Japan 2007: Kyoto

I was startled awake this morning by the sound of someone rustling at the door with the newspaper. We got a call from Rie who confirmed the hotel costs were greater than she told us, which was upsetting but expected.

The front desk gave us directions to the Yachiyo ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn. Herr opted to walk, so off we went! The sky was overcast, but a little warmer when the wind let up at times. We walked around Maruyama Park on our way — it looks very nice. I am excited to explore the Gion district after walking by some shops near the area.

We passed by Chion-in temple before coming to Sanjo dori. At the T intersection we saw the widest rail tracks either of us had seen. The Yachiyo was right beside this, so we left our bags with a kind man at the entry then went in search of the Path of Philosophy.

We overshot the first time and ended up at Nanzenji temple. Here there is a massive brick aqueduct we walked along until we found the main pumps. The water taps Lake Biwa and supplies the city of Kyoto. As we walked around, we saw the other half of the very wide rail track. Apparently, small boats were loaded from one canal, carried down the hill, and released in another canal. We walked the tracks down to the bottom of the hill then looked at the canal museum briefly.

Back to searching for the path, it was right at Nanzenji temple entrance. It was filled with many people, so hard to miss… I was getting anxious to buy something (the past few days really), so I made a few stops at shops. Herr has been tremendously patient with me wanting to look at things and being in constant pain; I wish I was in better shape for all this carrying and walking. We aren’t too sure why it is called the philosopher’s path though, but we did pass by a few temples. We managed to walk the entire path with several pictures taken.

Herr really wanted to try ramen at this point as well, so we found (after looking the entire path) a shop that served soba and udon noodles. We both ordered soba with green tea. The waitress dropped one glass that splattered all over Herr and startled me. She apologized a great deal, but we weren’t upset. Herr had thankfully put his leather cap over the camera so it only got some tea on the lens. We put it back in the case after that. The noodles were sadly bland; from the hype in anime I was hoping for more. Maybe we didn’t get the right dish.

A bit rested, we took the direct route back to the Yachiyo. Total miles walked were about two and a half to the Yachiyo, a mile around the canals, two miles along the Path of Philosophy, and a mile and a half back for at least seven miles total. Our luggage was already in our room when we returned. We took our shoes off at the entrance, put on some slippers, and took care of administrative work. A lady in a kimono gave us a quick tour of the facilities, primarily where the public baths (separated by gender) were and how to make tea in our room. The room itself has an entryway where we remove our slippers and have access to a private bathroom. Through another door is the living space that was currently set up with a low table and two floor chairs in the center of the tatami floor.

The lady served us some tea; I mistook the sugar cube for a cookie (in my defense, she called it a sugar cookie) that was quite tasty — very sweet. So I ate Herr’s too. We wrote several postcards and Herr took a bath in the public facilities. I felt too conscious of myself to do that, so I stayed behind with the t.v. and tried to nap (the beds were not made yet).

Herr is so wonderful, he even went out and bought us some ice cream. It lifted my spirits slightly, I felt very sore. We were both wanting to lie down, so we asked a lady who then sent up some men to put them together. They moved the table over and set up two separate beds — traditional Japanese beds. Herr was opposed, but when we got under the comforter (the sheet was very interestingly wrapped around it, like an inverted fitted sheet), I was so warm I couldn’t get very close to Herr at all. We talked for a while before zonking out. I found the bed to be comfortable for my sore back. Herr thought otherwise.