Kyoto & Osaka Adventures – Matt’s Trip To Japan

Just wait until I tell you about my weekend! It was positively, absolutely incredible!

My brother Matt and his friend Tim came to Japan for a holiday. I couldn’t unfortunately take a lot of time off from work as it’s a really busy season for Japanese schools, but I was able to pop down to Osaka and Kyoto this weekend to play local tour guide. I was so excited to see my little brother I could hardly sleep the days leading up to our adventure!

Saturday we toured around Kyoto and I brought the boys to some of my favourite places and temples. I knew it would be my last trip to Kyoto, so it was really nice to see my favourite temples one last time and share them with my brother.

First stop was Kinkakuji Temple. The boys were delighted to get to ring the enormous bell inside the temple grounds.

Then we meandered over, through the throngs of school kiddies out on their annual school trip, to the actual pavilion. I had never seen Kinkakuji look so beautiful! The temple was magnificent to behold with a robins egg blue sky in the background and the brilliant sunshine making it really sparkle. Also, the iris flowers around the temple pond were in full bloom much to my delight! (For more info in Kinkakuji click here)

We arrived in downtown Kyoto, it was a scorcher of a hot day so we grabbed some matcha ice cream and took a shameless selfie. Our tongues turned thoroughly green and our stomachs happy, we skipped down the street to relax and putter around my favourite zen temple Kennin-ji. Matt and Tim both said that it was their favourite temple in Japan so far. Or perhaps I was simply so enthusiastic about being there, and singing it’s numerous praises, they dared not break my bubble of happiness…

My favourite part of that whole day was walking around Kennin-ji and finally sitting down for a ‘quiet’ moment to contemplate the beautiful rock garden! Matt and Tim made friends with some of the cute girls wearing kimono and these photos were the highlight of their day.

Truly tuckered out I retreated to my favourite cafe Malebranche in Kyoto Station to relax a little while the boys went shopping for Japanese goodies.  This was a  bittersweet and nostalgic moment, Malebranche’s cafe is one of my favourite cafes in the world and it would be my last time ever sitting there in it’s tranquility and comfort.

It’s a good thing I rested up because that night we went out on the town! Osaka’s big city lights lured the boys out of the hostel for a few beers and good times. I had to call it quits at 2 am little party pooper that I am eventhough the boys were ready to stay out till the sun came up; what can I say, these old bones of mine just couldn’t keep up! 

 

We woke up tired but excited Sunday morning. Today was the day we were off to see some owls! A new and big trend in Japan is Owl Cafes which is basically a place where you go to hang out with live owls! Matt and I are die-hard Harry Potter fans, so this interaction with live owls was a dream come true.

Osaka today, Hogwarts tomorrow! Oh how I wish!  We had a hoot at the Owl Cafe in Osaka (*wink wink*) and we all agreed it was a really memorable experience.

It’s pretty hard to beat that experience but I was determined to visit the Fushimi Inari Shrine with the boys. They were so templed-out by this point (a common affliction in Kyoto) that I had to promise them this was the grand finale and insist that they couldn’t leave Japan without seeing this magical place.

I normally hate to say, “I told you so!” but this was one of those times I couldn’t resist. The boys even admitted afterwards that they definitely would have regretted not going! I’m a pretty good tour guide, if I do say so myself. (For more info on the Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto click here)

All too soon we had to say our goodbyes. I to go back to work in Fukui, and the boys to go on to have more crazy Japan adventures. Luckily it wouldn’t be long until we saw each other again. On Friday they will be coming to Fukui and I can’t wait to show them around my stomping grounds!

Kenninji Temple, Kyoto

Kenninji Temple is one of my personal favourite temples in Kyoto, surprisingly though, it’s not a temple that many foreigners know of.  This Zen Buddhist temple was founded in 1202 CE and is the oldest Zen temple in Kyoto! It is nestled in the heart of the Gion district, at the end of Hanami Lane, and is an oasis of calm, home to several beautiful gardens and full of stunning works of art. It is considered to be one of the “five most important Zen temples of Kyoto”.  Every screen door is painted with beautiful art so it’s lovely to wander around.

This temple’s founder, Yousai, is reknown for introducing the Zen sect and the tradition of drinking green tea into Japan. It was because of my passion for studying green tea that I first discovered this temple.  My tea studies teacher taught me that he is recognized as the founder of tea ceremony in Japan because of his efforts to encourage the cultivation and consumption of tea, so I was curious to see the temple he founded when I traveled to Kyoto.

There are 2 features that Kenniji is most famous for:

• #1 – The painted screen made by the famous artist Tawaraya Sotatsu depicting the images of the wind and thunder gods

• #2 – The dragon-painted ceiling which was installed to commemorate the temple’s 800th anniversary.

While at this temple I also recommend sitting a moment in silence and contemplating the beautiful symbolism of the “Circle-Square-Triangle” Garden. It’s a square-shaped garden and its design is based on a famous  work of calligraphy. The idea behind it is that all things in the universe are represented by these three forms.

Tips For Visitors:

• Tuck a pair of socks into your bag to keep your feet from freezing (if you’re wearing sandals) as you’ll have to take your shoes off to enter this temple.
• Visit this temple towards the end of the day, just before it closes, and then stay in the area to explore the Gion District as the sun begins to set.

General Information:

• Names: Kenninji, Kennin Temple, 建仁寺
• Entrance fee: 500 yen
• Opening Hours: (March-October: 10am-5pm, last entry 4:30pm) (November-February: 10am-4:30pm, last entry 4pm) *Closed Dec 28-31*

How To Get To Kenninji:

• Note: not all tourists maps will list Kenninji. If you look for Gion District as a landmark to get to you’ll be ok, as Kenniji is in this area
• By Bus: From Kyoto Station take either bus #100 or #206 to the Gion stop
• By train: Take the Keihan line to Gion Shijo Station + 10 min walk