Kyoto Calling
I made it!!
After a 17 hour flight, I finally touched down on the manmade island built just to house KIX airport in Osaka, then took a train just over an hour to Kyoto.
While planning the itinerary for my Japanese adventure, I decided to follow the Japanese matsuri (festival) calendar. So my first stop was Kyoto to witness the Aoi Matsuri, which was due to take place the day after I touched down in Japan.
After walking around 10 minutes I arrived at my ryokan (Japanese traditional inn), the Guest House Kyoto Costa del Sol: http://costadelsol.co.jp/en/en_kyoto.html. As I arrived I learned I had around three hours until I could actually check in, so decided to drop off my rucksack, grab my notebook and camera and explore the surrounding areas.
Leaving the hostel I headed back to Kyoto main train station. While walking through the tiny streets I couldn't help but notice the juxtaposition of my surroundings. On one hand, I was walking down tiny, cobble-stoned streets lined with traditional Japanese homes, yet suddenly out of nowhere there will be a 7-Eleven convenience store, plonked right in between the wooden houses. Then I would pass a McDonalds. I was quickly getting an idea of what some travel books meant when they referred to Japan as "the land of contrasts".
Kyoto main station was a sight to behold. Imagine Grand Central station, only replace the concrete and marble with glass and polished steel. There was a cinema, a shopping mall, government offices, and even a health spa - in the train station. The men and women were dressed in suits and smart business outfits, looking every bit glamorous. As you can imagine, after travelling for 17 hours, and having worn the same airplane-stenched clothes for 48 hours, I had felt a little bit underdressed and extremely out of place.
In an attempt to hide my unwashed self from the eyes of the clearly hygienically-superior locals, I took the escalator to the roof of the train station to a place that sounded exactly what I needed: The Happy Terrace.
My way up 15 floors to the Happy Terrace
The Happy Terrace was a little piece of heaven 15-stories above the Kyoto skyline. I took a seat on the grass and just took a breath. “Unbelievable”, I thought. “I can’t believe I’m in JAPAN!”. I had been slightly obsessive about Japan, its language and its culture since I can remember. I took Japanese classes in college and joined an Anglo-Japan Society back in the UK. I even had a Japanese penpal whom I had arranged to meet up with during my trip.
After a few minutes of relaxing on the Happy Terrace, I decided to head back down to terra firm and slowly make my way back to the hostel. As I approached, to my surprise I came across the Higashi Honan-ji, a Buddhist temple close to where I was staying. I entered the grounds through a giant stone gate and entered the main hall. Amongst the various shrines were monks in black robes lighting candles. In front of them were local Japanese praying. I knelt down on one of the tatami mats alongside them and closed my eyes. I don’t think I actually prayed for anything, but just let the serenity of the moment wash over me for a few seconds.
Higashi Honan-ji Temple
I then made my way out of the temple and to my hostel. Finally it was time to check in to my new home for the next few nights. As a traditional Japanese hostel, there was no bed but only a tatami mat with a small cushion for your head. With a sore back and a tired everything, I lied down on my mat and rested my eyes for what I thought was a brief 15 minutes or so. When I next woke, I realised it had gone from mid-afternoon sun to pitch black. I then totally freaked out, panicking as one usually does when they wake up in a strange place without remembering how they got there! But then it started to come back to me and I realised I had been asleep for over 5 hours, and I was super hungry. Time to find some food.
I headed down the tiny street for about 10 minutes when I arrived at Kyoto’s famous Gion District.
Kyoto's Gion District
Kyoto’s Gion District was built in the Middle Ages as a place to accommodate travellers and visitors to the Yasaka Shrine. I had read about the Yasaka Shrine, famous for having its lit lanterns at night, and was determined to find it. And Yasaka did not disappoint. Completely empty, save for a few locals scattered here and there, the temple was silent. The only sign of life being the hundreds of paper lanterns lit up around the different parts of the shrine.
The paper lanterns at Yasaka Shrine
After visiting the shrine, I came across a 24-hour udon cafe which wasn't too different to the late night greasy spoon diners you’d find in the USA. Priorities first, I ordered the largest Asahi beer they had, and proceeded to gorge myself on dumplings, miso soup and noodles. Heavenly.
Having most likely eaten my weight in dumplings, I headed back down Gion Street to make my way back to the hostel. I turned a corner and nearly bump into something so beautiful I could hardly believe my eyes. It was only a brief encounter, but I could have sworn I had just bumped into two geishas! The Gion District is one of the most well-known geisha districts in all of Japan. Japanese geishas were becoming more and more rare, with research suggesting there are only a couple hundred still practicing, so to see one at all is quite an experience. Although I couldn’t determine if they were geisha or gieko (practicing geisha), but in either case, I was very excited. I managed to keep myself composed long enough to get out of hearing distance, and then proceeded to squeal like a little girl.
First night in Japan: success.
