Kyoto tower |
Meghan with Maiko-san |
Until 5pm, the Cabal was well endowed with glorious free time. Before our meeting time at 8:30, the A types and the B types splint into two groups, one with a C-Store breakfast and one with no breakfast/auc (ultra-hip)-supplied toast and tea (trendy and tasty, I felt part of an elite Japanese upper-middle class sub grouping). When the archest-types regrouped, in a blaze of glory, we formulated Mighty Plans to enjoy this city at our fingertips.
This is Tony, and Megan, B. Hon and I decided to go to the Golden Temple and the Sanjusangendo, a temple with a thousand Buddha statues. We figured out the public transit system, or rather, I told B. Hon and Meghan where to go, and we all fumbled around together for a while before shoving our way onto a crowded bus and standing in a bunch of ‘elbow-loving' Japanese chatterboxes. And for those of you who don't know, old Japanese women do own the d*mn place. With the help of many a schoolchild, we discovered there were 8 more! The stops of this hell to endured.
However, we emerged triumphant, then had to ask someone where the temple was. Luckily, the person we asked was going there to, but he didn't know either. He, a store clerk, and I had bi-lingual direction-asking party, and soon that which I like to call "The B-Team" was following a kindly Businessman.
Shortly after the entrance, where we learned these admission tickets were the coolest and that you can get a brochure in English, Chinese, and Korea, "The B-Team" split up for photographic/putting on a raincoat endeavors. The temple itself, as well as the grounds surrounding it, were quite beautiful, and while I was getting my omamori (good luck charm) fix (I have 13 now), I met a woman who's parents were visiting Japan (her husband was there on business, this was her fourth year) and we tired to ask if any of the charms were protection against earthquakes. Too bad neither of us spoke Japanese. You know those aquariums they have in the front of places like K-Mart?
In this temple, they had a couple of those kind of things, but they were the Old Japanese Buddhist versions. Brian was quite lucky with them, Meghan and I, not so much. Meghan was about to buy a necklace but then realized it was 70$ while I got nervously interviewed by a bunch of middle-school students in English, though. That was the catch. We hadn't seen Brian for a while, but apparently he had a similar experience.
We left and got back on the bus after another chance meeting with some more school kids who gave us a thank-you card for our troubles this time. At the transfer point, we realized where we were a wit bit late and almost didn't make it, but thanks for the annoyed benevolence of the driver, who told us to get off without paying without words, we'll just say, we succeeded. A kindly old woman who reversed my stance on the elderly got us onto the right bus. At our stop, we once again asked for directions, but when we needed to say, "Where is the entrance?" like the heels we are, we forgot "entrance" and instead said "not exit", because, you know, we could remember that one.
Prosperity smiled once more, and after Megan took a picture of the bathroom, we paid the notable price of 600 yen and entered. The exterior of the hall itself was nice, like they all are, but contained a natural spring discovered by a priest in a dream. The hall itself was incredible, being a national treasure and all, and did not allow pictures. It did truly contain 1000 Buddha, but they each only had 44 arms, not the 1000 each, as the tenant holds. The statues flanked a much larger and beautiful statue of the Buddha with a 1000 arms, sorry I forget the name, so I guess there are 1001 Buddhas. The front of these statues the 28 main deities of Indian Buddhism, statue form also, with expository plaques for each. To be continued.
I apologize for the long-windedness; heretofore, I'll be brief. Lunch was good. We ate it. This was done after we got back to Kyoto Station, after the temple. We returned to the inn and returned to the station to take the Shinkansen to Hiroshima. At that station, we took a bus to the bottom of the hill with the youth hostel, enraging the other, and businesspeople riders. We trekked up the hill and got situated for the night. Amidst much camaraderie, this contraption was foisted upon me, and there you have it.