We woke up at 6:30 am and started the day with in-room coffee. After getting ready and packing, we checked-out at 9:30 am and left the suitcase with the luggage storage of our hotel. Since we're coming towards the last couple of days of our trip, we decided to splurge and have a fancy breakfast at our hotel. Everything was amazing - we shared a salmon topped baguette with salad, an omelette, half portion of french toast with fresh watermelon juice and a smoothie. We left the hotel at 11 am and took a detour to the closest ATM to withdraw cash and then got lost in the inner streets before finally reaching our first stop of the day Senjusengendo Temple at 11:40 am.
The Senjusengendo Temple is famous for its hall that has 1001 statues of Buddha. 1000 of them are identical and flank the 1001th giant Buddha on both sides. In front of the row of these 1000 statues, there are 28 statues of deities. The most interesting thing about them was that most of these are Hindu gods like Vishnu, Brahma and Sarasvati that have been incorporated into Buddhism in Japan. This hall of statutes is very impressive and the building is a wooden structure that is over 750 years old.
When we came out of the temple, it was raining so we took a cab to our next stop of the day, the Kiyomizu-dera. The cab dropped us off in the Higashiyama area and we walked on cobblestone streets up the hill while window-shopping at various souvenir shops of both sides of the road. After ten minutes of walking, we entered the Kiyomizu-dera complex. It is perhaps the most famous temple complex of Kyoto and has numerous temples, pagodas and a waterfall. Unfortunately, the giant pagoda was under renovation so we couldn't see it. Then we went to an underground tunnel which was pitch dark and we were holding a side rail for directions. When I say pitch dark, it was completely black and you couldn't see anything at all. We followed the trail to a sacred stone and legend says that you can put your right hand on it and make one wish and it will come true. Samia's wish was generic about health and happiness whereas mine was very specific and very worldly. Of course, if I have $10 million one day, you will know that my wish came true! When we came out of the tunnel, some local Japanese school kids asked us if they could ask us a few questions for their school project and we gladly obliged. We could see that it was an opportunity for the kids to interact with tourists and find out what brought them to Japan and also practice their English. At the end of it, they took a picture with us too (perhaps to be submitted as proof that they interviewed real people and didn't make stuff up for their project). It had started raining again. We walked through another giant temple and passed through it to walk on a long walkway only to come down again in front of a waterfall that is supposed to bring good luck for those who wash their hands and make a wish. We were done making wishes for the day so it was a quick photo stop after which we started making our way to the exit which was another peaceful walk with lots of greenery all around.
It was still raining so we took another cab to our next stop of the day, the Heain Shrine or the Heain-jingu. It is a Shinto shrine and just before the shrine, on the main road, is a huge orange Pi-shaped gate. When we entered the white gravel strewn main courtyard, we were surprised to find out that they were setting up chairs and sound system in the courtyard for what looked like a concert! We couldn't find out the reason for the concert-like setup since we entered what we had come to see, the gardens that lie behind the shrine. Like all other gardens we have seen in Japan so far, this was extremely green and walking through it was a calming experience. We had the opportunity to walk through a pond by stepping on stones that were laid out close enough to each other to enable one to cross the entire length of the pond. There were water lily flowers growing in the pond so we took some very nice pictures. We kept walking through the gardens for another half an hour or so before making our way out.
It had finally stopped raining so we put away our umbrellas and waited for the bus. The bus took us to our next stop of the day, the Ginkaku-ji or the Silver Pavilion. After getting off the bus, we had a short 5 minute walk up another cobblestone path hill, lined by souvenir shops on both sides. This temple was built by the the grandson of the Shogun who had ordered the construction of the Golden pavilion that was our highlight for yesterday. Ginkaku-ji is different in a couple of ways from its golden cousin. There are no pagoda style overlaid roofs over a single building, rather only the top layer of the roofs of the multiple interconnected buildings are colored silver and you have to walk through a long green path before you are high enough to see the silver roofs. The second difference is that this temple has a Zen rock garden. The walk was again very peaceful and green and it's easy to visualize that monk or not, how anyone doing this walk day in and day out could be at peace in this world. As we were making our way out, it started raining again but by the time we got to the end of the cobblestone path and reached the bus stop, it had stopped. We enjoyed the long bus ride back to the bus stop right next to our hotel.
After a quick freshening up break at the hotel (that included Samia changing her shoes since her shoes had become completely wet by all the walking in the rain on another hot and humid day), we took a cab to our last stop of the day, the Fushimi Inari temple that is famous for its thousand gates that are lined one next to the other, making a long pathway of orange gates that look quite stunning. They're probably the most famous highlight of Kyoto for many tourists because in the movie "Memoirs of a Geisha", there is a scene in which the main character is shown running through these orange gates. We got there when the light was starting to fade but we were still able to get some nice pictures.
After that, we first took a train to Kyoto station and then took a cab back to our hotel. We had dinner at our hotel's Italian restaurant and it was another delicious meal - fresh fried calamari, seafood pizza and then lamb shank. Everything tasted divine although Samia had to look away while I removed the heads and tails of the shrimps that were on our pizza!
Kyoto has lived up to its reputation of being the heart of ancient Japan. The temples, the shrines, the castles and the gardens all transport you back in time to the past of this glorious and magical nation and we're very fortunate to have had a chance to witness and experience a slice of that part of Japanese history.
After dinner, we collected our suitcase from the concierge desk and then took a cab to the Kyoto station to catch our 8:40 pm Shinkansen train to the Shinagawa station in Tokyo. After reaching Shinagawa at 11 pm, we walked to the same hotel where we stayed during our first three nights in Japan and that's where we will be ending our trip. The hotel staff had already sent our suitcase up to our new room. The service quality throughout Japan keeps impressing us.
