Happy New Year, everyone!
It is now year of the hare, so all you '87ers out there, this one is ours! Today we woke up in Kyoto--what a great thing to say. This city is a-mazing, and with the Setsuban celebrations it was doubly so. Lana pointed out a great place on our street to get breakfast--a place called Choco Cro.
Yeah, they serve chocolate croissants almost exclusively. And coffee. Sooo amazing.
Now, navigating a new city is always a challenge. From food to transportation to human interactions. It's always a good idea to be polite, but in Japan it actually serves you well. People are very helpful, and very gracious. A breath of fresh air after the lack of customer service and common courtesy I found in England. However, it didn't take much for the three of is to find our way today. From buying tickets, to taking the bus, to navigating the streets--it was easier than I had thought. Perhaps life as an adventurer has had it's practical advantages.
Our first stop was actually a wrong turn that turned right. The Shinnyido Temple as less touristy and more of a place people came to pray, meditate, and pay their respects at on New Years Day.
At the top of a small hill/mountain it was incredibly peaceful. it almost seemed rude to be a tourist there, but no one bothered us and we were respectful. From there we were easily able to walk through to the Yoshida Shrine.
It was crowded with so many more people, and outside of it was a huge market for the festival. A huge bonfire was being prepared with offerings for the evening. There was amazing street food--though I had to watch out, being vegetarian.
Had the best corn on the cob of my life, and really wanted to try the chocolate covered banana with hello panda stuck to it.
From there we walked down the hill and back into town, where we caught the bus to Gion. Shopping was way too much fun, and afterwards we went to the Yasaka Shrine.
We saw Geisha's perform their traditional dance, and as they entered and exited the stage they were treated like celebrities. Everyone was snapping photos like a red carpet event in leisceister square. We caught some of the performance on video.
After the dance was over the entire ensemble threw beans in the air at us, in celebration of the new year. We even snagged a bag.
After the performance we took a walk at golden hour through the beautiful streets of the okazaki area. So many more crafts stores, buddah statues, tea houses and temples.
Geisha sighting!
Tomorrow we plan to go to the Nishijin Textile Center (my personal favorite!) and then Kinkakuji Temple (home of the Golden Pavilion) and Ritsumeikan Daigakumae to see the zen gardens. Hopefully after so much walking we can have a bit of a lie in (and more choco cro...)
hope all is well in February. Oh, did the groundhog see his shadow?
Xoxo,
Antonia
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