December 2nd: Day 1 in Kyoto JL
Following our tour of the Imperial Palace, we decided to lunch in Gion, the entertainment district of the city of Kyoto. We had some difficulty finding a restaurant – being a group of fifteen, we were unable to squeeze into most shops, as much of the inner city is somewhat lacking with regards to space, as was to be expected. Nevertheless, a place was found, and we ate well. We had a little free shopping in Gion, as the abundance of plazas and multi-storey shops allowed for all manner of spending.
Having loaded up with souvenirs and snacks, we embarked on foot for Kiyomizu-dera, literally ‘pure water temple’. Our arriving on the first day of winter turned out to be something of a blessing – the woods in and surrounding the temple shone remarkably in the sunset, each a different shade of orange or red. The temple itself was astonishing, and it was here that we discovered exactly how friendly and photogenic Japanese schoolgirls can be. We were ferociously assailed from all sides by hordes of teenage girls dragging several unfortunates away from the Study Tour group and into a throng of giggling schoolgirls, where they were blinded with thousands of camera flashes, the likes of which no celebrity can ever claim to have experienced. We exited the temple rather stunned, due to both the breathtaking views and the insatiable fascination that Japanese girls seem to have for foreigners (although it was mostly due to the latter).
Finally, we boarded a bus for the JR Station, had dinner nearby, and retreated to our hotel rooms for the night.
Following our tour of the Imperial Palace, we decided to lunch in Gion, the entertainment district of the city of Kyoto. We had some difficulty finding a restaurant – being a group of fifteen, we were unable to squeeze into most shops, as much of the inner city is somewhat lacking with regards to space, as was to be expected. Nevertheless, a place was found, and we ate well. We had a little free shopping in Gion, as the abundance of plazas and multi-storey shops allowed for all manner of spending.
Having loaded up with souvenirs and snacks, we embarked on foot for Kiyomizu-dera, literally ‘pure water temple’. Our arriving on the first day of winter turned out to be something of a blessing – the woods in and surrounding the temple shone remarkably in the sunset, each a different shade of orange or red. The temple itself was astonishing, and it was here that we discovered exactly how friendly and photogenic Japanese schoolgirls can be. We were ferociously assailed from all sides by hordes of teenage girls dragging several unfortunates away from the Study Tour group and into a throng of giggling schoolgirls, where they were blinded with thousands of camera flashes, the likes of which no celebrity can ever claim to have experienced. We exited the temple rather stunned, due to both the breathtaking views and the insatiable fascination that Japanese girls seem to have for foreigners (although it was mostly due to the latter).
Finally, we boarded a bus for the JR Station, had dinner nearby, and retreated to our hotel rooms for the night.
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