Almost temple'd out....

Errr brain freeze




I can't even remember what i've been doing since i last wrote.. right... CONCENTRATE... oh yes, so arrived in Capsule hotel in Shinsaibashi which again was in a bit of a shit hole red light district in Osaka and I had a terrible night sleep - it was sooo stuffy and actually really noisy because people kept whacking against the capsule walls every time they moved! On the plus side I got up at 6am and had the sauna, steam room and shower room to myself... thank god, it was a bit too early in the morning to see naked grannies ha ha.
I was quite relieved to be out of Osaka and heading for Kyoto... however it was a nightmare journey I had to take 3 subways and 1 train just to reach central Kyoto and then (once i'd found the right bus stop) a rickety old bus to Myoshinji about 30-40 mins north of kyoto, where the temple I was due to stay at was located. I got off at Myoshinji... a bus stop made of what looked like an old tin can... no sign of Shunkoin temple... hmmm....i wandered around and got a little lost and eventually found it! I was about an hour late for the first class but when I got there Takafumi Kawakami (the vice abbott who leads the meditation classes) said he was suffering with a cold and so he would like to start the class tommorow instead.. I said okay so he lent me a bike and gave me a map and told me how to get to 3 world heritage sites up in the mountains... i arrived at the first site a tad sweaty ha ha but it was worth it - a beautiful temple called Ninnaji. The second spot was Ryoanji - some of it was closed because of restoration work but what i saw was also beautiful.. but the last of the three was the most amazing - i didnt really know what to expect as i hadnt read any information about these places or seen any pictures, i had just followed my map .. i turned the corner at the end of a footpath and the view of this stunning golden temple/pavillion that i was faced with was literally breathtaking! It was about 4pm so the sun was really low in the sky making it look even more beautiful and sparkly! I walked around all the grounds there and I headed back to my bike.... and noticed there was a wheel lock which i hadn't noticed and so had left unlocked, with the key in it.. oops.. lucky the bike didnt get stolen!!
I found my way back to the temple and checked in to my room which was very minimalist but HUUOGE and a nice comfy bed.. the pillow was made for midgets but was sooo comfortable, was filled with "red beans" i later found out.. which i assume are dried kidney beans or some other type of red bean... so weird but so comfy (if you sleep on your back). I had a look through some leaflets I had on kyoto and then decided to venture out to find somewhere to eat dinner... I had walked for about 10 minutes and only found "liquor mountain" until I spotted a little cafe called wonder cafe and WOOHOO there was a sign saying "hello! we have english menu, in come please" i was so relieved as i was super hungry.. I went in to find the most beautiful little restaurant full of books and nik-naks and lovely music and old furniture etc.. For those of you who know it, it reminded me of the black boy pub in winchester - the same sort of lovely atmosphere. The lady in there was really sweet and when i'd finished my meal she gave me japanese tea and a pen from a set which she'd had printed to celebrate the anniversary of her cafe opening... and as a present "for your japanese speaking" haha.. she obviously felt sorry for my poor attempts ha ha!! I headed back to my room for the night, the temple grounds were a bit eery and there was no-one to be seen or heard! I settled in to bed and then got a bit freaked out as it was sooo dark and quiet and weird.. so i got in and out of bed about 5 times, trying to decide whether or not to leave the light in the outside hallway bit on.. haha i am such a baby. I eventually decided not to and climbed back in to bed, read some of my book and crashed out.
