrive in Kyoto

Hakata Station area
Taxis await visitors arriving at Hakata station in Fukuoka, the largest and busiest station on Kyūshū

Hakata Station building
The massive and dominating frontage of Hakata Station in Fukuoka, Kyūshū.

Comments

[Helen]

Day 8
Another fun packed day, all be it in the rain! So no pictures of either of you in your trunks yet! Yes you're right it is supposed to rain here to this weekend darn it but here's hoping. What was the raw fish like? V brave of you. Tony, enjoy your birthday, what a fab place to spend it.

[dorothea]

lotsa of good stuff on temples and castles, but what is your take on modern Japan? Have they kept their unique culture?

[dorothea]

eh?
Just re read this Am I right. 3 hours on a train. go to Starbucks. 3 hours back. Hope the views out the window were good