We have a few things left for Tokyo that we will explore tomorrow. After that, we have to reach the airport at 10 pm for the 9 hour direct flight to Seattle that will take off at just after midnight local time. Till then, take care and good night!
The Senjusengendo Temple is famous for its hall that has 1001 statues of Buddha. 1000 of them are identical and flank the 1001th giant Buddha on both sides. In front of the row of these 1000 statues, there are 28 statues of deities. The most interesting thing about them was that most of these are Hindu gods like Vishnu, Brahma and Sarasvati that have been incorporated into Buddhism in Japan. This hall of statutes is very impressive and the building is a wooden structure that is over 750 years old.
When we came out of the temple, it was raining so we took a cab to our next stop of the day, the Kiyomizu-dera. The cab dropped us off in the Higashiyama area and we walked on cobblestone streets up the hill while window-shopping at various souvenir shops of both sides of the road. After ten minutes of walking, we entered the Kiyomizu-dera complex. It is perhaps the most famous temple complex of Kyoto and has numerous temples, pagodas and a waterfall. Unfortunately, the giant pagoda was under renovation so we couldn't see it. Then we went to an underground tunnel which was pitch dark and we were holding a side rail for directions. When I say pitch dark, it was completely black and you couldn't see anything at all. We followed the trail to a sacred stone and legend says that you can put your right hand on it and make one wish and it will come true. Samia's wish was generic about health and happiness whereas mine was very specific and very worldly. Of course, if I have $10 million one day, you will know that my wish came true! When we came out of the tunnel, some local Japanese school kids asked us if they could ask us a few questions for their school project and we gladly obliged. We could see that it was an opportunity for the kids to interact with tourists and find out what brought them to Japan and also practice their English. At the end of it, they took a picture with us too (perhaps to be submitted as proof that they interviewed real people and didn't make stuff up for their project). It had started raining again. We walked through another giant temple and passed through it to walk on a long walkway only to come down again in front of a waterfall that is supposed to bring good luck for those who wash their hands and make a wish. We were done making wishes for the day so it was a quick photo stop after which we started making our way to the exit which was another peaceful walk with lots of greenery all around.
It was still raining so we took another cab to our next stop of the day, the Heain Shrine or the Heain-jingu. It is a Shinto shrine and just before the shrine, on the main road, is a huge orange Pi-shaped gate. When we entered the white gravel strewn main courtyard, we were surprised to find out that they were setting up chairs and sound system in the courtyard for what looked like a concert! We couldn't find out the reason for the concert-like setup since we entered what we had come to see, the gardens that lie behind the shrine. Like all other gardens we have seen in Japan so far, this was extremely green and walking through it was a calming experience. We had the opportunity to walk through a pond by stepping on stones that were laid out close enough to each other to enable one to cross the entire length of the pond. There were water lily flowers growing in the pond so we took some very nice pictures. We kept walking through the gardens for another half an hour or so before making our way out.
It had finally stopped raining so we put away our umbrellas and waited for the bus. The bus took us to our next stop of the day, the Ginkaku-ji or the Silver Pavilion. After getting off the bus, we had a short 5 minute walk up another cobblestone path hill, lined by souvenir shops on both sides. This temple was built by the the grandson of the Shogun who had ordered the construction of the Golden pavilion that was our highlight for yesterday. Ginkaku-ji is different in a couple of ways from its golden cousin. There are no pagoda style overlaid roofs over a single building, rather only the top layer of the roofs of the multiple interconnected buildings are colored silver and you have to walk through a long green path before you are high enough to see the silver roofs. The second difference is that this temple has a Zen rock garden. The walk was again very peaceful and green and it's easy to visualize that monk or not, how anyone doing this walk day in and day out could be at peace in this world. As we were making our way out, it started raining again but by the time we got to the end of the cobblestone path and reached the bus stop, it had stopped. We enjoyed the long bus ride back to the bus stop right next to our hotel.
After a quick freshening up break at the hotel (that included Samia changing her shoes since her shoes had become completely wet by all the walking in the rain on another hot and humid day), we took a cab to our last stop of the day, the Fushimi Inari temple that is famous for its thousand gates that are lined one next to the other, making a long pathway of orange gates that look quite stunning. They're probably the most famous highlight of Kyoto for many tourists because in the movie "Memoirs of a Geisha", there is a scene in which the main character is shown running through these orange gates. We got there when the light was starting to fade but we were still able to get some nice pictures.
After that, we first took a train to Kyoto station and then took a cab back to our hotel. We had dinner at our hotel's Italian restaurant and it was another delicious meal - fresh fried calamari, seafood pizza and then lamb shank. Everything tasted divine although Samia had to look away while I removed the heads and tails of the shrimps that were on our pizza!
Kyoto has lived up to its reputation of being the heart of ancient Japan. The temples, the shrines, the castles and the gardens all transport you back in time to the past of this glorious and magical nation and we're very fortunate to have had a chance to witness and experience a slice of that part of Japanese history.
After dinner, we collected our suitcase from the concierge desk and then took a cab to the Kyoto station to catch our 8:40 pm Shinkansen train to the Shinagawa station in Tokyo. After reaching Shinagawa at 11 pm, we walked to the same hotel where we stayed during our first three nights in Japan and that's where we will be ending our trip. The hotel staff had already sent our suitcase up to our new room. The service quality throughout Japan keeps impressing us.
We have a few things left for Tokyo that we will explore tomorrow. After that, we have to reach the airport at 10 pm for the 9 hour direct flight to Seattle that will take off at just after midnight local time. Till then, take care and good night!
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