We left the building at 8:30 am. Unfortunately it was another rainy day. Our
first stop of the day was the Heian Shrine and Garden. We strolled thru the gardens while the rain
was still relatively light. Despite the rain the gardens were lovely.
Heian Shrine & Garden
Map of Heian Shrine and Garden
Our second stop of the day was the Nijo Castle. No picture taking was permitted in the
Castle; consequently I have only a few pictures of the outside. During the
Shogun era, the emperor resided in Kyoto and if the Shogun was not in full
control, he would come to Kyoto to boost his position. Normal protocol called for anyone wishing to
see the Emperor to go to the Emperor’s residence. When the power of the Shogun was at its
height, he was able to force the Emperor to come to him.
The Nijo Castle was built based upon Chinese design
theory. Many of the drawings in the
castle were painted from imagination because the painters had never seen the
animal to be depicted; e.g. a tiger, since tigers don’t exist in Japan.
Outside Nijo Castle
We lunched at a cooking school where we learned to make
sushi and chicken teriyaki. Everything
came out much better than expected. They
had set up the “class” so that it was almost impossible to mess things up. In addition, there were three chefs who knew
what they were doing wandering around checking up on everything. I enjoyed the class and would like to make
sushi at home.
After dropping off the people who hadn’t opted for the tour to Nara, we headed there. I had a great deal of difficulty in staying awake during the ride. When we arrived in Nara, it was raining heavier, but since there was no lightning or thunder, we continued. There are deer wandering around the park. These deer are not very big. I would say that they are the size of a grey hound, maybe a little taller. They are very bold, because virtually everyone buys a package of “cookies” to feed them. They expect to be fed and if they aren’t, they will nip you. I generally avoided them. We entered the Todaiji Temple to see the very large Buddha and then walked around the temple in a clockwise direction. I got pictures of the associated statues. The only problem was the large number of students on school excursions. Kids will act like kids!
Our next stop was the Kasuga Shrine, which is a
Shinto Shrine. It is famous for the
stone lanterns that line the paths everywhere.
There were also a few bronze lanterns as well. Apparently, once a year with help from
multiple sources, all the lanterns are lit.
The point of this is to enable the spirits who have come to visit to
find their way home to the mountains.
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| Kasuga Shrine - entering through Tori GateKasuga Shrine - entering through Tori Gate |
We were driven back to Kyoto. Roz, Daniela and I got off the bus at the
train station, where I was able to get the train that I wanted for My Little
Avi. Tomorrow I hope to get the kimono I
want for My Little Muffin. We had dinner
and then took the shuttle provided by the hotel back to the hotel.
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