Today, Monday, July 12th, our merry band of travelers made their way back to Kyoto for a second day ...
The weather forecast called for even more rain, and so we started the morning in our usual manner, in the area adjacent to the main lobby, which has become our morning meeting spot to listen to the presentations on the day's topics. The highly air conditioned little alcove provides a sharp contrast to the warm and humid weather that we have come to expect here in Kobe. It also offers a perfect spot to watch the seemingly endless stream of people who are also staying here at the Hotel Monterey, as this space is strategically placed between the elevators and the desk. We have seen a wide variety of fashions, from nattily dressed businessmen to goth rockers, casually dressed women with children in tow, women in kimono, and young women who look as if they walked straight out of the pages of Vogue in heels that defy gravity ... a morning preview, if you will, of the wide variety of fashions that we will see - and occasionally gawk at - on the street.
Tim started with an interactive presentation that required audience participation as he used us as points upon the map corresponding to the area of Kyoto we would be visiting. Yours truly, along with Susan, held an umbrella horizontally between us to represent the walk we would later take. Lisa integrated her presentation on Ginkakuji, a zen temple, with Tim's, as this was to be a stop along our route for the day. My presentation was the final one of the morning, and I discussed the crafts for which Kyoto is famous, with a particular focus on ceramics and textiles.
We set off with only light rain, which was a nice change from the heavy rain we were walking through yesterday, to catch the series of trains that finally deposited us in Kyoto. Armed with maps of the area from Patrick, we set off to explore three sites ... the Kyoto Handicraft Center, the Heian Jingu Shrine, and Fureaikan, the Kyoto Museum of Traditional Crafts ... before regrouping and heading to see other sites later in the afternoon. The Kyoto Handicraft Center was our first stop, and with a small cafe on the top floor, it was also where many of us choose to eat a quick lunch. Fortified, we set off to explore no less than 7 floors of traditional crafts, including pottery, kimono, lacquer ware, metalworking, paper, woodblock prints ... it was a dizzying array of beautiful work by artisans, many of whom were working as we explored. In fact, Lisa realized after purchasing a woodblock print that the artist who created the piece was ... RIGHT THERE! He was a very serious-looking elderly gentleman who was so engrossed in his work that it seemed almost rude to interrupt him as he carefully carved long, flowing lines in a large block of wood.
Many of us found items to bring back home to friends and family, and even, perhaps for ourselves ... and in doing so, helped to preserve the rich and long craft-making heritage for which Kyoto is famous. This large, modern building, reminiscent of a mall, was a far cry from the centuries old streets which we wandered through in the rain on Sunday, but these works were made in the same manner, requiring both training and talent. While Kyoto offers its visitors numerous sacred sites to explore and enjoy, for me, Kyoto has offered a unique opportunity to experience living treasures, artisans who are creating items that have been made in the same way for centuries.
We made our way to the Heian Jingu Shrine, an overwhelmingly huge Shinto shrine built in 1895, that features one of the largest torii in Japan. Brenda asked us to think about the theme of our tour this morning - The Making of Modern Japan - as we revisited Kyoto today. Here was the perfect example of what I find so fascinating about Japan; the integration of ancient and contemporary. This beautiful shrine is literally surrounded by wide streets teeming with expensive cars and taxis with automatic doors (yes, they are really automatic!) driven by uniformed men . It made me think of the much smaller but no less significant Ikuta Shinto Shrine that sits adjacent to our hotel. As you wander though this space, you may feel like you are miles away from modern life, and yet, you have only to look up to see the various skyscrapers that surround it.
We did not have enough time to truly and properly explore Fureaikan, the Kyoto Museum of Traditional Crafts. A cursory and quick walk through the large space showed large gallery spaces with beautiful ceramics on the first floor; on another floor was display after display showing incredible examples of traditional Japanese crafts with detailed explanations regarding the various steps in making the work. This is most likely where you will find me on Friday ... this is when the group will be turned loose to explore at our leisure, with the ability to return to museums, shrines, or temples that we did not yet see, or want to see again.
It seems hard to believe that we are entering our final week of what has been, and continues to be a rich and varied experience, as there seems to be so much still to see and do. As we enter our third week, the group seems more and more like a family, and our conversations regarding our impressions, ideas, and experiences - here in Japan as well as in our professional and personal lives - have added a important and valued layer to this entire experience for me.
And yes, even when certain individuals made me believe that the carp in the stream adjacent to the Philosopher's Walk were responsible for the loud "plopping" that I kept hearing ... or other individuals made me believe that my large bag of goodies from the Handicraft Center (including a text written by one of our fearless leaders!) had been lost ... you are still my friends. Thank you for making me laugh ... and for the sing-a-longs that keep me smiling as we walk from spot to spot ... I think we need another night of karaoke, yes?
Kachina
Study Tour
