Silver and Gold

Saturday was a bum around the Internet and do stuff day.  I finished another scarf, this one crocheted.

Sunday we left about 9:30, piled in the car and were on our way.  Two hours of reading Ulysses later (I've only got 43 pages/the last sentence left in the book), we were in Kyoto.  Otousan dropped Misa, Okaasan and I off near the entrance to Ginkakuji (the Silver Pavilion).

There was something of a line through the hedgerow, so we waited.  There was a guy in front of us who had an intriguing pair of pants on.  Curiosity demanded unzipping the zippers, but seeing how that would be socially unacceptable, I refrained.  Still wondering what the point was, though.

Anyway, we made it inside and the pavilion was right there inside the entrance.  The sun was behind it, which made for terrible pictures, but many were taken anyway.  Okaasan took one of Misa and I before we trudged along.  There was sand art; some raked sand, some in a cone shape.  Also, one of the other buildings was open, revealing some byobu (paper sliding doors) painted in the 18th century.  Apparently the building being open is a rare occurrance, which explains why there were so many serious photographers present.

The path took visitors up the nearby mountain a ways, giving a great view of Kyoto and the pavilion down below, as well as the momiji (maple leaves).  Misa collected them as a gift for Otousan.

When we finally reached the end of the path, it was bathroom time.  I've been avoiding it as much as possible, but I finally used a squat toilet.  How it's supposed to work still doesn't make sense to me, but I somehow pulled it off without needing a change of clothes afterward.  I think you're required to have flexible hips for squat toilets to work and that I do not.  Anyway, that experience under my belt...

We left the grounds to find the line was probably 3 times as long.  Okaasan bought a pickled radish and a salted cucumber on a stick.  I don't understand why cucumbers have to be salted in Japan.  They're delicious fresh.  Salt makes them gross.  Misa got chichi dango (grilled mochi balls [sticky rice cake] with sauce) for everyone.  We met up with Otousan and were on the road again.

The next stop was Sanzenin Temple, which was equally as busy.  We entered and immediately had to take our shoes off (and carry them with us in plastic bags!).  There were a number of monks, some copying Sutras, some signing books, others maintaining the grounds.  There was a large garden inside where many people had stopped to sit and admire.

Out the other side (and reacqainted with our shoes), there was an upper level with more buildings and a tea house.  They were giving out samples of a tea one could purchase.  It was like drinking salt water with the slightest bit of tea in it, really gross, but the interesting bit was that there were flakes of gold in the tea.

Yes, I drank gold.  Supposedly, according to Arianna who heard from her Okaasan, it's supposed to make you happy (and who wouldn't be, if they're rich enough to drink gold).  When we stopped for lunch (which was hot soba sets for everyone), I asked Okaasan why there was gold in the tea.  She claimed because it's beneficial to one's health.

The area had only three types of trees, I swear.  One that grew really tall and had green leaves/branches at the top.  The Japanese maples, which were responsible for all the orange and red and beautifulness, and the dormant sakura (cherry), which will turn the area pink in the spring when the maples are green.  It was rather beautiful.

After lunch, we wandered through the countryside.  Supposedly, we were supposed to enter the same temple from the other side, but none of us had enough cash to make this possible, so we got lost walking back through the residential countryside to the car.

The next stop was supposed to be Lake Biwa, and we did end up going, but it was dark, so the most I could see of the lake was a large dark spot with lights on the other side.  If we'd been there in the morning, there would have been hot air balloons.  Supposedly, if you were there early enough this weekend, you could get a free balloon ride, but as Okaasan is terrified of heights, I didn't suggest it to the family.

Back in Hirakata, we went to a sushi boat type restaurant for dinner.  Otousan and Okaasan shared a beer, so Misa drove home; her first time driving the new car (which is significantly larger than the old one, so it was interesting).  At home, there was some Pokemon playing and then off to bed.

Dormant Sakura with
branch supports.