Saturday morning I got up early and took a little walk around the temple grounds and then went for my first zen meditation class.. it was just me, the vice abbott and one other guy from san fransisco who had visited the temple about 4 times previously.. so i was a bit nervous about sneezing or getting hiccups or my tummy rumbling haha.. We went into a FREEEEEZING cold room and the vice abbott went through the seating position (lotus or half lotus) and about the purpose of zen meditation and how it works and how you can involve it into your everyday life. He didnt have a clock so our meditation sessions were timed by the burning of incense. He told us to focus on our breathing, to stretch the abdomen as much as possible and to breathe in for 3, pause for 2, breathe out for 6 and pause for 2 before starting again. He said that various images, thoughts and/or memories would enter our mind and that we shouldn't try to stop these but just try to continue focusing on the breathing. At the moments we experienced total emptiness of the mind (estimated about one minute in every fifteen) that is when one can find enlightenment.. apparently!! He said that the main benefit of zen meditation is organising your mind so that you can deal with lifes challenges in a more effectively and if you achieve any form of enlightenment it is a bonus! I said to him that the meditation period went a lot quicker than i expected it to and he said that was a very good thing and shows that i have a good ability to focus!! woop!! He is a very interesting man and his family have a lot of history at the temple.. he showed me a bell which his great grandfather had buried to hide as it showed hidden christian symbols which were strictly banned in Japan at the time. Now christianity, buddhism and shintoism are all present in Japan and there is no conflict between any of them. I tried green maccha tea which was absolutely repulsive! Apparently it is the traditional tea used in japanese tea ceremonies. I had my own personal tour of the temple from the vice abbott which was really interesting and he explained how the temple's history demonstrates how different belief systems were a major part of religious practice in the past. For example, the Garden of Boulders at the temple (Sazareishi no Niwa) was designed to symbolize the Grand Shinto Shrine of Ise, the site patronized by the Japanese imperial family. I mentioned the bronze bell earlier - it has the Jesuit isignia on it and also, in the ceremony rooms there are amazing screen paintings by Kano Eigaku (who also painted for the imperial palace) which have christian symbols on them. I won't bore you with the detail on this but let me know if youre interested and ill tell you more! The paintings used real gold, coral, jade and copper to create the different colours. Peter, you would have loved them - there were loads of different types of wildlife painted on them. Shame i couldnt take photos for you! It was a wonderful experience being at the temple and learning about meditation and just chilling out.
Anyway I am sure I have much more to tell you about that place but I cant remember at the moment!! Brain overload!
So... eventually I headed for Kyoto central again to get my bearings and find the hostel that i'm currently staying in... I got the bus and followed the directions, so i thought.. until some guy came cycling up beside me and said in a very odd spanish/irish accent "are you looking for the hostel by any chance" i said yes and he said that i had just passed it, he saw me walk by and said hes very good at recognising non-locals haha. I was a bit dubious at first and thought it was some weirdo trying to lead me somewhere dodgy but then i saw the hostel sign i must have walked past so realised he was genuine.. Turns out he is the owner of the hostel and he is suuuuch a nice guy. He is called Oliver and he speaks fluent english, thai, japanese, french, spanish and portugese. He has lived in Canada, New Zealand, Thailand, Brazil and America and he has travelled to 68 different countries. He is originally from Brazil and he travelled round the whole of latin america by motorbike - charlie boorman eat your heart out ha ha! He generally is a real dude, and really kind too. He showed me to my dorm and around the place and then i set off to find some dinner... it is more geared towards tourists here in Kyoto so there are places with english menus and english speaking staff which is a bit of a nice break to be honest! I had a little wander around the area by Kyoto central and then went to get my bus back home.. problem.. the bus i wanted stopped running at 5pm and it was now about 9.30pm. Whoops. So with pretty much all of the bus info in japanese, it was a serious mission to get back - i had to change about 4 times and went all round the outskirts of kyoto... it was quite a pretty journey really (even in the dark) but i was ready for my bed by about 10! haha. Turns out there was an easier route i could have done but i didnt realise until but it was too late. I slept okay considering there were 2 guys who snored the dorm down all night.. but they are both really fit ozzies (and seem really nice too so i'll let them off haha).
Since i've been in Kyoto, ive visited Gion (the famous geisha district) Pontocho which is said to be the most picturesque street in asia and it really was gorgeous, the photos dont do it justice; Nishiki food market (which had the most amazing and beautiful array of food, some of which i've never seen before...and other shops selling everything from eel knifes to left handed knifes to cookie cutters in the shape of shooting stars etc..) and I have generally wandered aimlessley around the charming little streets and markets... the atmosphere here reminds me of brighton, it is really nice. There are loads of plush hotels with huoooge chandeliers and gleaming glass floors. They seem to love english music here and most shop workers are stood outside singing english songs full volume which is quite funny! Ting Tings seem to be quite a popular choice around here!!
Now I am back at the hostel, its about 7pm and im just about to venture out for fooood - again! and then go and see one of the 'autumn illuminations' at one of the temples in kyoto... if i can work out how to get there!! There are looooads of temples in kyoto but to be honest, there's only so many temples i can see before i start getting a bit bored.... i know, i have the concentration span of a pea! So after tonight im going to continue seeing non-temple related things in Kyo toas I think I have seen as many as I want to and whats the point spending money on stuff I dont really fancy seeing?! (most of the temples charge entry fees)
Right I am all typed out for now.. i am sure there is more to say but my thumb hurts so i'm going now!!
Lots of love xxx