After leaving Toyama in 1969, I bought a motorcycle..

……and found another job for a year in Hiroshima. Hiroshima was not on this trip, so no update on it.
 
After that it was 1984 before going to Japan again.

This time it was to Kyoto.

Through a Waseda Professor's introduction, I lived in Myoshin-ji, a Zen temple with Head Priest Egami.

I lived in a student lodging he had built out back "in order to put some of the temple's open space to use". Though a Priest, he would rather have been a farmer. There were dogs, chickens, plants and raised beds of vegtables.

Egami's son is now Head Priest and there have been changes. Not only are the students, chickens and dogs gone, so are Egami and his wife. They are living in a new house, with solar electric, all LED lighting, water conservation devices. "We must all do what we can to reduce energy consumption and air/water pollution." It was so terrific to see them, we talked all afternoon, and I totally forgot to take any photos….

Not so for Richard and Kimiko Steiner. Although I met Richard briefly in Ann Arbor, then Hiroshima, it was not until 1984 in Kyoto I had time to get to know him and Kimiko…and I see them whenever I am in Japan, and they are my go to people for lodgings in Kyoto.

Kiitanoya is their latest recommendation for Japanese style accommodations.

Typical traditional, one of a decreasing number which are still surviving the tide of western style hotels. Fusuma doors on the closets; shoji between the room and the engawa, with windows looking out on a garden. Ensuite sink, but the toilet is shared down the hall while ofuro bath is on the first floor.

We checked out a hotel- The Hana, down the street from Kitanoya.

Very up-to-date, if a bit tight….

…including its "unit bath", but quite sufficient. Not the "wash let" toilet seat: heated with built in bidet. They are everywhere, even in subway station facilities.

As are Starbucks. By crazy coincidence a cousin, who lives in France, was in town so we met for breakfast here. Breakfasts traditionally are part of the night accommodations, but that is changing…and places llke this are filling the void.

Kyoto's traditional housing has been under extreme stress, but they still are found, as are...

…contemporary takes on them.

Finding Zhufeng size vehicles is easy, and, its easy to find parking for them!

Windows small and...

…windows large.

Preparing take out fried egg dishes...

Preparing Christmas decorations…

But what tourists visit Kyoto for are the Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines.

Being Zhufeng's first visit to Kyoto, there were some I wanted her to see: Koto-an in Daitoku-ji. Not for the ...

temple buildings, but for its gardens. This is the south-side main garden will is lone...

…stone lantern, but its many maple trees. It is the end of October, but the leaves are still quite green.

The Silver Pavilion in Jisho-ji is a Big Ticket item…no matter the season , it is crowded with individuals and groups.

We had the good fortune to stumble in when gardeners were rebuilding the main sand element. 

One face of the Silver Pavilion faces the sand, another this pond.

So of course we had to visit the Silver Pavilion's Elder Brother, the Golden Pavilion in Rokuon-ji.

As do the school groups on excursion…here looking at the Carp Stone and Waterfall while the guide yells out the significance of it. Look it up and you will learn why the Chinese Garden's large bronze carp's name is Dragon Seeker.

Many landscape garden yards are in the part of Kyoto, with rocks (boulders!)...

…stone lanterns.

And, on a personal note, so is the home of Yoshiko Sasaki, the widow of my Waseda professor. She has become a quite accomplished jewelry maker.

From Kyoto, Nara is an easy day trip. And in Nara, the Kasuga Shrine is easy to visit. Its bright colored torii harks back to its importance in the Heian Era (794-1185) when things Chinese were the rage. Over time Japanese sensibilities toned things down, and you get the Meiji Shirne torii in Tokyo.

In 2001 I had a small tour group and we stayed at Tsubaki Ryokan, run by Noriko Hirasawa. 

Deer have a sacred place at Kasuga….

…to the point that one is inscribed on the votive stone lantern which bears the shrine's name.

The route up to the main gate, where prayers are offered, is lined with metal lanterns and orange architecture, early imports from China.

Going down from the Main Gate, and around the side, one can glimpse a major design element of Shinto….

…the most inner place is inaccessible with extremely simple structures. A camera held high barely reveals it.

Another day trip is to Shigaraki, a pottery town most known for its production of tanuki (badger) garden decorations….

…but more and more for its proximity to the Miho Museum. A private museum designed by I.M.Pei to house the eclectic collection of the owner. One arrives at the visitor center, and have the first allusion to the Chinese influences Pei incorporated. The temple of Heaven in Beijing has the Circular Mound Altar, where one can stand it its middle, and hear a resonance off the ornate balustrade. Here is bounces off the simple design of glade and steel.

And the restaurant serves "light refreshments" fit for an Emperor (of course on Shigaraki pottery).

The toilets aren't shabby either!

From the visitors center one can ride an electric cart, or walk, up a curving road, thru a curving tunnel and...

…out across a suspension bridge. Chinese allusion: Peach Blossom Paradise. Here is a pretty good rendition of the story: http://www.theepochtimes.com/news/6-4-19/40584.html

And, at the entry, of course, the "Moon Gate", an essential element in Chinese Garden design. But the roof? I think here rural Japanese influences are seen.

But inside it is pure Pei.  A life time of designing museums incorporating daylighting with dark light safe places; trees outside, trees inside.

And in the middle of the main gallery ring, surely a garden of Japan.

After a long day on the museum trail, we found in Kyoto a "Mama-san's Comfort Food" neighborhood restaurant complete with photos and prices to lure the passerby in.

A local restaurant with locals at the tables.

Ah, just like Mother used to cook….well, not so sure about those wieners, but they sure were good.

Now it is three weeks later. Back in Kyoto I venture out to see how the maples are doing. I was not alone. Note people consulting guide books and maps and smart phones…what you can not tell is the number who are Chinese. Tourism to Japan is increasing almost in direct proportion with the tensions between their governments. I only hope this people-to-people diplomacy wins out.

Arashiyama is where the western hills reach out into the city, and where the temples and parks and open spaces lure leaf peelers in late November.

As crowded as a Monet exhibit at SAM….

…but there are quiet spaces where on can sit and order...

…a sweet and green tea.

Temples small also have a tree or two worthy of a stop. And no crowds to navigate.

After a day of leaves and gardens a Tofu Restaurant! OK, expensive, but my feet have earned it….

Yum!