Glimpses of Familiar Japan - Day 11, Part 1 (Sagano, Arashiyama)

Tenryuji temple.

The odd jr train that took us to Sagano.

I call this area Sagano, because it says that on the map, but its also known as Arashiyama.   It’s a beautiful area bordering a flowing river that flows through the center of it.  On either side are buildings and forest giving way to rolling hillsides.  Arriving there you will encounter  Rickshaws and their drivers. .  

We should have hired one to cart us around and save us the walking.  These are the Sherpas of Japan, and frankly they needed to be everywhere we went.  They’re very knowledgeable, friendly, and usually speak pretty good English.  Alas, we did not use one, and walked to Tenryuji temple which lay through what seemed a normal and nice neighborhood.

Approach to Tenryuji

Tenryuji has a strange almost Swiss alpine look, with a tower and white walls and slanted wooden roof.  It looked like it belonged next to the Matterhorn to me.  There are two separate tours, one for the garden and one for the temple.

Gravel garden just outside Tenryuji

One of the remarkable views.  I could sit here for hours.

There was almost no one there, perhaps five or ten people to start in a courtyard space that could have housed hundreds.  Carrying on with our tradition of early bird, we went inside and boy were we not disappointed.  As the name ryu implies, there is a dragon painting of a magnificent beast of grey and black and gold, with its big bulging eyes and lion face.  He was certainly gorgeous to behold.  

View inside the temple.  Note the portrait on the back wall.  

This particular stone was in a part of the pond that caught the light beautifully with the background.

The fish were swarming underneath this little bridge

Unusual rock formations.

A look at the garden and temple from the east end.

The Tenryuji garden was perhaps the second most splendid one I saw in Japan, just behind the one we saw at the Silver Pavillion later on.  Flowing waters of deep, crystalline blue cascade down and around rocks and trees so perfectly arranged as to provide a centerpiece with a  backdrop of the autumn colors.   The stones here are so varied, jagged and smooth, moss everywhere and great gaping fish swimming like nymphs beneath the slowly drifting water.  Gone are the sounds of the busy streets.   There is nothing but you, man made nature, and wild nature, all within a space about the size of a large backyard.  

The water is not terribly clear, but the reflection is still pretty remarkable with the colors.

No words can do justice to this garden.   Even thinking about it, looking at the pictures, I can scarcely describe it in any other word than serenity, and we had it almost completely to ourselves.   We stayed a good while before going out into the Bamboo forest. 

So thick you can't see through to the lake on the other side.

A wall of bamboo just sprouts the middle of the busy street before you, a pathway cut into it like a tunnel beneath the swaying fronds.  I’d seen bamboo forests elsewhere in Kyoto, but not in the middle of the city. All around me were rows and rows of bamboo separated from us by a thick, prickly fence of dried twigs.  The tall bamboo reeds loomed everywhere, shifting slightly through what little wind there was. 

Supposedly at night, this path lights up and it is a sight to see. It has branching paths with other temples and gardens we could have seen but decided against.   Here and there along the path are art studios, tea houses, and residential homes.  We passed through with a slow, easy stride, and there were other people here at last.  They didn’t seem to mind us as we walked through our tunnel of bamboo.

The path leads through the forest, flanked on either side by this unique bristled fence.

Looking up unto the fronds.  You can hear the whisperings of each leaf in the wind.

We ended up at Nisen-in temple, which is nothing special from the onset to me at first. Then I discovered something that changed that theory.  There is a large Japanese gong bell here, one of those traditional huge things that hangs down like a massive bronze tulip and has to be rung by a log; and you can ring it.   I’ve always wanted to ring one of these, and after seeing several other people do so, I thought what the heck.   I walked up.  The bell was at least twice my size, at least to my memory, and I gave the clapper a good long swing.   CLONG!  

Temple Bell

It was quite satisfying, a highlight or me. I would go back solely for this, though with my luck its since been roped off.

We went back for nunch at the station, where we had a lovely meal at a bakery.  Along the way though, we decided to pass by Tenryuji again.   The difference between morning and afternoon was extraordinary.  The empty courtyard was now packed wall to wall with people and the tour busses were just arriving with their passengers.   I cannot stress, again, seeing this, how important getting out early is key in Japan.   Things are mobbed by the early afternoon, especially on weekends like this one. 

Colorful decorations on a nearby shrine.

We were thankful we saw the garden when we did and headed back to Central Kyoto.  My goal was to show my parents Teramachi street, and Nishiki market.  We stopped at a small shop selling woodblocks and I began to peruse the wares.   There were so many, but only one caught my attention.  It was a print of Fushimi Inari’s seemingly endless gates, perfectly orange with their black trim extending from the front of the print into seeming infinity.  I bought it without a second thought. 

(A copy like the print I bought.  I found this here:  http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/236x/af/11/96/af1196916ca76fc4e787851f18cc5af0.jpg)

The true highlight though, was Nishiki but before I describe it a warning.  If you’re claustrophobic, as I am, Nishiki Street is not an easy pass.  The space is only wide enough to maybe hold two people abreast, but despite that hundreds pack its two to four block length. My dad is even more claustrophobic than I am and he felt like he was about to die, or so he said.  It was as close as we ever came to a rush hour in a train car, yes its just like that.  Regardless, onto Nishiki in part 2.

One the open gateways to a temple we found, looking out into the bamboo forest.  There is something unique and mystic in the views from these gates.  They seem to yawn and beckon, don't you think?