A Voyage to Japan - 4th April

I had another full day in Kyoto before I was due to head back to Tokyo, and it took me a while to decide how to spend it. One possibility was a day trip from Kyoto (the Old Capital of Japan) to nearby Nara (the Even Older Capital of Japan). Another potential destination was Hiroshima. I felt a little conflicted by that prospect, since in truth my primary motive for going would have been the okonomiyaki (perhaps the second-most-famous thing about the place), and it felt a bit tasteless to visit for that reason rather than to see the bomb memorial, even though I would of course have done that too. Kobe was another possibility; or there was Fushimi-Inari-Taisha, with its thousands of vermillion torii. And there was still plenty to see in central Kyoto itself.

( In a Grove )

( Gio-ji )

( Shinto and Buddhism )

( Tea for One )