I confess, I didn't go straight to Kobe yesterday evening. Every year on Jul 17th, Kyoto has a huge festival, Gion Matsuri. It includes a parade with about 30 floats depicting ancient themes. For three days up to the festival, it's also quite the outing to go to downtown Kyoto and hang out. They shut down the streets to automobile traffic and there are stalls that line the streets where they sell everything from beer, to desserts, to fans and other souvenirs. We ended up going to Kyoto for the festival preview. While it was very interesting, I've got to say that the festival itself must really be something. Many of the Japanese women were already dressed up in cotton, very colorful Kimonos. They were beautiful! And there were tons of people. I took several shots and will post some so you can see what I mean. The floats are of an odd design. I need to do some research and find out if there are historic or symbolic reasons behind their appearance. I don't even know what the festival is for!
So we fought the crowds and walked the main street, watching the people and taking a look at the floats that were already on the street. Apparently they gather on the street as they become ready (as early as three days in advance), and then start the parade from there, rather than being hidden until the parade starts. When we were there, there were about a dozen floats displayed.
After Kyoto, we went to Kobe for Tony Roma's ribs (mmmm!). Unfortunately, no one remembered exactly where the place was, so we had to wander around a bit and make a couple of phone calls before we finally found it. By that time we were all starved, so we stuffed ourselves.
Today I went back to Nara, where the Great Buddha, Nara Park, and the dog-deer (as I call them) are. I got lots of good pictures this time. For those of you looking for "really Japanese" photos, these should make you happy. Temples, Buddhas, Pagodas...What more could one ask for? Todai-ji Temple, where the Great Buddha sits, really is impressive, as you can see in the photos.
It was a nice walk around the park, but the weather there was also very hot. I had hoped that it would be cooler in Nara since it's on the other side of the mountains, but I was to have no such luck. Still (of course), the deer are very tame, and are prone to chase anyone that they can see has the crackers that are sold to feed the deer.
...30 minutes later...It's 9:15, and I went out for a quick dinner. I hadn't had supper yet. What do you do when you've spoken with a complete stranger for five minutes at the nearby gyoza place (remember: $1.80 for seven pot stickers?), and as you're leaving he snatches your bill and insists on paying for your meal? The place is set up as a bar. Everybody sits side-by-side on barstools, and the cooking area (I can't even call it a kitchen) consists of the 6 foot space between the bar and the wall, running the length of the bar. Think of a drinking bar, only they cook in the bartender's space. This guy had sat down beside me and struck up a conversation. Nothing serious: Where are you from? Are you an English teacher? If I understood correctly, he makes hoses for a hydraulic equipment company. Who knows? I could be completely wrong. It was noisy in there, and he was really quiet. He wants to attend seminary school at Trinity College (University?) in Chicago. After a few minutes, I've finished and am getting up to leave and he snags my check right out of my hand and insists on paying. Now granted, it was only for $3.60, but it's the principal of the matter. I can only chalk it up to another instance of Japanese hospitality. The sad thing is that I couldn't even get his name right. I'll have to start carrying a pen and pad of paper.
'Until next time...
Chuck