A Family of Temples

Spectacular Kinkaku-ji

Last September, I went on my fifth holiday in Japan for five straight years.  And this time I went on my third visit to Kyoto.  Each visit, I learn more about Japan - about Japanese culture, history, and way of life.  On my previous visits to Kyoto, I went to enjoy the Hanami (cherry blossom) and Momiji (autumn leaves) seasons.  I was so busy viewing the blossoms and leaves that I didn’t get around to visiting some of the more famous sites.  This time round, there was no foliage-related activity planned.   It was time to deepen my understanding and appreciation of the historical and cultural aspects of this ancient Japanese city.

We had a rocky start to our trip.  In fact, it was fraught with uncertainty.  2018 was not a great year for Kyoto.  There was an earthquake in the Kansai region in June and just before we arrived, a major typhoon flooded Kansai International Airport, knocking it out of action.  All flights were cancelled, whilst the flood waters were being drained away and the access road and bridge to the airport were being repaired.  In the meantime, air services were being restored in slow stages.  Every few days, a few more flights were added.  We started checking out alternatives, in case we had to fly in to Nagoya instead. Fortunately, just a few days before our flight was one of the few which were allowed to proceed as planned and we flew in on a half-filled plane into a very empty airport.  Phew!  Unfortunately the typhoon damaged some of the sites we were planning to visit and so visitors were not allowed in some areas (one example below).   I was reminded of my visit to Tokyo last year when my attempt to see a snow-capped Mt Fuji and autumn leaves on the Irohazaka route to Nikko were thwarted by a typhoon just a few days earlier.

At least this year, my key “visit objectives” were not significantly affected by the bad weather. As I said, despite my multiple visits to Kyoto, there were some famous sites I’ve never been to before - such as Ginkaku-ji and Kinkaku-ji, the Silver and Gold Temples.  Kinkaku-ji is the older of the two, built by one of the shoguns, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, as a retirement villa. It was converted to a temple after his death. Ginkaku-ji was built by his grandson, Ashikaga Yoshimasa, also as a retirement home and also converted into a temple.  Like Grandfather, like grandson.  

We tried to get to Kinkaku-ji early, to beat the crowds.  But to no avail - such is the popularity of this famous temple that it was full of crowds.  The temple itself is beautiful - a golden pavilion (it’s covered in gold leaf), floating on the waters of the lake, and mirrored in the waters.  We ascended the hill behind the lake, taking in the view of the surrounding hills and the temple beneath.  

The silver sands and cone of Ginkaku-ji 

Ginkaku-ji, however, was my favourite of the two.  There is no silver gilding on the pavilion - apparently the construction of the buildings were delayed by war and other reasons, and rather than a big lake there are smaller ponds which we could stroll around, admiring the buildings, the pond and the mossy gardens from all angles as we turned each corner.  But the highlight is the beautiful silvery gravel plain, with a cone representing Mount Fuji in one corner.  There we sat, just in front of the carefully raked gravel, and scrutinising the smooth sides of the perfectly formed cone, indeed the resemblance is there :-) 

Shrine on the Path of Philosophy

 After the Ginkaku-ji visit, we took a walk down the famous Path of Philosophy, or "Tetsugaku-no-michi", which runs along a canal flowing from the temple down to the Eikandozenrin-ji temple (which I went to on my previous Autumn Leaf visit).  The path got its name because a Kyoto University professor used to take his daily walk on the path, presumably contemplating life, the universe and everything.

Fortunately, out of cherry blossom season, the path was rather deserted and we were able to have a quiet, peaceful stroll. Every now and then there is a little landmark - a small shrine, a stone with a poem carved on it, a little shop or eatery inviting the traveller to stop for a moment.  Although there were no cherry blossoms, there were lots of flowers and greenery along the way.

Guardian mouse, with a scroll signifying learning

We passed a few little shrines and temples but only stopped once, at Otoyo-jinja Shrine.    Its key distinguishing feature is that this temple actually has a lot of cute little animals, in particular mice!  These are guardian animals, as the god of the shrine, Okuninushi, had a special relationship with them.  As the story goes, Okuninushi wanted to marry the beautiful Princess, Suseri.  Alas, her father disapproved.  Okuninushi had to complete a few tasks in order to win her hand.  In one task, an archer shot an arrow into a rice field.  When Okuninushi went to retrieve the arrow, the field was set on fire.  The mice directed him to a safe spot and retrieved the arrow for him.  And that's how our hero got to marry his Princess.

