First Impressions: Kyoto

This is a copse of bamboo trees at night at a temple in Kyoto. During the autumn different temples do 'light shows' as people walk through the temple gardens. It was Saturday night, it was crowded. It was kind of obvious that it was 'date night'. This was not a pilgrimage, it was entertainment. Smart phones were rampant, taking pictures in the dark. This is one of several (perhaps more to come), of what I got using the 'panorama' setting on my iPhone. 

Last night when we first arrived into Kyoto, when we went out to dinner in the Gion district. It is just bedazzling with shop windows, displays, products of who knows what but so incredibly beautiful….well here are a few displays.

Is this the Manolo's for the kimono set?

Another shrine, this time for jazz

Outside a window that sold these rabbit (kanji) sculptures and next door to a restaurant.

What would your caption be? Mine is 'uh oh'.

This is more about packaging. This sake is served with 'surface tension', easily spilling over into the box that you then pour back into the glass. Just another way to enjoy a glass of sake (which I have been enjoying very very much….rice is such an amazing grain…. At least here it is…..

Tonight at the Okonomiyaki place across the street from the hotel we ate this 

http://www.japan-guide.com/r/e100.html

and yakisoba noodles. We had to wait awhile, being New Yorkers we were convinced it was because we didn't speak Japanese. But when we were eventually served, first with the yakisoba (sautéd noodles and vegetables) it was soooo worth the wait! After years of disappointment, hoping for good sauté, my patience was rewarded! Delicious! Not too salty/greasy/blah starch…but crisp, flavorful with a great spice and ginger, but not hot/peppery, just so delicious. On it's heels came the Okonomiyaki, with a ponzu/hoisin sauce thing brushed on top with scallions…..super yum! While we were waiting, we watched young small, healthy, thin couples eat 3 starters and then as much as we ate. They really packed it away. Beginning with an ice cream soda and a beer! I'm convince that they only eat once a week and we saw that meal….

Meanwhile 2 image of beauty Japan style: 

1.The tunnel at the Miho Museum designed by IM Pei. The rest of the Museum and grounds are spectacular. What a delight to stand in this space. The recent typhoon slowed down the number of buses that could come to this somewhat remote outpost of a museum. If you get to this part of the world, make the trip to see it. (more pix to come).

2. The back of an obi on a very beautiful kimono (shown earlier today on FB and Instagram)., more packaging (sort of). It's wedding season and our hotel, the Westin Miyako is full of them in the lobby, as those date nights end up being wedding weekends a year or two down the line.

Getting a bit out of sequence here. I'm not beyond having my non-conformist/lack of 'sticking to the plan' sensibility not appear in the blog. Considering the source it would be impossible.