sacred space. A thousand times.
Shinto mountain shrine.
(Kirstie Pelling)
By chance, there was a week-long Pokémon Go festival happening at the Expo Center next to our place at Osaka University, so the locals came swarming into the park. It was a sight to see! Thousands of grown men and women (and kids), necks craned and eyes glued to their phones, were on the hunt for virtual Pikachu and other characters across the park. We sat there on Friday to gawk at the sight but then i spotted MewMew (a highly elusive character) and captured it!
The fame was short lived. After the Pokémon Council congratulated me with a Pikachu visor, we hopped on a train and skedaddled to a place that couldn’t be any more of a polar opposite of the Pokémon fest.
Kyoto (京都), which means old capital, was established in 794 CE and is still an iconic and very relevant city because of its numerous cultural treasures and its preservation of traditional arts and customs. There have been many capital cities throughout Japan's long history. Our adventures started in Tokyo way up north, and last week we visited Nara in the south, so now it's time for the in-between capital.
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| Imperial Palace: as seen by other travelers (not us) |
For over a millennium, Kyoto served as the seat of the Japanese Imperial court, shaping the country's political and cultural landscape. More recently, Kyoto was rated “The World's Best City” for two consecutive years in 2014 and 2015.
Now here comes my disclaimer: while it certainly still is an amazing city, it’s become extra crowded because of its international publicity over the last ten years. And when we wandered the popular Gion district (known for its rich geisha history), we encountered a few too many tourists dressed as historically inaccurate Geishas and samurai.
With tourism running rampant, it was a bit of a struggle to find a way to escape the consumer-zombie masses. But we did our best.
And as you will see…it was plenty good enough.
So, in my opinion, there are three central features to Kyoto:
•One is the river that runs from North to South directly through the middle.
•Second is the quality of matcha tea you can find there.
•And thirdly, the hike leading up to the Fushimi Inari Shrine nestled into the eastern hills.
Furthermore, this post will be special because it combines our two weekends together.
Back around Christmas time, I’d booked a ritual tea experience for Hulya because she’s been intrigued by the cultural significance of tea and the ceremonial proceedings that surround it. However, once we got to Japan, we ended up making an unscheduled visit to see a dear friend who had pottery showing one weekend. Thus, two different visits.
So let's start with our good friend, Vince, who is directly linked to....
Kyoto Highlight # 1 — THE RIVER
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It was raining when we arrived in Kyoto. Japan’s summer rain is wonderful because if you have to get wet while exploring, at least it's not cold.
The serendipity of having a friend from Cloverdale who is doing a 2-month artist residency in Kyoto was really fantastic because as soon as we got our feet on the ground, we met Vince for dinner. And at his suggestion, we mosey'd over to a local spot that serves Japanese curry. It was perfect, since Hulya had been craving curry for days.
After we chatted over food and learned some interesting things about life in Kyoto, Vince took us to his favorite Jazz bar! (Another coincidence? Or is the universe really helping us feel at home? Doesn’t matter!)
The owner was there chipping chunks off a block of ice, mixing drinks, and prepping food, while his assistant curated the vinyl selection of jazz that filled the room and really set the mood.
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| (Hulya—surrounded by walls of jazz records—the happiest person on earth) |
We were still wet from walking in the rain, and the combination of jazz and liquor really warmed the soul. Somehow, Vince intuited exactly the things we needed those first few hours in Kyoto. But it got late quickly, and so we said goodnight and walked back along the river—the river, which Vince also encouraged us to seek out and follow. So we did.
We walked along the serene Kamo river for almost an hour, spotting white cranes stalking their prey in the reeds, local youth in large groups hanging out under the various bridge spaces, and deck after deck of local eateries where people were drinking and grilling food alongside the waterway.
The soft orange lights of cozy venues above us, and the reflections of city lights on the water below, made it magical at night.
Kyoto Highlight #2 — MATCHA
The day our tea ceremony was scheduled, the rain had stopped, and we enjoyed what would traditionally be a 4-hour ceremony, condensed into an hour. In a cozy room, with just us two and the host, we learned the importance of the tearoom space itself and the specially selected artwork for the guest that day; the gestures the host makes to follow the procedure of cleansing the tools; even the tea’s relationship to Zen Buddhism.
The famous monk, Eisa, brought tea seeds from China and planted them in the Kyoto prefecture. And when the young leaves are picked, dried, and cured, then ground into a fine powder with a unique mortar system—it’s considered matcha.
