Day 2 - Woke up at 6AM. My dad and I both took sleeping pills but he woke up at 3AM. This would become a trend. Enjoyed breakfast on the top floor of the hotel. It was in a kind of observation deck thingie and had a decent view of the city. Kyoto doesn't have a lot of tall buildings because the local government sets height restrictions. But we could see the Kyoto tower and the train station and a couple of temples. Maybe we could have seen more if it wasn't cloudy. Breakfast was very, very good western style food. Bacon, eggs (not really all the cooked), toast, and tea. Strangely, when I tried to order green tea, they didn't have any.
This morning was our half-day tour of the Kyoto sights via bus. From the beginning it was apparent the tour was oversold. By the second pickup stop the bus was full. At the final pickup there were a lot of angry europeans (unrecognizable language) complaining. No problem! Magically, seats folded out into the aisle. Not very comfortable, but practical. First stop, nijo castle.
Nijo was pretty cool. It was the home of the shogun for a long time. I'm sure this isn't quite accurate but I believe the shogun were the people who really held the power in japan. Warlords, if you will. Anyways, the castle is entirely made of wood and is decorated with all of these carvings and gold leaf paintings. They wouldn't let you take pictures inside so here's on from a website (the one above isn't mine either.)
It was a LOT darker inside (they have no artificial lights and it was cloudy) and would have been more impressive if I could of seen it better. But they did have a floor that squeaked that acted as a security system. Sweet. If you've ever seen a japanese movie set in feudal times, this place would have looked familiar. Oh, and no shoes.
Dad in the Nijo garden
Next was Kinkaku-ji (golden pavilion) temple. I was excited for this one. I had seen many a picture before arriving. But as soon as we stepped off the bus it began raining. Hard. Midwestern thunderstorm hard. So out come the umbrellas of about 1000+ people and effectively ruin the view (I decided to bring waterproof clothes instead of an umbrella. from head to toe, i was set. Except it was around 75 degrees and the jacket was a bit hot.) We got separated from the group and ended up running through the grounds. I got a couple of nice photos but was very disappointed by the rain. And it stopped as soon as we got back on the bus!
Last on the tour was the Imperial Palace. Now, the emperor lives in Tokyo but he never officially left Kyoto (correct me if I'm wrong.) The palace is maintained as if he is just on a long trip away. I think he comes back every few years for a couple of days, mostly to show off the sites to foreign dignitaries. Even our revered Mr. Bush has been here. Kind of makes it a little dirty...anyways, we couldn't actually go in, so we walked around. Would have been nicer in the sun. But I will say the rain and the architecture and wood buildings seemed natural.
Final stop on the tour was the local handicraft center. A lot of beautiful things inside: Paintings, swords, kimonos, and tea sets. It is here, ladies and gentlemen, that I found, FINALLY found the traditional sake drinking glasses I have been searching for since I saw Lost in Translation. I was so happy! They were a little pricey (I only bought two, wish I bought at least 4) but awesome. No if I could only find some good sake...
Back to the hotel, lunch at a ramen place in Porta. Good food again. And broke down and bought an umbrella.
Walked to the giant pagoda (Toji-temple) we saw from breakfast. This just might have been my favorite place in all of Japan (at least of the temples.) They have this 5-story pagoda, 187 feet tall (tallest in Japan) and two giant halls containing large wooden sculptures of Buddha and friends (again, no pictures inside. I feel a little weird taking pictures of religious symbols anyways. Their some bodies God!) Beautiful and awe inspiring.
Dinner at the sushi counter of a place across the street from the train station. Dad got the sushi but I chickened out and got udon and beef. It was fun watching the sushi chef work. Definitely a locals hang out and again, I wish I spoke Japanese.
After dinner, we explored the train station. It's kind of a mostly inside, some outside exposed to the elements kind of place. They built it way taller than needed and put up about 7-8 floors of department stores and restaurants. The most amazing thing about this place was the stairs. They probably had about 5 hundred stairs in a single case (no switchbacks.) I was told it was built to resemble a mountain (mission accomplished.) At the top is a small but quaint outdoor park. And about 25 young couples. Yes, we had discovered a local date/make out spot. Only a little awkward with the locals but well worth the view.
Back to the hotel and in bed by 9PM.
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