After taking a day off/resting it was time to head off to Kyoto.
All tour guides, books, etc. will tell you Kyoto is a city that should not be skipped no matter how busy/packed your schedule may be. This couldn’t be more right. What makes Kyoto great is not only the old-fashion/old-era vibe, structures, and temples but also its people (Kansai people are more down to earth, funny, and humble). A highlight of the day was at Fushimi-Inari where by total coincidence I met Ana Maria Canseco. First of all I must say she is a total sweetheart. Furthermore, for those who say the TV does miracles, she looks even better in person, so take that! Pretty much everything was beautiful so is hard to choose which pictures to upload, so I will just pick some random ones.
Here comes the shinkansen.
Walk into the heart of Kyoto.
Start of the temple/shrine adventure.
Entrance to Fushimi-Inari
Let the 鳥居(gates) begin! (not sure about you, but this is one of my favorites shots)
Ana Maria Canseco at Fushimi Inari.
Guess I didn’t know which facial expression to use at the moment (it was something between amazement, happy, and in shock).
Entrance to Golden Temple
Think you can make it into the pan?
Strong 抹茶(green tea powder for tea ceremonies) and Japanese sweet.
Beware of poisonous snakes.
Sorrounded by bamboo
Random things while on the philosophers road.
Pure Water Temple
Come on, is Japan you know I had to throw the v sign!
Ok, let me move out of the way so you can see the temple.
Called the pure water temple for a reason.
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Note: Noticed how empty it was? Well, thats because I was actually the last person to set foot on the place before closing. I literally had to run to make it on time (arrived 1 minute before closing time). This temple is usually so packed with tourist and school trips that you can barely take pictures.
Ana Maria Canseco? is that some spanish soup opera celebrity? anyway…dont they say that is good luck to walk through the gates with a gf/bf?
Ana Maria Canseco is the host of a famous morning/daytime show which airs from Miami.
As for the gates, I believe is good luck in general.
-Enrique
aww man….they really weren’t joking about the temples. So many!!!!!! LOL
Enrique!!! How’s everything? I tried to call you just now, but I got a message saying the call couldn’t be completed…
Japan looks like a lot of fun. Sucks that they don’t let you take pics of the arcades…And I thought the Japanese were chill about everything…I mean, if they’re fine with a guy wearing a leather outfit coming up to them, then you’d think they’d be fine with anything. Haha anyways…I hope you still remember how to speak english lol. I wish the subways were that punctual. Glad to see you’re having a good time! Summer classes suck to the extreme!!
Louisa says hi!
-Karen
Sup Karen!
Did you call the Japanese phone number I put up in facebook? (my regular American phone number doesn’t work here. In either case I will send you a message with my current phone number).
As for the pics, haha yeah there certain places you can’t take pictures. Like inside shops, arcades, and even certain temples. Overall though they are pretty “chill” as you mentioned. However, manner is really big in Japanese society so even when you could probably get away with something, you don’t do it. For example, I knew I couldn’t take a picture inside arcades (my friend told me) however, I tried to take one since I could get away as being a foreigner (you seen the results hehe). If it was my Japanese friend who took the picture it wouldn’t have been taken so lightly.
I wish both you and Louisa could have been here with me. Oh and also, tell her my Japanese friend is a huge X Japan fan as well (I’m not really into X Japan, but I give them props for being like the start of groups like L’arc en Ciel)
Lastly, it sucks to hear the summer classes blow (not like I didn’t tell you so hehe).
Miss ya guys!
-Enrique