Chiharu, Tomoyo, Taro and Paul
Wednesday 2004-11-17
This morning as I was getting ready to leave the hostel I ran into Chiharu, her friend Tomoyo and Taro. We decided to go out sightseeing together. It was one of the best days of my trip. We all had a great time. We stopped at a restaurant in the Gion area and ate warabi-mochi, which is a sweet snack. Along with the warabi-mochi, we drank a very good green tea made from a fine powder. The restaurant had a beautiful little garden on the side with several huge Koi in the pond. Tomoyo bought some warabi-mochi to bring home as gifts for her friends. Then we walked to the Kiyomizudera temple, which is another World Heritage site. It's probably my favorite temple of all the ones that I've seen so far. And judging from the crowds, the Japanese agree with me. It's on the hillside, overlooking the city of Kyoto. Since this was a very clear day, the view as awesome. We stayed until sunset, which needless to say, was spectacular. On the way back to the hostel we stopped at a kimono shop that Chiharu and Tomoyo had visited yesterday. They introduced me to the owner, who was a very nice lady. Chiharu and Tomoyo had to leave tonight, so Taro and I walked them to the train station. We were all very sad that the day was coming to an end. We all waved as Chiharu and Tomoyo disappeared into the station. Taro and I walked back to the hostel and continued our conversations. Back at the hostel Reina, another Japanese tourist, made me some natto. Natto is made from fermented soy beans. She wanted me to try it. Apparently a lot of people don't like the taste of natto. There was literally a crowd around the table as I took the first bite. Reina even had her camera cellphone ready to take a photo of the historic moment. What pressure I was under! Fortunately I really liked natto and so the photo was of me with a smile and not a sour face. A good way to end a perfect day - with a smile.