4/14 Sunny. They didn't look at our luggage. Laurie and Indiana met us. Our van ride to Kyoto was fun, lots of traffic. We paid and took the toll road - cost about 15,000 yen. Cabs & private cars had white lace and cloth covers on seats. Saw nursery, small and close to roads, rice paddies. Rice not planted yet - older people work rice fields because younger won't. Flowers and small trees here and there along toll road. Small apartments close together. Lots of colors - many used car lots and garbage cans of all types.
4/15 Sunny and windy. Laurie working today. Cars drive on left hand side of road. Girls arrived home (Caitlin anyway) at 6. Malia was home when we arrived around 5:30. Caitlin wore uniform. Dinner in living room, boiled vegetables and pork cooked in broth, propane burner under ceramic pot. We slept in living room on futons with down comforter. Cold night, nice and warm in bed, Children to school by 8 AM. They take cooked rice in tun with chop sticks - school gives them heated sauce and fruit. Bathroom has heated ceramic floor, toilet in separate room with a heated seat. Attended tea ceremony class in teachers home. Tea teacher also teaches flower arrangement, Caitlin speaks to teacher in Japanese.
4/16 Sunshine - 50ish. Everywhere you look vending machines. Many temples, shrines, deer lovely parks, many, many school children in various uniforms - many - colored hats large, large park - largest woos building in the world with largest Buddha, lovely museum, took train to Nara.
Walked miles, took cab to train station to come home, Train great, fast. Arrive home just before rain, Windy and cool. Lots of vendor around temples and shrines over a thousand lanterns in one park. Ice cream was good, temple and museum wonderful. Went out for a steak dinner very late at a sushi house.
4/17 Sunny - 60ish. Shigaraki / Joruri-Jin Temple. Drove out into the country - many acres of terraced fields of tea, lovely flowers, old graves, very crowded, stones on top of stones, lanterns, homes on top of homes, roads on top of roads - one lane wide much of the way, curvy. Climbing up many houses with plate roofs, lots of lumber yards, many bamboo trees. Had tea at a special tea house, ceramic area, several shapes, kiln factories, women in bonnets, aprons working in tea fields.
Old temple lovely, quiet areas around temples, turtles in pond.
4/18 Sunny, warm. Girls have school on Saturday half day. 6 floored, large pagoda, replica in gold, crystal hanging strings of prisms gold Buddha inside.
Clock half a story tall, plays. It's a small world, figures inside move, large bells on either side rang hour windows closed (numbers on the side). Many, many various nationality restaurants on 5th floor - river runs through 5th floor. Huge market on 1st floor, lovely china shops - exclusive shops, name brand, Paris, France - had spiral sundaes. At Sogo department store had elevator girls in uniforms with lovely hats - all clerks in uniform.
4/19 Sunny. Easter - Boat ride - Kameoka - went to Arashiyama, at corner of Kyoto - tourist town, many people, on the river, houses, lamp; restaurants, lovely hotels many rows of boats on river, a wedding there by the water.
People take the hot bathes at exclusive hotels - then dress in hotel yukata & a short overcoat all same color. Food unusual - squid fried on skillet in boat pulled along side, also sold drinks.
Boat ride through rapids long boat 4 people on seats, 3 men rotate positions. 1 row, 1 pole, 1 rudder in back. Dinner yaki-miku (fried meat or beef) at table, coals and grill, raw liver, cooked tongue and beef raw with egg - very good. Muroji Mt. Saganakadal - neighborhood Kiru - City Cho (city) Soraku Gun (county) Kyoto (state). Took train to Kyoto - changed trains, took cab to Handy Craft (all Japan made items on 7 floors - pearls & jewelry on first, many kimonos, art. Had lunch at restaurant near by (tempura) went to cookie and cake shop for dessert and coffee - took train and cab and train. Met Eric - lost Laurie for a while trying to arrive at stations - took cabs. Stations had snacks, pop machines, newspaper stands, not crowded but trains crowded. Went through many tunnels - climbed to mountains!
4/20 Sunny; warm. Went to mountains passed rice paddies, climbed up to Muro Ji Temple.
Parked in little town, tourist shops on top of road, Japanese stare at us & smile at Indiana. Huge, huge trees - gigantic trunks on trees. Climbed 733 steps up to a temple on top, many small shrines on way up - irregular stones for steps! Fruit, dolls, many at all shrines. Mushrooms grow under crossed layers of small logs. Gas nossels came from ceiling of stations. People buy plots of ground away from homes to grow foods so irrigation can be done from water channels. Past through a religious section, a whole town, large farms. Whole town same religious belief, lovely gardens and flowering trees. Many tile roofs were threshold and covered with moss. Every one seems pleasant and friendly. Many riding bikes and motor scooters - parked everywhere but all together. People leave umbrellas outside shops in racks and no one takes them. Sales clerks rush around. Men and women use same bathroom - ply women have stalls and doors, you squat over a drain.
4/21 Sunny, lovely. Landry hangs on balcony on 2 rods. Laurie teaches a student English, but they couldn't come. Had lunch went to a sort of Kmart and a market. Bought lovely fruit and some chicken. Attended school - 2nd grade - left and went to Indiana's day care - very open, many flowers - sand and water. All ages form babies through kindergarten. In schools, kids clean floors and dishes before afternoon classes. Clubs after classes. Visited Eric's office, large, lovely building - marble and stone entrance. 304 stories high. Guard at entrance - we wore badges. Flowers inside and outside.
4/22 Rain, rain. Laurie went to work. A teacher coming for a home visit at 3. Walked around area in a sight rain, a large cemetery, clean air, many shrines, old and new stones, lanterns, lovely flowers and courtyards. Went to local grocery and bought fresh fruits. Eric cooked in wok. Laurie home at 9 - she and Caitlin went to tea ceremony - we were invited but didn't' go, too tired. Chest pains most of day and evening. Futons on lines to air, ours has 2 pads to sleep on, fitted bottom sheet, comforter on top with fitted sheet, very comfortable, they have summer covers.
4/23 Coffee and ice cream at Baskin Robbins. Ryokan (Japanese Inn) hot bath and flea market.
Bird walk and nature hike in Hejo - took train and walked to next town. Old and new shrines and a lovely temple, gold Buddha and a gold goddess. Hundreds upon hundreds of lit gold lanterns on shelves around the room. Lovely silk material over the space where the Buddha and goddess are huge lanterns and bells. Every shrine has bells to wake up the gods - you pay money and put in box and ring bell. [Shinto] Buy incense. [Buddha]
4/24 Cloudy - cool morning. Kyoto gardens, dance and dinner on train.
Joke on a slip of yellow paper inside the journal - 2 little old ladies were abroad an airliner. One asked the cabin attendant if they would be flying faster than sound. "No," smiled the attendance, "not on this flight." "Oh, I''m so glad," said one of the ladies, "we want to talk."
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