The greatest week of my life part one

Korea might be the land of the Morning Calm but Japan is the land of unimaginable beauty. Whether it is serene temples, sequestered mountain paths, scrumptious delights, scintillating
conversation, as well as the most beautiful populous I have ever seen. Perhaps it was just Kyoto but I felt that I was constantly running into models and it confused me greatly. Well the time has come for me to tell you my tale, this tale is one of intrigue and adventure, of hardship and romance, but most of all it is the tale of discovery. So without further ado here begins my story...

Now it would not be a story without pictures to help in the telling this is from my first train ride.

The trains in Japan are out of sight they truly are futuristic. Understanding that many people have difficulties traveling backwards on a train they have designed their seats to rotate to face the proper direction. A small innovation that is only one of thousands of the little things that made Japan lovely.

The giant interior of the Kyoto Station a mammoth building that many believed disrupted the natural beauty of Kyoto. I would disagree I thought it added a nice touch.

A view of Toji temple, the tallest pagoda in Japan.

As you are about to find out I am rather fond of pagodas and they will have a prominent spot in these posts. This is another shot of Toji, it was a little bit south of the station and was on these lovely grounds filled with turtles cranes and ice cream. A great place to begin my journey.

The five stories of the Toji temple are all of centimeters taller than its sister pagoda in Nara. After leaving Toji I departed for Tofukuji which will be discussed later in depth, suffice it to say that it was there that I realized how amazing life can be. From Tofukuji I walked a mile to Fushimi Inari, a mountain walk filled with thousands of bright orange torii, all dedicated to good harvest and business. Along the way it began to rain and I was befriended by a local Japanese man who told me he was a business man. This five minute friendship allowed me to find my way and get out of the lightly falling rain. A funny side note, I decided to be an adult and purchase an umbrella for 4 dollars to help stay dry, suffice it to say that minutes after buying my little yellow umbrella the rain stopped and did not fall again until my last night in the country.

The trail was unreal and eerie in the failing light giving it an unearthly glow and feel. I was extremely pleased that I completed the full trail up the mountain for the sights were well worth the exhaustion.

A good view of the beautiful torii.

I love how the clouds in the background cling to the mountainside.

After completing my pilgrimage to the top it was getting late and I decided to find my hostel in Gion, the geisha district. After getting confused by the rail system, they have the subway and 3 different rail companies all working as a light rail system on the same tracks I finally found the spot. I was feeling hungry so I went looking for a place to eat and what I found was a restaurant that cooked all of its food on a hot stone directly in front of you. They also served a delicious beer made by Suntori. I will say that Japan has a strong tradition of crafting a tasty beer unlike their Korean counterparts...alas. I am trying to have a food diary tucked away inside this blog so this was my first of 16 meals in Japan.

Delicious Suntori.

Tuna and shrimp on the stone.

Miso soup, delightful.

The owner felt that I needed to have my picture taken to document the night, so here is yours truly. Thus completed my first night in Japan and the first steps of what would be a magical and enlightening week.

This will be the end of this broadcast...

Until later pasties
Will out.