Today was our full day in Kyoto and we had a lot to do. By the end of the day we would walk over 11 miles. Our first stop was Arashiyama.
Arashiyama:
The first time we were in Japan, and Kyoto for the matter, we intended to go to Arashiyama, but between a mixture of losing daylight, misunderstanding the subway map and the threat of rain, we decided to save it for our return trip, which we made sure to hit this time around. To get to Arashiyama we started out taking the subway from Kawaramachi Station to Uzumasa Tenjingawa Station, followed by a brief walk to Randen Tenjingawa Station which we then boarded a single-car train to Arashiyama Station. During the ride we meandered through very narrow thoroughfares surrounded by Kyoto city where the buildings came right up to the edges of the tracks. Once we arrived in Arashiyama we were amidst vast crowds of travelers both japanese and international. The streets, on either side were overflowing from the amount of people, but we found our way through them and with them to the bamboo forest for which Arashiyama is well known. We’ve seen many pictures of the forest before, but after being there I wondered how anyone got pictures of vacant paths among the bamboo due to the sheer amount of visitors. Nevertheless, the forest was still a sight to behold:
The bamboo stretched out on either side of the trail very far and for the most part you couldn’t see the edges of the forest. We saw lots of girls wearing kimono here, as well as many rickshaws being pulled through the crowds. After we headed back down to the path we stopped to get some desserts, mochi and dango, to tide us over and we then worked our way due south to Arashiyama’s Monkey Park.
We walked along a bustling road with many souvenir shops and restaurants. We then crossed a bridge built over a river followed by a smaller bridge over a smaller river. The first river was a rich deep blue (I have a picture of it later in this post) while the second was greener in tone as you see here:
Arashiyama Monkey Park:
Beyond the above view, we crossed over a small road and climbed a small stair set to find ourselves at the base of the mountain the monkey park was on. At the outset visitors are warned it’s a 20 minute hike up a mountain trail to see the monkeys. You are also given your tickets with warnings as well as many posted warnings along the trail on how to behave around the monkeys. Rule number 1… “Do not stare the monkeys in the eyes”.
The trail itself was really nice to walk; it was covered by trees and although steep in some areas it was very traversable. The shade and the cool breeze were welcomed for the hike up and a nice break from the hot sun overhead. Once we reached the top we found ourselves at a beautiful vantage point to look over all of Kyoto:
Just behind the view of the above picture was a building where you could feed the monkeys from and some benches. The monkeys, however, are free to roam and will walk right up to you, they climb and run in and out of the crowd. Here is a picture of the monkeys, you can see one in the center back too sitting hunched over:
After we watched the monkeys a bit we decided to try feeding them too. To feed them, you had to go into a building that had caging around the visitors since apparently the monkeys can get out of hand when it comes to food. They were well behaved for us while we were there though. We chose to feed them apples and the monkeys were definitely eager to eat them. Here’s Sara feeding one:
It was really neat because you could feel their hands grab the apples too. When they saw you getting a piece from the bag they would stick their hands through the cage and just look around waiting patiently for their piece.
Once all the apples were gone we walked around some more and then headed back down the mountain. Once at the bottom, we walked along the river I mentioned earlier and took this picture:
Kiyomizu-dera Temple:
We walked down a few streets and boarded a train back into the center of Kyoto to Kiyomizu-dera Temple. We had been there before on our last trip, but it’s a really nice area so we went back. We ate some ice cream since we had about a 30 minute walk from the train station and we had to walk up a slowly sloping hill to the top where the temple was. We were running out of time to go into the temple grounds more than we did since we had to get to a tea ceremony we signed up for, which was nearby. At the top of the hill the entrance gate to the temple looks like this:
We walked around a little bit more then headed down a few side streets nearby and we ate a dessert that was a multi-spiced cracker:
We then walked a little further until we reached the location the tea ceremony was in.
Tea Ceremony:
When we entered we took off our shoes and headed to the second floor of the building where we sat on the floor. A man dressed in a yukata and a woman dressed in a kimono accompanied us in the room. She then explained the history of the tea ceremony and how the ritual that is still performed and preserved today has been unchanged in over 400 years. She had explained how the ceremony is to greet guests and to instill a sense of peace and tranquility and to forget one’s troubles.
During a tea ceremony conversations should never be about potentially heated topics such as politics. During the actually making of the tea, however, everyone is to be quiet and listen to just the sounds of the utensils used to pour the water and stir the tea. It is to be a form of art and it is. Every move the lady made was deliberate and carefully orchestrated. She was poised, confident and precise even with the room of onlookers. She then prepared a bowl of tea and presented it to the first guest in the room to drink. The guest of honor is the guest nearest the tea maker and nearest the artwork by the entrance, in this case it was a man from Italy. After she made the tea and he drank it, she explained that a true tea ceremony lasts roughly four hours since each bowl of tea is prepared one at a time and presented to one guest at a time, one bowl of tea takes several minutes to prepare. Here’s a picture:
After we viewed the ceremony we were given a chance to prepare our own tea. We were explained how to hold the bowl, how much tea powder to add (since we were drinking matcha which was grown in Uji just south of Kyoto) and how to stir it. The bowl normally has artwork on it and you should turn the bowl so the most beautiful part of the artwork faces you. You then add the tea and stir it with the mixer shown below. You mix it vigorously to form a froth on top then it is ready to drink. You then take the bowl in your right hand, place it so it lies in your left palm then turn it two times clockwise, so the artwork is about 90 degrees from facing you, that is so you aren’t putting your lips over the art and is a part of zen, as we were explained. Here’s what the tea and mixer looked like:
To end the day we headed back to the streets near our hotel and had dinner. We then stocked up on some drinks after walking all day and retired for the night.
Tomorrow we explore Kyoto some more before heading to Osaka.
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