Koyasan

My last day in Kyoto I packed up my bags and headed out for a whole new place--a mountain called Koyasan, a few hours away from Kyoto. It's the center of Shingon Buddhism (a particular sect) and it's absolutely packed with temples. It's also got a famous cemetary which holds many historic graves. Because it's so full of temples, it's a good place to stay at a temple overnight--which is what I wanted to do. I stayed at a place called Shojosho-in. It's one of the older temples and right next to the cemetary--it came highly recommended. It cost about $100 per night (although that included breakfast and dinner) so it was definitely a one night kinda thing for me! I even paid extra for a room with a garden view...

It was quite a trip to Koya-san. The trains were not exactly up to scratch, compared to Tokyo! The public transportation was quite limited and I had to plan it all out very carefully, to make all of my connections. But it all worked out. The train up to Koyasan was elderly and creaking; it ran through high mountains and rural villages. Included in the price for the ticket to Koyasan was a transfer to the cable line that runs you up to the mountain proper--it was very steep!

Koyasan, despite what it sounds like, is not exactly an isolated mountain paradise. It's a popular tourist destination. But it was still very pretty. When I finally found my temple, there was no one around and so I left my suitcases (I'd been in Japan for quite a long time by then--I'd never have done that in America!) and wandered around the place looking for someone. The only people I saw seemed to be cleaning up the place--junior monks? But eventually it all got sorted out. My Japanese almost fooled the lady into believing I actually knew how to speak it properly! I was proud of myself. My room was amazingly spacious and up some large, dark wood staircases. It was very traditional--futons, tatami mats, alcoves, even a kotatsu--the whole bit. It was very classy. It gets cold at night up there in the mountains, so we got a yukata and an overcoat. Below is the view from the temple... I couldn't take many pictures, unfortunately, cause my camera died and the replacement batteries I bought were defective.



Dinner was in an hour or so, so I decided to wander about the town a bit. I had temple fatigue so I had no real plans--just walked about. I found this little Shinto shrine up a hill...



It was very atmospheric. There were a lot of temples--but I didn't really have time to visit any. I wanted to get back before dinner (and before it got dark.) I was in an unfamiliar town, even if it was Japanese. Dinner itself was very cool and very weird. All the guests ate in different, with about 4 people to a room. My room had 4 people--me, a fellow gaijin a few years older than me, and a middle-aged Japanese couple (a man and a women, but apparently they were just friends.) The other gaijin was much better at Japanese than me, but I still managed to follow the conversation somewhat, and it was really fun. The food itself was amazing--some of it may not have been delicious, per se--too strange--but it was still absolutely fascinating to try. One of the things that sticks out most was the tempura. It was all vegetarian, of course, being a Buddhist temple, so no gross seafood. It was all vegetables--daikon, lotus root, some kind of leaf. It was all cold, and yet it was ridiculously tasty.

We lingered quite a long time at dinner, chatting and enjoying the atmosphere. After dinner I decided to try to take a bath. It was communal and very old school--luckily I was the only one there. I washed myself off under the shower taps and then ventured into the big communal bath--it was made of wood! It was super-hot and felt REALLY great--especially since it was getting really cold by then. Luckily there were lots of blankets in my room and I stayed toasty warm in my comfortable futon. I went to bed early--the service the next morning was at 5:30 or 6 AM.

The service itself was pretty cool. The monks read from the sutras, etc. They had a nun, too. Afterwards, we had a traditional Japanese breakfast, but luckily no raw eggs in rice were to be seen (vegetarians!) After breakfast, I packed up and went directly to the cemetery right next door. The sun was just rising and coming in through the trees--the cemetery was in a large forest, stretched out along the side of the road, and on the other side (opposite from my temple) was another temple. So I decided to walk through it. It was really stunning--the light was amazing, the memorial stones were fantastic--all kinds of statues, some really old and some almost brand new. It was pretty quite most of the time, since it was so early. I walked all the way to the temple, which is the starting point for a pilgrimage, so I saw a lot of pilgrims--that was cool. Then I walked back to my temple and took off--I had to make it back in time for the shinkansen to Yokohama and then to my concert that night. It was pretty crazy--I was traveling all day and I went from rural Kansai to downtown Yokohama in one day. Quite a switch.

The end!

Nijo-jo

Day 7 was pretty much my last day in Kyoto. I didn't want to leave, though, without seeing one last famous site--Nijo-jo. Nijo-jo is a famous castle, although not in the typical western sense. It doesn't look at all like Edinburgh castle or something like that--it's not highly fortified, but more like a palace.

It was originally built in the early 17th century by the very famous shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu, who helped to unify Japan. It is one of the few surviving castles in the country. Visiting a castle was a nice change from the endless procession of temples, I have to say.

It was another beautiful blue morning when I arrived. I was leaving Kyoto earlier that day, so I tried to get there as early as possible. I left my luggage at Kyoto station, and took off for a quick visit to Nijo-jo.

As you can see, it is an elaborately decorate kind of place. Lots of gold, and all that. It's in fairly good condition; I believe it was actually various parts of it were burned down and rebuilt at various points. But it's still pretty impressive, that overall it survived for so long.

This is the main gate, with a lot of beautiful carvings. I decided to rent an audio tour and I'm glad I did. It provided a lot of interesting information (in English). Inside, the main palace is chockfull of Kano-school paintings; it's very interesting to see them in their original contexts, which you don't always get in art history classes. Nijo-jo also is constructed with the infamous "nightingale floors," which squeak when you walk on them. They still do this now, although I'm sure it's because the people in charge made a special effort!

