My apologies for the long hiatus between blog entries. As usual, due to my extreme laziness, I?m playing catch up and writing an entry about an event that actually took place some time ago. But I?ve got a pretty good memory, and some even better photos, so I won?t disappoint. 

Tokyo and Kyoto are usually said to be the two must-see cities in Japan, Tokyo for Japanese craziness, and Kyoto for Japanese culture. I went to Tokyo not long after arriving in Japan, but I had been saving a trip to Kyoto for a good time of year and some good company to go with.

There are two prime times to visit Kyoto: in the spring, when the cherry trees are blooming, and in the autumn, when the tree leaves change colour. Both create a beautiful backdrop for the countless temples, gardens and such in and around the city. I took the trip near the end October, hoping to catch the early stages of autumn. As it turned out, due to above average temperatures, things were mostly still green, but with some exceptions.

My company on the trip was my lady friend Megumi, a local, and as such a most helpful companion. Her mastery of the local dialect opened many new doors that had been locked to me on past adventures. For starters, she managed to get a discounted transport and hotel package, which included bullet-train tickets and accommodation in perhaps the nicest hotel I?ve ever stayed at. In addition, tasks that I normally complete with a fair degree of difficulty, become entirely effortless.

The trip was a rather short one: 2 days and 1 night, all our schedules would allow (or at least that?s what I thought at the time?as fate would have it, on the morning of the second day my company declared bankruptcy and all schools nation-wide were closed, giving me a rather long holiday in the end, but that?s a whole other story to be saved for a later blog entry?). We jumped the shinkansen early and arrived at Kyoto station about 50 minutes later. We had originally planned to hire a car and driver to take us around the many sights, but in the end opted for all-day bus passes at a large saving.

The first stop on the trip was actually one of the best-known images in Japan, and a tourist hotspot, namely, Kinkaku-ji (the Golden Temple). It was rather picturesque, in spite of the clouds, and certainly lived up to its ?hotspot? reputation, as even in the morning it was quite busy. We then moved on to Ryoan-ji, which featured a lagoon, cultured forest and zen rock garden (which you are apparently supposed to stare at and ponder the meaning of). After that it was Ninnan-ji (I think), which was a like a samurai house or something, and finally Ginkaku-ji (the Silver Temple?although it wasn?t really silver). Most of the sites featured some type of stone or sand art, usually rows of lines raked with flawless perfection. I learned later that they are meant to symbolize the flow of water.

After a full day of sightseeing we needed a rest, and check into the hotel. Later on, we headed into the city for dinner. As it was a special occasion, I splurged on a very expensive dinner (perhaps not the smartest idea in light of what would happen the next day, but enjoyable nonetheless).

The weather wasn?t quite as good the next day. Shortly after visiting our first temple of the morning the rain started to pour. We escaped into a nice little traditional Japanese restaurant to eat some Kyoto-style food for lunch, and to wait out the storm. The rain continued and we got tired of waiting, so we then made a wet attempt to reach the next stop on foot (although we soon gave up and caught a taxi). At this, the second to last stop on the trip, we cashed in some tea coupons (included in our tour package) and got to experience a traditional (although abbreviated) tea ceremony. While drinking our tea, we also got to enjoy the calm and serene beauty of the rain, without the discomfort of getting soaked as before.

The rain stopped just in time for us to visit the final attraction, a must-see in Kyoto, Kyoumizu-dera, a hilltop Buddhist temple. For one wishing to have a genuine ?Japanese tourist experience? this would be the place to go. The narrow road (actually roads) leading up the large hill to the temple complex is a seemingly endless row of souvenir shops. At first glance the whole picture seems charming, until you start browsing the shops and quickly come to the realization that you are amidst an explosion of cheap junk. I admit we bought a few boxes of sweets?but they aren?t junk.

We arrived to the top of the hill and the end of the shops only to encounter another hubbub of activity in the form of a mass of school groups. Needless to say, at the end of it all we were just short of exhausted, and thankful the trip back to Nagoya was a short one.