Matcha was a luxury back then. While monks would normally only drink green tea to keep themselves alert while meditating, the matcha was reserved for special ceremonies to bring people together while leaving politics behind. Even though the ceremony is very formal and rigid, it's a very human endeavor.
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| Huzzah—I got all my big words out in one sentence! |
But seriously...for a delightful documentary that follows an adorable Japanese woman through an amazing journey, I highly recommend watching this on YouTube. It's only 45 minutes long and very insightful. not just for the ritual of tea but for the various stories and people that cross the woman’s path over two years.
Tsuruko's Tea Journey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TToWb_JcHY
Kyoto Highlight # 3 — One Thousand Torri Gates!
Setting out from our hotel, we started with the Tō-ji pagoda. It was so so. But by chance, we found an incredible temple afterward. The Higashi Hongan-ji Temple.
Making our way toward the outskirts of Kyoto, we kept walking until our bellies gurgled. So we paused and to have some food, then pushed onward until we arrived at the start of the Fushimi Inari trail. But before entering the first torri gate, we had to physically push our way through the tourists amassing along the street entrance.
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| This onigiri deserves mention—with dashi broth to wash it down—it was the BEST! |
Finally, making our way through the first torri gate, we moved up and up and ever upward into the mountains through hundreds more torri gates. We didn’t know when it would end. And it became an unexpected spiritual experience. All the worldly woes and troubles were evaporating from our head and hearts as a sense of satori began to percolate into our consciousness.
Passing through countless torri gates created a hypnotic effect that opened us up to many moments of intense introspection. It was awe-inspiring, ego crushing, humbling, and fucking fantastic all wrapped together.
We eventually made it 764 feet (233 m) above sea level to a great view of Kyoto. But again, it's not the view or the city that has become my favorite experience during this entire trip. It's the Torri gates. Yet, I cannot convey the totality of this experience properly…. So, what I will do is stop trying and just tell you a bit of the history of the torri gate instead. Because they are like portals, and by passing through them, there is an opportunity for symbolic and literal transformation of one’s psyche.
Torri gates mark the entrance to a Shinto shrine. They symbolize the transition from the mundane world to the sacred realm and is believed to be a place where kami (spirits or deities) are welcomed and may travel through. The use of symbolic gates is widespread in Asia—such structures can be found in India, China, Thailand, and Korea—but how or when Japan assimilated them into Shinto religion is unknown.
The etymology is also uncertain. Various tentative origins of the word torii exist. One says that the name derives from the term: tōri-iru (pass through and enter). For me, the act of passing through these torri gates was a spiritual gesture but also a stripping away of the layers of life and mental patterning. It felt like stripping down to nothing and entering a vulnerable state of self-reflection.
A secondary thing I really like about the Shinto religion is the Kitsune statues.
Kitsune refers to foxes, often associated with the deity Inari, who is the god of rice, fertility, and prosperity. Kitsune are depicted as intelligent and potentially trickster figures, and they are often seen as messengers or guardians of Shinto shrines, particularly those dedicated to Inari. They are also associated with the ominous Japanese geomancy “Kimon”, and are believed to ward off evil.
Kitsune-fox spirits can be found in a few of Miyazaki’s anime films, especially Pom Poko.
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| Pom Poko (1994) |
Once we descended to the street level and began our walk back to the hotel, this whole 1,000+ torri gate experience led me to create a Top 10 List of my most memorable and profound moments thus far in Japan. And the Fushimi Inari torri gates are currently #1 on that list.
As we wandered along Kyoto’s stone-carved streets, we found a very memorable kaiseki restaurant. Its small portions were pricey, but divine.
We savored a pickled plate with hot sake. Then, continued on to some very novel items: Hamo Syabu (daggertooth pike conger) and shime-saba (vinegar-cured mackerel).
By the end of the day, we had traversed 13 miles (which is 33,000 steps!)
And at this point in our travels across the Japans, I can confidently say:
• Kyoto is my favorite city in Japan.
• I’ve tried far too many matcha flavored sweets...and yet, I still want more.
• And good friends are like a rivers—they flow easily into your life. And even when you depart from the river, you still feel a strong connection with it.
Thanks for tuning in for the fun!
The last entry from Japan will arrive next week.
Until then, sayonara!
Gully “The Gaijin” Traveller
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