After you walk through the castle, you can visit the outside gardens. They are quite lovely, and meant to depict landscapes.

There's not really that much to see here, but it's a good change from temples, definitely.

Horyuji

After visiting Nara, I hightailed it outta there because I had places to go, temples to see, etc.! My next stop was a famous old temple called Horyuji, positively chock full of national treasures and all that. This is a very old temple; it was commissioned by Prince Shotoku, the first patron of Buddhism in Japan, so we're talking 7th century.

I took a train from Nara, and then it was just a short bus ride to Horyuji. It was late afternoon when I arrived, so I had just enough time to see most of the grounds.

Below you can see the famous 5-story pagoda. Apparently some of the wood inside it dates to the 6th century, although it has been reconstructed since then. Pagodas like this one are the Japanese version of stupas, memorial mounds; you can't go into them and they are not hollow inside, generally speaking. This pagoda has some well known relics inside, I believe. I would like to revisit this place some day; unfortunately, I can't remember all that much about it. I was starting to get "temple fatigue" by this point, I think.

Was a very cool pagoda though. Below is the main hall, the kondo. It is another extremely old wooden building, dating to the 7th century, although it was extensively damaged later on. There are some treasures inside, including the very famous Shaka Triad (of the Buddha and his 2 bodhisattva attendents). Unfortunately it's so dark it's very difficult to see ANYTHING inside.

This is some random place. I'm not sure what it is, actually. Gorgeous building though. (I looked it up, and it seems to be the lecture hall. Built later, I'm pretty sure.)

The sun was starting to set, and tourists were starting to leave by the time I worked my way through Horyuji. There's another famous site here, called the Yumedono hall. I don't know why I didn't take a picture of it; perhaps it wasn't permitted. It's very interesting though; I believe it's 6 sided. Something like that. It was packed with school children, there are famous works of art within it as well, although the most famous work--the Yumedono Kannon--was not being displayed.

I walked through the complex, and back out again the other side. I was just really struck by the amazing quality of the light at sunset, so I took this picture. It was really remarkably beautiful. This is just some random gate/wall as I was walking out of the temple complex.

I ended up taking the last bus out. Most people seemed to have either walked, or taken some other form of transportation (a lot of tour buses had come out here) and so I was actually one of the few waiting there. It was quite strange. I think of all the places in Kyoto I visited, this is one that I'd most like to revisit (along with Nara.) I tried to fit it all in, not knowing if I'd get the chance to see it again, but in the end I didn't really get to see either one properly. Still, I'm glad I got a little taste of both, in the end. But I'd definitely like to come back someday.

Todaiji (and Nara)

On day 6, I decided to venture out of Kyoto proper once again. One of the most well known areas near Kyoto is a city called Nara, the one-time capital of Japan and absolutely chock-full of famous sites. In particular, Nara is famous for its deer park and the temples within it, especially Todaiji. It was this monument that was my main goal for the day. The temple is very old, 8th century (when Buddhism was just beginning to take hold in Japan), although it was rebuilt repeatedly due to fire and earthquakes. The main hall now dates to the early 18th century, but the statues are older. Below you can see the main gate leading to Todaiji. I like how old it looks; it's very pretty.

This is one of the guardian statues in the main gate. Very well known statues, and I was happy with how this picture came out. Unfortunately the statues all now have netting over them, to keep out birds and animals, etc. These statues are absolutely enormous, by the way.

Here is a deer. Todaiji is set, as previously mentioned, in the famous Deer Park of Nara, called such because it is full of deer. They are very tame, because everyone who comes there feeds them, and practically everyone in Japan comes there at one point or another! You can walk right up to them and pet them, or they will come up to you themselves, wanting food. I find it a little creepy. When I was there, one of the deer (a male with his horns cut off) headbutted this small elementary school child. It was a tad alarming; I do hope he was alright.

They look so innocent... Don't be fooled.

Now, below you can see the main hall of Todaiji. I'm not sure if you can quite see from this picture, but it is enormous. It is almost impossible to overstate its hugeness. It is said to be the largest wooden structure in the world, and I wouldn't doubt it. Inside, the posts that support the roof are huge, trunks as thick as giant redwoods.

You can tell how huge it is--once you got closer, you couldn't even take in the whole building, it was just too big to fit in your camera. Todaiji is very famous, as you can see from the hordes of school children pictured below (they are the ones in black, in their little uniforms.)

Unfortunately, it was dark inside, and I couldn't get any proper pictures. However, there is an enormous Buddha statue inside. It's quite impressively huge. There are also a number of very large guardian statues, beautifully carved. It's really neat. There's also a famous hole in one of the aforementioned enormous posts, which people try to wiggle through--if you can get through, it is said, you will go to heaven/be enlightened/etc. Mostly only children can get through--I sure as heck didn't want to give it a try...

After visiting the main hall, I explored the rest of the area. I visited a museum/treasure hall with a number of interesting states, but no pictures were allowed, of course.

Below you can see a bell tower that I stumbled upon up in the hills. There were also a bunch of restaurants, ice cream shops, and souvenir shops up there too! Convenient, I suppose. I ended up buying a Todaiji Hello Kitty keitai strap, I have to admit...

Yes, the deer are everywhere.

After leaving Todaiji, I decided to make a brief stop at the local museum. There was actually a really famous temporary exhibit going on at the time--only happened once a year or something. But the line was huge, and I had a schedule to keep! So I just visited the normal, permanent museum, which had no line at all. In fact, you bought your ticket from a vending machine. God bless Japan! It was a really nice museum, with informative labels in English and lots of interesting art.

After that, I moved on to Horyuji...