Geishas of Gion

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I am getting behind on my blogging so I am going to try and cover the last three days in one big hit. This will be tough. Are you ready?

Downtown

Over the last few days we have been exploring the downtown region of Kyoto where there is lots of shopping to do, sights to see and food to eat. While we were exploring the downtown area, we discovered a local board-game cafe where you could come in and play games (for a price). It was pretty cheap and we are always looking to learn new games. As we entered we were roped into a mass game of 'Dobble'. Then the owner taught us two more games- a slightly more difficult variation on Jenga and a strategy game called Kingdomino.

Kyoto Tower

One evening this week we climbed Kyoto tower, I say 'climb'- what I mean is: 'we took an elevator.' The city is even bigger than I had envisaged. I am glad we went at night, the city sparkles like a glittering jewel. On the observation floor you can access high-powered binoculars for free and see the peak hour traffic banking up on main roads. There are also large touch screens panels facing each direction that point out major highlights of the city.

Kennin-Ji Temple

This was Kyoto's first Zen temple. It is humongous and beautiful. Each room has a detailed mural. The most impressive feature is the gigantic dragon ceiling painting that was completed for the 800th anniversary. This painting was completed by just one man in 2 years.

Teppanyaki

Truly the food here must be eaten to be believed. So much care is taken in every element of the meal: the ingredients, preparation, presentation... It is no surprise that it is a delight to my tastebuds (and less so to my wallet). One of my favourite lunches in Kyoto has been Teppanyaki (iron grill). James had pork noodles and I had okonomyaki. It was cooked on a main grillplate and then transferred to the grillplate built into our table.

Gion

Gion is one of the oldest areas of Japan. It is filled with old houses, shrines, temples and art. Gion is one of the most well known Geisha areas in Japan. If you are lucky, you can see them walk gracefully between their shows. However, we witnessed that a negative culture has evolved around Geishas- many tourists take it too far. As we were walking along the streets of Gion, a wall of tourists (paparazzi) had set up with tripods and cameras to await a Geisha exiting her house!

We decided that instead of harassing them, we would just support their trade. We went to Gion Corner to watch a Geisha Show. We saw 5 traditional arts: a comedy show, tea ceremony, Geisha dance, Court Music and Japanese music.



Kyoto you have been amazing- you have left warm fuzzy feelings in our hearts and I'm sure we have left an impression on you. (Particularly after karaoke tonight.) Tomorrow- somewhere new...

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