Kyoto Day Trip

Yes, after all the excitement of starting school and setting up my apartment I actually managed to take advantage of my surroundings today.

I'm sure the boys in my class despair of me just a bit as until today I'd never seen, much less travelled via Shinkansen. They are train crazy- everything is trains, home made birthday cards, pictures, even their lunch boxes are adorned with Shinkansen.

So earlier today I hopped on the train to Kyoto, a quick 12 minute trip. There I visited:

• Sanjusangen-do, a temple with 1001 statues of Kannon (the Buddhist goddess of mercy). The main building is the longest wood building in Japan. The well of Sanjusangen-do also has a well which was said to have been found because of a dream a monk had and is supposed to cure babies from crying in the night.
  
• Too many interesting shops with all sorts of pottery, fans and kimonos. It was difficult, but I managed not to buy anything. There's just no two ways about it though, I'll have to go back.
• Kiyomizu-dera, an ancient temple on a hillside overlooking Osaka. The waterfall, Otowa-no-taki, is said to have healing properties. It's been suggested as one of the new 7 wonders of the world. Apparently there a two rocks within the precinct 18 meters apart, if you walk between the two with closed eyes you'll have success in love and if you miss the stone your desire for love won't be fulfilled.
  
• Yasaka-jinja, considered the guardian shrine of the Gion district.

Really, there's a lot more to be said about everywhere that I visited today but you're just as well to Google the sites and read more complete descriptions than I could ever provide.

Interestingly, Kyoto has a totally different feel, as a city, than Osaka does, though they're side by side and it's hard to tell where one city ends and the other begins. Kyoto, or at least the areas I was in, seems to be more like what I pictured a Japanese city would look like than Osaka does. I've been to sightseeing/historic areas in both cities and Kyoto seems more like what you would expect and Osaka more like a living working city than a cultural centre, though it certainly has its high points and I am quite fond of it.

One point that my trip today did clarify is that Kyoto will always have something to see, or to see again- it's just endless. On my way from one spot to another there were many places that I passed by in the interest of watching my time and trying to see things before sunset. I'm looking forward to exploring it more.