Tuesday 27 June
Day 8
With plenty on the schedule for today, we were up and out of the hotel for 8am. After finding a yogurt to eat at the family mart, we then caught the subway to Kyoto Station and the JR Nara line out to Fushimi Imari Shrine, home to the 1000 Torii gates. It was pretty crowded on the train and of course as we reached the station and alighted, the crowd joined us.
We followed the throng through the first orange gate and then got a glimpse of the shrine further up the hill. This however, is not what the people are really here to see, it is the walkways that are lined with the orange torii.
With the number of people it was almost impossible to set up photos. You had to be quick and think outside the box a little. Once through the first section tho, it became a little easier, as people went off to check out smaller shrines, or turned down different tracks. We now had freedom to wander and could capture the essence of the place.
We did one lap, then I wanted to return to the initial gate race as there are 2 paths one up and one down. We hadn’t done the down section the first time around and I thought it would be quieter. Wrong. Oh well.
We returned to the main shrine and wandered around the base, watching the procession of people and rituals. I found a little off chute that had strings of origami cranes of all the colours of the rainbow and in pretty patterns.
We then began to make our way towards the exit, but not before passing what looked like an Aussie school group, with purple leavers shirts. We asked one of the leaders and sure enough, they were a year 6 school group on camp from the Gold Coast, we told them they were nuts bringing 39 kids on camp, let alone to Japan!
The road out was full of street vendors. We figured we deserved a treat, so bought a round waffle like sandwich with a chocolate cream centre. It was delicious. We then dodged all the other sweet treats and drinks and headed back to the train station and on to Kyoto.
Once at the station, we needed to locate the JR office, so that I could book our forward journey to Hiroshima for Friday. A guide who spoke good English was able to tell us what we needed, as there isn’t a direct train. I then had to join the line. After an hour of waiting, I was finally served and given our two tickets; one for Kyoto to Kobe and then Kobe to Hiroshima. With that sorted, we were free to head back outside.
I was feeling quite overwhelmed by now and my brain was not wanting to do its job, so Paul had to take over for a bit. We ended up underground again, this time at a German Beer Hall, where we had lunch and regrouped and made a plan for the rest of the afternoon.
We returned to the station and caught the subway to another station, where google then said we needed to catch a bus. We walked to the location, but the bus numbers didn’t match and other people couldn’t help us, so we ended up choosing to walk the 2km to Kiyomizu Temple. Funny thing was, we saw both couples at the base, they’d caught the bus!
Once at the base, it was a trek up hill. We stopped and had an ice cream along the way, it was well needed and then continued up the stairs. There were plenty of tourists at this spot also, however many were dressed in traditional kimono wear. Not surprising really, as there are numerous vendors renting kimonos. It offered a kick to some of the photos, even though it wasn’t true geisha.
We wandered around the lower sections and opted not to pay the entrance fee to go into the temple itself. The crowds, heat, humidity and the steps we’d done made the decision fairly easy. We found some quieter areas to explore and then began the descent back into the hustle of the tourist town. The smell of cinnamon was wafting through the air and when we reached the store, we couldn’t resist buying a Chou pastry, cinnamon puff filled with custard cream. Oh yeah.
With google set, we made our way back to our hotel. We crossed over the river and watched massive sized fish in the shallows and then continued into the main shopping district, where large department stores and malls suddenly appeared and so did the crowds again.
It wasn't long after and we were in familiar territory, stopping for supplies and making it down our street to the hotel where we could rest and relax. Paul had his foot in a cold bath to try and relieve his ankle pain, while I chilled on the bed and then I was in for a soaking bath. Much needed.
At 6pm we were recharged enough to leave and find some dinner. We wandered out towards to the river once again. We passed a bottle shop, YaMaYa, a bit like Dan Murphys. We did a wander and realised there were bargains to be had and would return to stock up. There was also a bar called the Dublin, that grabbed Paul’s attention. Another to return to.
We checked out the general scenery and architecture and then made our way along the river front before heading up to Pontocho Alley, which is filled with restaurants and the beautiful old wooden buildings lit with lanterns. We stopped at a yakitori restaurant and were shown to a spot upstairs, but we had to sit on the ground. It also meant shoes off, as it was a wooden floor. Thankfully, we realised that there was a pit under the table for our legs, so we didn’t have to leave.
We ordered our food by navigating a menu online and using pictures on a menu. It wasn’t the easiest, but I managed by using these and the prices for pieces. In the end, everything that I was expecting came to the table, so I was pretty happy. Not only that, the food was amazing. The other memorable part was another diner who was making gawd awful noises. Paul thought he was a barnyard animal.
We entered the old alley again and wandered, taking in the various sights and colours. At one stage, I took a photo of colourful lanterns and Paul saw a rat race across the roof from which they were suspended. I also stopped to take a photo of some lit umbrellas, but we were promptly moved on by the restaurant owner on the other side, who didn’t want us blocking the entrance to his restaurant. He got a mouthful from Paul.
We reached the end of the street shortly after and found ourselves back on the main shopping street. The streets were still really busy with shoppers, but as it was 8pm, most shops were closing and the shoppers were being forced onto the footpath. We dodged and weaved our way back to the hotel ready for some more rest and relaxation and another dose of deep heat for Paul’s neck which continues to be an issue.
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