Japan Society Educator's Tour - Day 2 (Afternoon - Kyoto)
I am never going to finish writing my journal this way... XD So after leaving the Kamigamo Shrine, we went to the Daitokuji Temple where we had a vegetarian lunch at a restaurant called Izusen. It was definitely an interesting experience. I can't remember the last time I ever did a completely vegetarian meal. And this one was seriously amazing.
I can't even begin to tell you the names of half of what I ate, but I ate everything, and it was delicious!
After lunch, we began to visit a few of the 20+ temples that were within the complex. I wish I had my camera out in time, but at one point, a monk, dressed in his robes and wearing a safety helmet came riding by us on a vespa. Talk about photo opportunity missed!
My fellow teachers and I took a multitude of shots at the various temples (each of which, by the way, carried its own individual entry fee - can Buddhists be mercenary?
Interesting fact about this particular garden - it was created by a samurai for his daimyo after he had become a Christian. So this particular garden, where I'm sitting, has its rocks placed in the shape of a cross. That's why it's called the "Garden of the Cross." There were other shots around the garden:
As we were leaving, we "bumped" into the tea master - he had just finished with a client - and we discovered that he'd actually been to the Japan Society to give a talk! He was very sweet and allowed us to sit in the tea room with him and take pictures.
Pretty much the remainder of the day was wandering through the other shrines. It was certainly a beautiful and relaxing experience.
George, Heather and Kazuko
George, Liz, Gabriella, Jason and Kazuko
Trying to take a picture when there are no Japanese people in it was a bit impossible, so I had to make do with this one.
These are apparently little bodhisattvas (those who achieve enlightenment but opt to stay on earth in order to bring others to the same level). They are small because they are for children. However, they themselves are not children.
Some inner shrine shot stuff here. Bamboo forest, inner sanctuary of some sort? and a red leafed tree in the midst of all the greenery.
In this particular picture, I kept thinking about the book, "The Secret Garden."
We ended the day with an "Italian buffet" dinner. Note the italics.
It wasn't a real buffet, because we had to order stuff and they were brought to us. However, we could order as much as we wanted and as many times as we wanted. And we did. Everyone started with 2 bottles of wine - one red, one white - and the fun continued from there. Some of the stuff was actually pretty good, but absolutely none of it was authentic Italian. It was okay, though - a good time was had by all, especially the one who had the "waitress buzzer." Every time we wanted to order more, we'd just buzz that poor girl back inside. Oy... I'm tired again. It's really Day 6, but I'm COMPLETELY behind in my journal entries. Seriously having the time of my life, but I'm so exhausted from the non-stop pace we've been doing lately. I'll try to be better tomorrow - maybe I can bring my laptop with me on the trip I'm taking with my host family (more on them later).
I can't even begin to tell you the names of half of what I ate, but I ate everything, and it was delicious!
After lunch, we began to visit a few of the 20+ temples that were within the complex. I wish I had my camera out in time, but at one point, a monk, dressed in his robes and wearing a safety helmet came riding by us on a vespa. Talk about photo opportunity missed!
My fellow teachers and I took a multitude of shots at the various temples (each of which, by the way, carried its own individual entry fee - can Buddhists be mercenary?
Interesting fact about this particular garden - it was created by a samurai for his daimyo after he had become a Christian. So this particular garden, where I'm sitting, has its rocks placed in the shape of a cross. That's why it's called the "Garden of the Cross." There were other shots around the garden:
As we were leaving, we "bumped" into the tea master - he had just finished with a client - and we discovered that he'd actually been to the Japan Society to give a talk! He was very sweet and allowed us to sit in the tea room with him and take pictures.
Pretty much the remainder of the day was wandering through the other shrines. It was certainly a beautiful and relaxing experience.
George, Heather and Kazuko
George, Liz, Gabriella, Jason and Kazuko
Trying to take a picture when there are no Japanese people in it was a bit impossible, so I had to make do with this one.
These are apparently little bodhisattvas (those who achieve enlightenment but opt to stay on earth in order to bring others to the same level). They are small because they are for children. However, they themselves are not children.
Some inner shrine shot stuff here. Bamboo forest, inner sanctuary of some sort? and a red leafed tree in the midst of all the greenery.
In this particular picture, I kept thinking about the book, "The Secret Garden."
We ended the day with an "Italian buffet" dinner. Note the italics.
It wasn't a real buffet, because we had to order stuff and they were brought to us. However, we could order as much as we wanted and as many times as we wanted. And we did. Everyone started with 2 bottles of wine - one red, one white - and the fun continued from there. Some of the stuff was actually pretty good, but absolutely none of it was authentic Italian. It was okay, though - a good time was had by all, especially the one who had the "waitress buzzer." Every time we wanted to order more, we'd just buzz that poor girl back inside. Oy... I'm tired again. It's really Day 6, but I'm COMPLETELY behind in my journal entries. Seriously having the time of my life, but I'm so exhausted from the non-stop pace we've been doing lately. I'll try to be better tomorrow - maybe I can bring my laptop with me on the trip I'm taking with my host family (more on them later).