kyoto

Riding a bike is my new favorite mode of transportation. Despite sore calves and several near collisions, biking around Kyoto these past couple of days has been a really refreshing change from the hours spent on the train every day in Tokyo. It's quick, cheap, good exercise and lets you explore more than you could walking or taking a bus.

Last Thursday caught an afternoon shinkansen ("bullet train") to Kyoto. The hostel we're staying at is conveniently located right across the street from the station so we were able to find it and get settled in pretty quickly. (Side note: found out tonight that super friendly Izumi-san at the front desk's younger sister graduated from OSU last year. She was drinking tea from an OSU mug.) Although a bit crowded, the hostel has been really great -- cheap, great location, free internet, friendly staff. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone planning to travel through Kyoto. The last several days have been a blur of temples, shrines, green tea "soft ice," and last-minute souvenir shopping, but here are some highlights.

The Rock Garden at Ryoan-ji. There are 15 boulders set in a sea of pebbles which are raked in straight lines except around the boulders themselves where they curve around like ripples in a lake. Supposedly you are only supposed to be able to see 14 from any given perspective (except above) and to be able to see all 15 means you have attained enlightenment. Either I'm a regular bodhisattva or the slightly raised viewing platform gave me an advantage.

Me mimicking the Japanese tourists (always pointing or giving the peace sign with stoic expression).

Kinkakuji, "Golden Pavilion Temple."

Boys throwing coins at Buddha statues.

Kamo River. Major river in Kyoto that runs past the front of the hostel.

Biked up the Kamo River on Sunday to see Shimogamoji (left), the ancient protector shrine of the Imperial Court when the capital was in Kyoto, 794-1869. Then backtracked down the river to see the Kyoto Imperial Palace. Turned out it's closed on Sundays. Oh well, the park was really peaceful, including this 300+ year old tree (right), and the gate surrounding the palace was pretty imposing.

Today I biked to the western side of the city to see the "monkey park." After climbing a path up the side of a mountain you arrive at a plateau (with a beautiful view of the city) covered in monkeys. Up close and personal. You could feed them from a "rest house" or just stand outside and hang out. I sat on a bench for awhile and at one point two monkeys came up and sat next to me and started grooming each other. It was pretty wild. They seemed pretty oblivious to the presence of people, except when offered food or if they felt threatened (as when some asshole tried to touch a baby that was nursing today and the mom flipped out).

Tomorrow I head back to Tokyo and then back to NYC on Wednesday. I can't believe how fast it's all gone by. I'm excited to get home and see friends and family and share stories but I also wish I had more time in Kyoto. Such a beautiful city pocketed between mountains and filled with constant reminders of its ancient history; so far removed from loud and flashy Tokyo. If I have a chance to come back to Japan I would love to spend more time here.