Saturday: Her meeting went very well, with a lot of interest from the professors and some research possibility. Later that day she gave a demonstration for Goodsman, the company that makes her face massage products. That evening she was a dinner guest of the professors. In all, I think she was busy for twelve hours straight.
While Fumiko worked I was on my own. I took the Shinkansen for a 20 minute ride over to Kyoto, the ancient capitol of Japan (794-1868). Shrines and temples are spread throughout the city but, at Kyoto Station and the blocks right around it, they aren't apparent. The station construction occasioned the 12ooth anniversary of the capitol foundation. With massive steel and glass architecture, it is a sharp contrast to the ancient temples and shrines of the city.
I arrived in Kyoto sometime around 9:00 AM. The station was buzzing with tourists (mostly Japanese) and buses and taxis coming and going. Outside the weather was cool with high clouds, a low overcast shading and just the slightest misting of rain in the air. As had been the case recently, I was working on a sleep deficit. I wished the ride from Osaka to Kyoto had been longer, I could have slept in the nice reclining seat in the heated train. I wasn't quite ready to get going but I figured a strong cup of coffee would fix that. I found one in a Starbucks-like place outside the station and a couple blocks from the giant Kyoto Tower.
I briefly thought of starting my day at the tower in order to gain a nice overview of what I was about to dive into. I didn't, but Kyoto Tower would be my friend later that day.
Googling had led me to decide on renting a bicycle. That turned out to be a good call as Kyoto is far too sprawling to cover on foot. The bicycle rental place http://www.kctp.net/en/rental/index.html was just a few minutes walk from Kyoto Station. A line of maybe 10 Japanese and gaijin tourists where there ahead of me. All of the $10 and $13 city bikes had been rented so I went for the next best option which was a mountain bike with road tires. At $15, it was just fine. I had an English language Kyoto tourist map from the info booth outside of the station. The bike rental agent drew on it a route and circled half a dozen temples and shrines. I was off.
There aren't any bike lanes on the roads of Kyoto. The streets are narrow and busy with cars, trucks, pedestrians and cyclists. As in Tokyo, it is permissible to ride on the sidewalks. A lot of people do. I rode both street and sidewalk. The slightly to very crowded conditions energized the day. Getting around though, involved a combination of offensive and defensive moves on bicycle and foot, the sum of which was tiring in the end.
I toured several shrines and temples and an art museum. In between, I ate lunch and drank beer under the cherry blossoms in Maruyama Park. Around 5:00 PM, as I weaved uphill through packed downhill tourist migration in the narrow streets lined with tourist shops below the Kiyomizu Temple I started feeling a tinge of alarm/claustrophobia. Suddenly I didn't so much care about reaching the temple as I did about getting out of there. It would be getting dark in an hour, I was miles away from the station, the day was winding down and I had hardly done any of the gift shopping I had left to do. This was my last best opportunity.
I thought I would find some cool souvenirs around the temples or shrines but they were mostly of mediocre quality and appeal. Kyoto Station had shops. Lots of them, including a 10 story department store. The Kiyomizu Temple and the many other sights would have to wait for another trip. I was headed back to turn in my bike, buy some souvenirs, and get some food and drink.
I worked back downhill with a mass of others, the way gradually widening and the crowd thinning until I broke through and shot across the street to my bicycle. Now I was riding down the steep hill I had climbed on my way in. Only this time I was moving in the direction of traffic. Traffic wasn't moving very much. To the left of the snaking line of downhill buses and cars was a sidewalk packed with people moving in both directions. An 8" high curb ran between the road and the sidewalk which was slightly recessed from the road. I coasted down in a 16-30" wide gap between the traffic and the curb. Because the cars were for the most part not moving, the risk seemed acceptable. Sometimes I would dismount and walk my bike through the crowded sidewalk. A couple of other times the uphill lane was clear as I rode it down past dozens of vehicles. Over the next half mile I probably shaved 10 minutes off of the descent compared to what the car drivers were experiencing. The main road at the bottom of the hill was moving better but still quite congested. I just kept going in what I thought was the right direction.
The Katsura River bounds the west edge of Kyoto running northwest to southeast. Running north to south through the middle of Kyoto is the Kamo River. Kyoto Station sits between the two. I had been upslope of it all day. Because of that I knew the general direction back to Kyoto Station but was not certain just how far in each direction it was until I caught a glimpse of Kyoto Tower downhill and just barely below the skyline. It would guide me safely back to the train station, no map needed. I rode the 3-4 miles back down to the station. There I completed my gift shopping and bought some beer for the Shinkansen. You can buy food and beverage on the train or you can bring your own. I bought some and brought it with me.
Later I met Fumiko and we rode back to Tokyo arriving late. It was a full experience. For more Kyoto pics look for a link to my next online photo album coming soon (and more posts).
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