Tuesday, April 28
We awoke bright-eyed and bushy-tailed after a good night's sleep thanks to cough suppressant capsules purchased yesterday that ensured I didn't cough all night long keeping both of us awake. We went downstairs to have breakfast and that was an absolute delight. The Japanese are so formal and polite so we were bowed to by the cleaning ladies we passed along the corridor, bowed to by the bellhop who was also trying to push a full cart of suitcases, then greeted with a "japenglish" good morning by every staff member in La Palisier - the breakfast restaurant of our choice - we had a choice of three. The food, in what we now realize is the Japanese way, was arrayed beautifully and looked absolutely delicious. All our choices were tiny little morsels but each one was so tasty - we would have been happy to stay there all day but Al had studied the tourist map extensively last night so that our day needed to get under way and quickly.
We headed over the road to the station to find the Bus Exchange & Ticket Office to buy our Bus Day Pass. Our aim was to head towards the Imperial Palace to buy tickets for a tour tomorrow and, along the way, have a look at some temples and do "The Philosopher's Walk" along the old canal. The sun was shining and the top temp was forecast to be 28C - just lovely! We bought our bus pass and the bus we needed to catch pulled straight in - perfect! On the bus was a young couple we had seen on the ship and we found ourselves sitting next to each other. It's a small world - they are from Boronia. We were all headed in the same direction but, once off the bus, we told them to go at their own pace and not wait for us - the difference between being mid 20's and mid 60's!
Before starting the walk along the old canal, we took a short detour to have a look at the Ginkaku-ji Temple and this meant passing many tourist and souvenier stalls but they were fascinating. The old canal runs right through a residential area but you wouldn't know that you are in a major city and so close to the CBD. The walk is about 2kms long but there are lots of little lane ways running off just begging to be explored and that adds to the length of your walk. It is lined with cherry trees (sadly we are two weeks too late for cherry blossom time) and lies between two major temples - the Ginkaku-ji Temple and Nanzen-ji Temple. Local scholars called the little path flanking the canal, "The Path of Philosophy". It was absolutely beautiful strolling along, taking a little turn off to have a look at an artisan's work, read a sign board, etc. and enjoy the warmth of the sun.
After our walk, we caught a bus to take us closer to the Imperial Palace but, unfortunately, caught the wrong one and ended up back almost where we started from. By then (3 pm), we were ravenous so found a lovely little cafe and had a very enjoyable Japanese meal. When we came out it was peak hour and schools were out so the line for the bus was fairly long (but orderly as only the Japanese do) so we didn't have to wait too long. This time we made it to the Imperial Palace and found the Booking Office. We've done it again though - tomorrow is a public holiday and the palace is closed! The holiday marks the passing of an Emperor so certainly affects the Imperial Palace's opening hours but doesn't seem to be widely observed elsewhere and we were not warned about it at the Tourist Information Centre yesterday - oh well, another reason to return to Kyoto - not that we need one - it is such a lovely place. We walked though the gardens surrounding the palace wall and, whilst very nice, they were nothing sensational. It was good to see them being put to good use with lots of school kids enjoying sports practice on the various courts and fields, people out walking their dogs (or balls of fluff with fancy coats and bows) or people just taking a stroll.
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