Useful vending machine.
Temple inside a shopping mall in Kyoto.
This is used to purify yourself before praying.
Ring the bell for a god's attention.
Japanese tree next to a white building.
Swell name for a restaurant.
Big river.
I started a tour from here. One of 1600 shrines in the city.
More god signal bells. Lots of Shinto gods. Lots of bells.
Supposed to be monkeys. I forget why.
Lots of monkeys inside. This is an old community centre type thing.
Five story pagoda.
Another pagoda. There's about 400 temples in the city.
Typical road in the Gion area.
Me and some boring stuff.
This faces directly west. Apparently a good place to be at sunset.
That temple is where pregnant women would climb to ensure a safe delivery.
This is the place where people jump and make wishes.
Kyoto tower in the distance.
This is where the wish jumpers go. If they survive, their wish is granted.
Wish ledge again.
This is where the wish jumpers would land. Apparently there was an 85% survival rate.
Drinking from each water stream grants a different blessing.
Big buddha. Didn't bother paying to see the rest. Was all templed out by this point.
Lanterns donated by local citizens and shops. Dancers perform on the stage on occasion.
Rice wafer thing, with japanese sauce, seaweed, and mayo. $1. Not that bad.
Gion alley.
Some lake and buildings. I think it was a school or something.
Moat around royal palace. It was closed when I tried to see it. Who closes on a Tuesday?
Another shrine area.
Lots of construction.
Old University.
Some facts.
Kyoto tower from the train station. One godzilla movie had it destroyed because the director thought it was ugly.
Welcome to Kobe.
Kobe harbour.
Shopping area near the harbour.
Scanning the area for beef. No luck.
Found fish though.
Massive claws.
Fake food.
Osaka, I think.
Yup. Osaka.
Angry octopus.
Osaka river.
Too early, but an interesting sounding place.
Back in Kyoto on Geiko/Meiko tour.
Yet another shrine.
Tree growing from house.
Small river in Gion area.
Tour group looking for Geikos (Geisha)
Sign describing a tea ceremony in Gion.
Meiko (apprentice) running away to her appointment.
This is where she lives. Each wooden plate is the name of a Meiko or Geiko who lives here.
I was hungry, but I never stopped to try it...
My Ryokan room. Small and cozy and cheap. If you like sitting on soft floors.
...with big cockroaches.
