Japan: Day #19 (October 9, 2008 Thursday) Kyoto

Mom got up with a queasy stomach so she said she would prefer staying at the hostel to rest while we braved a heavy day of walking to see the Kiyomizu area.

Armed with our Lonely Planet guide book we headed out the door after setting mom up with tea, bread and the Japanese TV. She was happy as a clam.


We caught the 8:16 #206 bus to Kiyomizu-dera. It was nice to get an uncrowded bus.



We see so many unusual flowers but we don't know what their English names are. We thought this looked almost like a hibiscus.



And here's a purple flower that intrigued us.



Here's the gate to the Kiyomizu-dera (clean water temple).



Kiyomizu-dera



More Kiyomizu-dera



The school kids on a field trip were having a great time purifying their hands and mouths before entering the shrine. Ooops! Art just told me that actually...drinking from the waterfall is supposed to insure that your prayer for a purified soul would be answered.



After leaving the shrine area we came to the Sannenzaka stairs. It's said that if you trip and fall on these stairs you would die within 2 years. We were extremely careful to make sure we got down safely.



I especially liked this sign. It made me pause to think.



Art said I sure didn't need to post these pigeon photos but I just had to. They were sitting on the branches at Maruyama Koen (Maruyama Park)and didn't bother to move even when people (me) sat close by. Art said nobody is interested in what Chicagoans regard as feathered rats.



We also saw this stork...ummmm... is it a stork? We thought it was quite beautiful.



Here's a Japanese crow. I was very interested in him because it's quite different from the Chicago crow. The beak is bigger and fatter and the head shape is a little different, too.



This is the Yasaka Jinja (Yasaka Shrine) in the famous Gion area. The Gion area is known for Geishas.



Art took this photo of the Maikos (Geishas in training) as they passed by. It's sweltering here in Kyoto. We stopped at a restaurant to have lunch and the waiter told us that it rained the day before we came but it's been unseasonably sunny and hot for our stay. I wonder what the weather will be in Nara for our deer watch. Nara is very famous for their bowing deer. No kidding. I remember how they pester you like crazy also because they are protected there.



Art had to take this photo for our fire fighter son also.

When we returned to the hostel mom was sitting there quite cheerful saying she had recovered perfectly and was now ready for whatever we were planning to do. Great! Nara does require a bit of walking. Hopefully, things will go well. If it starts raining from this day forward, we have been extraordinarily lucky and will count our blessings. Blessings to all of you who have kept me company on this journey.

Geisha

We were sitting at the food court of the Ala Moana Shopping Center today grabbing an early lunch before taking my mom to the Senior Fair to get a flu shot. We noticed a child with a back pack which looked like a disguised child safety leash. It reminded me of the time we nearly lost our son in a crowded gathering in Chicago when he was about 3 years old. The terror of my tale triggered a memory for mom. Here is her story translated.

“Did you know I got lost once? I was about 5 years old and we’d come back to Japan from Molokai. We were walking through a huge department store in Yokohama and there was so much to see. That’s when an exquisite wedding doll caught my eye. I’d never seen anything so wonderful before. I couldn’t stop staring at it. When I finally looked up everybody was gone and I started to cry. I didn’t know what to do. It was then that the most beautiful geisha you will ever see came to me. She had on a luxurious kimono and her hair was elaborately fashioned. She was more beautiful than any movie star and very kind. Taking my hand and speaking in a soothing voice, she took me to the department store management who called the police. When I was older your grandma laughed and told me that they’d asked me what my name was and I told them, “My name is Hiroko and my father is the honorable priest Stupid Head.”

I’m not sure how to translate that phrase but it showed the temper that my mom is on some occasions capable of having.

Mom says she remembers her grandfather carrying her home from the department store. I’m thinking she may not have quite forgiven her father just yet.

It was interesting to me as I listened to this story that it shed some light on how some of my mom’s feelings were shaped by that early encounter.

When I was growing up, nobody was allowed to denigrate geishas in front of my mother. You could never ever intimate that a geisha was a prostitute. My mom always made it clear that geishas were extremely gifted and trained woman of elegance and beauty. It was more than an explanation, she was very defensive of her childhood champion.

Therefore, I guess my point is that every little thing you do for someone else may have far reaching consequences for good or bad. It’s something you have to think about when you make your choice.