We didn't go to many other temples after these but we did pay a visit to the historic Nijo Castle.  I had visited Nijo-jo before, on my first visit to Kyoto, to look at cherry blossoms at night.   But I had never been to the palace itself and was glad for the opportunity to learn more about its history.  It was the Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa who had started building the Castle, although it was his grandson who completed it. Sadly, this time round the gardens were off limits as they had been damaged thanks to the recent typhoon so we could only walk around the famous Ninomaru Palace.

This Palace contains the main audience chambers and reception halls - the furnishings, as would be expected, are very spartan with only the tatami mats on the floor and maybe a niche or storage cupboard built into the wlal, but the walls are covered with magnificent paintings - of tigers and leopards under palm trees, or flowering trees, etc.  (We were not allowed to take photos so that's why you don't see any here.)  It was here that the Shogun would meet foreign envoys, meet his Council or his feudal lords.  It was also here that the 15th and last Shogun of Japan, Yoshinobu, gathered his retainers and announced the end of the Shogun era and the restoration of the Emperor, hence starting the Meiji Restoration and modernisation of Japan.

Photos are here.

Ninomaru Palace, Nijo Castle

Goodbye 2018, Hello 2019!

2018 was a busy and eventful year for me.  I hit my 50th year - a milestone indeed.  Some key highlights include:

• Celebrating the Big 50 - most notably, going with a bunch of friends on a road trip to Malaysia.  We went caving, stayed dormitory-style in a lodge in the Malaysian highlands and ate and ate in Ipoh.  We also had assorted birthday celebrations throughout the year.  
• Ticking items off my travel Bucket List - most notably, visiting Chartres Cathedral and Monet’s divine garden at Giverny.  I was happy to be able to take my Mother on a mini-pilgrimage in Paris, where we met up with my sister and Brother-in-law.  Spending time with family was a big item on my to-do list this year, so I was also happy to go with my cousin to Japan.  I’ve not had time to blog about it yet!  
• 2018 was also the year when the homes of my childhood/young adulthood moved out of the family.  My Grandmother had died a few years ago and this year, my mum and her siblings wound up her estate and sold her house.  Then, a few months later, my parents’ apartment was handed over to the developer after the en bloc sale was finalised.  So we had a massive clearing out to do, unearthing lots of childhood possessions and memories along the way.  We cleared the stuff out of the apartment but now some of it is sitting in boxes on the landing!
• All the cats survived the year, although poor Marlon was ill for some time with first a bad wound and then a liver complaint which led to him getting daily saline drips, poor thing.  He also got to eat the good quality premium cat food to reverse his weight loss so it was not all bad though.
• I didn’t get to read much last year as I was too busy organising holidays (I went to Malacca and Penang during the year, in addition to the Road Trip, France and Japan) and clearing house.  But I was very pleased that I finally managed to finish “Gene” by Siddhartha Mukherjee, all 500 pages worth (excluding notes and the index).  It’s a subject I’m not familiar with - learning about Mendel way back in Sec 3 really doesn’t count.  Now, at least I am a little more informed about the science and promise of precision medicine, gene therapy, etc, and the ethical dilemmas and challenges ahead.  In addition, I read Philip Yeo’s biography, “Neither Civil Nor Servant” and ESM Goh Chok Tong’s biography, “Tall Order”.  On a less serious note, I read the “Crazy Rich Asians” trilogy!  And saw the movie too!  Yes, I’ve decided I’m a fan.  
• I was also too busy to do much serious baking during the year but I am pleased that I managed to bake gingerbread men (recipe thanks to Sally’s Baking Addiction) and rolled out fresh pasta for the very first time (my technique needs improvement). 
• I’m also pleased to say that whatever I tidied up during my “Konmari” phase (clothes and books) has largely stayed tidy.  Although I still have the remainder of the “paper” category to complete, overall progress on clearing out my piles of old bank records, bills etc has been good. 
• And of course work was quite busy too :-) 

At this point, I don’t really have any firm plans for 2019.  Work wise, it is shaping up to be a very busy first quarter.  Then I’ll be busy with organising an event in early June for this charity I’m involved in.  And clearing those boxes on the landing has to be done. So maybe it’s a good thing to leave much of this year unplanned, giving myself more time to potter around, meet up with friends, read a good book or two, count my blessings and just enjoy what each day brings me.  

Photo by me, taken in the Flower Dome, Gardens by the Bay