Day 8: Kimonos in Kyoto

Apologies for the late post - we did not have wifi at the temple where we stayed last night, but I am back on the grid now. Hope you enjoy the following post that I wrote on July 6th:

Today we headed to Kyoto, a small city located halfway between Hiroshima and Tokyo that served as the imperial capital of Japan for more than a thousand years. After the two-hour bullet train ride from Hiroshima, we had lunch in Kyoto Station. The city is full of tourists. In our first few hours here, I have already seen more foreigners walking around than I have in all the other cities we’ve visited. 

Aboard the bullet train

Richard, Sophie, and Sydney are in good spirits upon arrival in Kyoto

The street outside Kyoto Station

Another view of Kyoto 

After lunch, we took a public bus to the Kyoto Cultural Center, where we changed into kimonos, which are traditional Japanese robes worn during formal events.

A teacher at the center gave us a dance lesson. We learned some moves from Gion dance, which was developed in Kyoto and is meant to depict elements of nature. I struggled a bit at first, but I did learn to unfold a fan and got some cool pictures in the kimono.

It was a very crowded bus!

Heading up the hill to try on kimonos

It took 10 minutes to get dressed, and I needed

the help of several people to put it on correctly

Trying to keep up with the lesson

We rode the bus back to Kyoto Station, where we had dinner at a restaurant specializing in a Japanese delicacy called tonkatsu, which is pork loin coated with bread crumbs and served with rice and kelp.

I really enjoyed the pork, but the kelp served alongside the main dish was slimy and sour. 

The pork and prawn were good; the kelp (not pictured), not so much

After dinner, we hopped on the Kyoto subway and headed for Oubaku, a suburb about a half hour from the city. We walked up a steep hill from the train station to our accommodations for the night, the Manpukuji Buddhist temple. We were greeted by several monks, who showed us to our rooms. Like our last hotel stay, we slept on futons on top of matami flooring in a room shared by four people.  

As the sun set, we walked around the grounds of the temple, marveling at the intricate design of the buildings and the remoteness of our surroundings.

Making our way up to the temple

The grounds were stunningly beautiful

Enjoying the sunset

Jamie told me, “On this trip, we are in the prime of our lives.” I don't think he meant that we won't go on to accomplish bigger things or experience more exciting adventures as we grow older. His point was that we will never take a trip like this again.

All expenses paid, food provided, guides and friends to support us. No bills to worry about, or kids and spouses depending on us. It truly is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and all I can do is make the most of it. So far I think I have succeeded, and my goal for the rest of the trip is to keep enjoying this amazing country and taking full advantage of the amazing opportunities were are being given.