Kyoto

Last weekend we made a trip into Kyoto. We took the express train into Kyoto station at nine in the morning, and the second largest train station in Japan was already busy. The buses were full and after a few stops we were packed in. At one point the driver had to ask people to stop getting on the bus because the doors wouldn’t close. The first stop we made was at the Kinkaku-ji; the Temple of the Golden Pavilion. The Golden Pavilion is on a small lake surrounded by trees, far enough from the main road that if it were not for all the tourists you could really feel like you were in the wilderness.

After we left the Kinkaku-ji, our group endured another cramped bus ride to get to Nijo castle. The castle grounds are immaculately manicured; while we were there the grounds staff was trimming the bonsai trees near the keep. I have found that the Japanese pay a high attention to maintaining the landscape architecture of their castle.

After leaving Nijo castle we hopped another bus and made our way to the Gion district. Although the temple we found to be open was unimpressive, the streets were full of people. Cutting through Gion is the Kamo River. Between Third and Fourth Avenues there are a series of large blocks in the river, and we made our way out to get a spectacular view of the shoreline. People lined the river lounging in the afternoon, and houses and restaurants had balconies which lined the banks above the pathway.

After leaving the river we wandered around the streets of the Gion district. The small streets were only a car width wide, and shoppers filled the road after cars went past. We found a slew of boutiques which sold overpriced, vintage clothes from America. One shop sold antique wood-block prints for hundreds of dollars. I was thrilled to find an English-language bookstore, where I bought a translation of a best-selling Japanese author. To my chagrin I have discovered that Starbucks is even more expensive in Japan.

The streets of Kyoto at night were surprisingly deserted. I really enjoy walking around Japan after dark, because most places are surreally quite. The train station was still busy at ten at night, and we made our way home on another packed train to an empty Hikone train station.