Japanamation: Kyoto

Definitely the highlight of my journey thus far. Kyoto is the Old Capital (but not the old, Old Capital; that's Nara); it was moved there in 784 and then moved to Tokyo in 1868. So for over 1000 years it was the seat of power in Japan. It is still home of the Imperial palace. Kyoto is widely known as one of the most beautiful cities in Japan, as well as its cultural heart. There are many craftsmen and artisans who practice traditional Japanese arts, and it has maybe the highest population of Geisha. (We saw a couple while we were there. Not totally dressed up, but you could tell, they were.) So in a city of about 1 and a half million people, there is a palace, a castle, and about 2,000 shrines and temples. It's also a great place for - take a gander - autumn viewing.

So, for maybe two months now, I've been hoping and wanting to go. I talked to Ben about it, early in October, and we decided to go together, but things kept coming up, and we kept pushing is back. I must say, I was afraid that it might not actually happen. But it did. We managed to nail down a date, did a couple shift-swaps, so that we'd have three days off, and bought our tickets. We took an overnight bus from Koriyama that left on Sunday night at 8:30, and got to Kyoto Monday morning at 6:30. It was sweet. Just kidding; it was miserable, but well worth it (We probably saved about 2 or 300 bucks, and considering the Shinkansen (bullet train) doesn't run throughout the night, we saved a lot of daylight hours, too.) The main problem was that when we got to Kyoto, we wanted to die first and see the city later. But there would be no dying. We found our hostel straight away, dropped off our bags and hit the town. We were staying only a block away from the Imperial Palace, and this is listed pretty high on the "Things to do," but when we got to a palace gate, there were police officers there telling everyone it was closed til Wednesday at 6 p.m. We were a bit distraught, but more confused, so we sat down to have a look and see what we wanted to do.

At this point in my writing, I realize that I'm becoming quite long-winded in the journal-style approach. So suffice it to say, the trip was excellent, I loved every second there, and as soon as I get a chance, I want to go back. I'll list the highlights for you, and comment on any pictures that I think need it.

Highlights of the trip:

Kinkaku-ji (The Golden Temple)
Ginkaku-ji (The Silver Temple)
Kiyomizu (a really big and popular temple, although Ben and I both concurred that it was crap.)
Nanzen-ji (one of the largest temple complexes, highly recommended by the Lonely Planet, and my personal favorite)
Kennin-ji (stumbled upon this one quite by accident, but it is the oldest Zen Temple in Kyoto. Lots of rock gardens.)
Shopping in the Teramachi covered market
handicraft market at Chion-ji
Pontocho (a small alley of a street, runs parallel to the river and has tons of old houses, shops and Geisha houses.)
A couple random streets we walked down that were similar to Pontocho (old, traditional architecture and stuff)
Eating at a Mexican Restaurant (average food, really good pico)
Eating at Wendy's
Eating at this French Bakery/restaurant, so good
Fish n Chips and a proper pint of Guinness at a British pub
Chillin' with Bush and Koizumi (the Japanese PM) while they were in town

Here's a couple shots of the train station, an architectural wonder in and of itself.

This is the outside of the Imperial Palace grounds. There is a large garden, much like Central Park, but a little smaller, and in the middle is the old Imperial Palace. However, it was closed in preparation for President Bush and Prime Minister Koizumi's visit.