Kyoto in the Fall

Back from my quick trip to Kyoto and it was so pretty! Kyoto is gorgeous during the fall. Here are two of my favorite pics so far:

I really like this one because of the blend of four colors - the brown roof, the green tree in the back, the yellow middle one, and the brilliant red one in front. This is from a smaller temple that is near the Silver Pavilion. I forgot its name, but I'll post it once I find out. It's well known for its fall foliage though.


The next one just came out really well as I tried to capture the reflection of the leaves in this cute, little pond area. It's from the same temple, just a little further then the previous picture had depicted.

And there's another pic I wanted to upload, but it doesn't seem to want to work today. Ah well. I'll save it for next time. It was cool, though. Had the full moon and everything!

Layered Bike Racks

As mentioned in the last post, Japan is big about economizing their space. They also tend to have a lot of things scrunched together, so you can easily get around by the public transportation or by a bike.

Because of this, there are a ton of bikes all around. More than I've seen in any other place I've been. And, consequently, you get cool bike racks such as you see in this pic. This lovely building in Osaka has a row of bikes in front of it, as you can see.

But, if you look deeper into the background, in the middle, there is another row of bikes AND there is a row of bikes above that row. Yep. You're seeing a two-leveled bike rack. Two of them, in fact, and there are two more to the left of the screen that aren't in the picture. And those bikes are just for this apartment building.

Layered bike racks. Crazy, huh?

Let's compact that...

So, there I was, calmly making my way back to my ryokan in Kyoto amidst the dimming light, when I suddenly do a double-look at a garage I had just passed, which I promptly took a picture to immortalize the moment. Yes, that's a car you're seeing and yes, it's been raised up high.

I've always heard of how the Japanese economize space and I've heard (and seen on TV) some of the crazy ways they use their space, but this was the first time I got to see it right before my eyes and it was so strange. This garage is in a normal neighborhood - not rich looking at all - and yet it just felt so ...science-fiction-like. But hey, if you're tight on land space and have plenty of sky, why not?

Let's just hope they don't have kids that like to experiment with things...

Taking the 'Basu' in Kyoto

I just had to note: Taking the bus in Kyoto was interesting. I felt taking the bus would allow me to be better orientated than taking the subway, and it would allow me to check out the town as I passed through it.

The bus system wasn't too hard to figure out; I had some good maps and I had bought a one-day pass (which I recommend highly) so I wouldn't have to worry about payment every time I got on the bus. The only tricky part was figuring out how to get my ticket stamped (turns out you let it go through a machine at the front of the bus before you get off). Oh, and finding the bus stop.

What you see here, in this pic, is a bus stop. Yeah, real obvious, isn't it? Actually, the bus stops near the main temples are easier to find (just look for a big group of tourists who are anxiously staring down the street) and some are easily marked, but when you meander through the town for the fun of it (such as I did), it can get interesting to figure out which is a bus stop and which is just a pole with a blue sticker on it. Luckily, I know some katakana and the last two symbols on that blue sticker say "Ba Su", which I had assumed (correctly) meant "Bus."

Still, it was quite interesting trying to figure out where a bus stop actually was... ^_^ Especially since 'basu' could technically also be translated as 'bath'.

Already Six Months in Japan

I hit a 'gate' of sorts yesterday, it being my 6th month mark of being in Japan.

Weird, isn't it? It's strange to think I've already been here six months. Seems like only a few months, 4 max! And it's even stranger to think that from now on, the months I have left will be decreasing, like draining water. :(

Unless I extend my contract, of course ^_^

Anyway, Happy 6th Month Anniversary to me!

P.S. The pic is from Ryoan-ji, leading out onto the little island in the big lake.

Ryōan-ji Temple: The Famous Zen Rock Garden

Ryoan-ji Temple is famous for it's rock garden done in the Zen style. The temple itself, in my opinion, isn't much to see. They had some interesting paintings on the walls, but the rock garden is definitely the main attraction. There's a spot to sit down near the rock garden where you can contemplate on the garden's meaning and perhaps the meaning of life and your purpose. It's best to hit this temple early in the morning when it's not so crowded, unless you're good at mediating amidst a talkative crowd. I can, so after grabbing a vacant spot, I sat and enjoyed the beauty for a while. Twas very relaxing.

The lake in front of the temple, though, is utterly gorgeous, and it's where I spent most of my time. It has a little island in the middle with a cute bridge connecting it with the main land. And the lilly pads were blooming with awesome flowers at that time. So, without further ado, the pictures:





And because it's my favorite pic and came out so well - front and center:


Gotta love pretty lilly pads. ^_^

Kinkaku-ji: Golden Pavilion - Part Two

Something I soon realized while visiting in Kyoto was that each famous temple had an even better, and huge garden surrounding them. I often spent more time wandering around the gardens instead of the temples. Kinkaku-ji is no different. Well, actually it was different since you couldn't actually go into the Golden Pavilion. But the garden made up for that lack. ^_^




Here's a shot of the temple itself with a close up of the roof and the little rooster/bird on top.



The pic on the left is of what is immediate behind the Kinkaku-ji. You then follow the path and go up a little incline where there is a another little pond hidden between trees. The next four pictures are of random spots of the garden as you meander through it.




Overall, a really pretty place. Rather crowded (there were a lot of school groups going through as well as tourists), but you can still enjoy the beauty of the place. I wish we were able to wander off the path and into garden more, but alas, you had to follow the designated route. Sadness.

Back to the Pink Side

China was a blast. We hit quite a few snags in the beginning of our trip, but overall, we had a ton of fun. And I have a ton of pictures. Again.

I've been a busy girl, barely getting home from China before going off to other parts of Japan such as Hiroshima and Kompira-san. Oh, and working. Yeah, I do that occasionally *wink*

But first, I need to finish up Kyoto on this blog. I'll be going back there within two weeks (yep, another trip ^_^ ) and I'd like to get the first trip covered before I hit the town again.

I just have to say though: I love being in Japan!