RadioRoryA day out that doesn’t disappoint.
It turns out that I enjoy the days when I “sorta know” what I’m going to do. The Arashiyama Bamboo Forest in Kyoto was one of the things I wanted to see. But at the same time I knew it was a pretty small “attraction” that couldn’t possibly take more than an hour or two. It’s about a 15-minute walk from the train station to the entrance of the forest and it’s fun to watch the tourists try to figure out where they’re going. There are signposts, but it doesn’t seem quite right walking down narrow neighborhood streets to reach the forest. Before you get there you come to a busy street that has tour buses filled with people who didn’t have to take the train to get there.
The place feels special. There’s that wet, earthy, “green” feeling that envelops you. The rushing sound of the leaves and branches acts like a white noise machine, drowning out many of the nearby conversations.
There’s nothing to “do” but stroll and take it all in.
Exiting through the forest there were more signposts for more temples. It turns out there are more than a thousand of them in the city
And yes, there are steps.
Lots of steps.
But there’s a payoff too.
Walk up and down the neighborhood streets and you’ll find temple after temple with elaborate gardens and places for meditation. And lots of louts flowers. (Lotus root is delicious cooked in a bit of orange juice).
The area is just so relaxing that my plan to go to a nearby park filled with monkeys seemed to fade away.
There was one last temple before the train ride back to the hotel. The Tenryu-ji Temple in Arashiyama is simply breathtaking. The grounds are meticulously maintained and strict rules keep many of the tourists in line too. Even with big crowds it is a peaceful place for reflection.
I was very relaxed after visiting all those Buddhist temples but it was time to get back on a train or two and fight my way back to the hotel during rush hour.
It was zen while lasted.