Short stories about my year-end trip to Kansai -- Part 1.

The photos below are from my year-end trip to the Kansai region, which includes Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, and Nara.

There are a ton of temples and shrines in Kyoto. Sometimes, while I was walking or riding from one shrine to the next, I thought to myself, "If you've seen one shrine/temple, you've seen them all." But that's not true. Each one has its own charm and beauty. For instance, some are huge, while others are tiny. Some are high on the hillside, while others are smack dab in the middle of town. Some are in fantastic condition, while others show their age. And some are overflowing with tourists, while others are practically abandoned.


Before I came to Kyoto, I had seen several women in kimonos elsewhere in Japan (and even in America). But seeing women in kimonos in Kyoto is, well, cooler, because you expect to see them there, but you still have to be in the right place at the right time to spot them. I guess it's like going to Disneyland and actually getting to see Mickey Mouse. These two young ladies were a bit shy, but they were kind enough to take a picture with me. I tried asking them why they were wearing the kimonos, but I had a tough time understanding them. Had this been in America, I'm pretty sure my arms would have been draped around their shoulders, but as I mentioned in an earlier blogspot, touchy-feely is not a big part of Japanese culture.


From what I understand, New Year's is the most important holiday to the Japanese. So just about every shrine and temple was jam-packed with people were showed up to donate money, pray for good luck, and purchase various souvenirs. One of the most popular souvenirs was these arrows. I guess I should be telling you their significance, but I still don't know that. In any case, they are expensive. Those shorter ones are 22,000 yen, or about $200, and those longer ones are 22,500 yen, 0r about 5 bucks more. I chose a tiny little mouse (it's the year of the mouse!) for 500 yen. Do you see the price tags? The numbers are written from top to bottom.


I didn't realize that Osaka was completely different from Kyoto until I got there. Osaka is basically a modern city with far fewer cultural attractions than its neighbor to the north. But the Osaka castle is really impressive. The castle was closed, so I wasn't able to go inside, but I still enjoyed walking around the grounds. The castle area was the first place I went in Osaka. Later, I realized that the castle grounds offered a relaxing alternative to the other, more fast-paced parts of town.


The ginkakuji, or Silver Pavilion, is one of the most famous sights in Kyoto, so you have to pay to get in (500 yen). I must say, though, that I wasn't overly impressed by the pavilion. The grounds were kept in immaculate shape, and there were some beautiful sand sculptures, but I wasn't awed by anything. I did really like the view from above the pavilion grounds, however. It reminded me a lot of San Francisco, with the hills, trees, clouds, and blue sky.


Just before the New Year arrived, I started seeing these two- and three-high piles of mochi, topped with a mandarin orange all over the place. They are called kagami mochi. Sometimes the mochi is real and wrapped in thin plastic, but it's often fake. In a sense, they are like little Japanese snowmen and are pleasant to look at.


This is the entrance to one of the larger temples near the main train station in Kyoto. I took this picture around 4:20 p.m. If you plan to go a bunch of temples and shrines, but don't have much time, make sure get an early start since many of them close at 4:30. Whatever hidden treasures this place has to offer will have to wait for another day.


This is a picture of a bunch of Japanese stone lanterns called tourous. They can be found at many shrines, temples, and gardens. You'll often see them at night with candles burning inside the top.


I took this photo on the grounds of the Sanjusangendo Temple, another one of the most famous sights in Kyoto that has an entrance fee (600 yen). This picture shows one of the many sights that you expect to find when you go to Japan.


This picture shows some baby-like stone figures in front of a pool of cleansing water. I saw a lot of these figures, all wearing red aprons. Apparently, the children are waiting to go to Heaven. When they are given white aprons, then they are ready to go.