Jack and Carole: Day 4-6

Day 4
We took a long trip to see Himeji Castle.


It is one of Japan's "Three Famous Castles", and is the most visited castle in Japan. It was built around 1330, destroyed then rebuilt in 1580, and then expanded in 1601.

Jack got separated from us on the way to the top and thought we decided not to go all the way up so he rushed all the way back down. Here we were taking our time looking at everything, we thought Jack rushed out so he could have a cigarette. There is separate going up stairs and going down stairs so we never saw him leave. But when we got out he was smoking and having a coffee in the sun. So I guess he wasn't too heartbroken!!


The castle was great. Then we decided to do what you need to do...jumping pic!

On our way home, we saw a couple of people selling these...

...Oh, and they're ALIVE!

When we got back to Kyoto, we went out for dinner at Za Watami, then watched Spy Game. Good day.

Day 5: Karleen's writing Day 5

Because Cam had to work, I took Mom and Dad to see our old Island, Innoshima! On they're way there, We had an hour wait in Fukuyama, so we explored the Fukuyama Castle!

A few pics of the "luxurious" bus we took to Innoshima!

Once in Innoshima, the first thing I did was sneak around the back of my old house to visit our dog Russel. He was very happy to see me. I miss him.


Then I wanted to drop some things off at the school for my friend Rie. Rie only works on Wednesdays so I wrote a note and put everything in a bag for her. We went into the school but we were surprised to find it looking empty but unlocked. I put the bag on the counter and checked the schedule. Guess what Rie was the ONLY person working she was in one of the back classrooms. YAY!! So we went back to talk to her she was shocked to see me but sad she was working and couldn't come with us.
Then we left and we walked about half an hour to my Doctor where I had a quick appointment. Next we decided to sight see around the island so we got on a local bus near the doctor going the opposite direction of Kanayama which is the stop we would finish at. So we could go around almost the whole island. First we bought some delicious oranges which Innoshima is famous for. Well after we had been on the bus for quite awhile enjoying the sights the bus driver stopped the bus and came all the way back to us. (we were the only once on the bus). He drew a picture of the island and where we got on and where we were then sort of made a question face. He thought we were lost. So I told him Kanayama and he said oh ok. But then he took our tickets away and gave us much cheaper once he thought we got on the wrong direction since we started only two stops away from Kanayama. We didn't know how to explain the confusion so we just gave him a nice souvenir pin from Canada. He was pretty happy! I had forgotten how beautiful Japan can be in Nature not just it's culture and buildings. Great Day!!

Day 6
We got up really early because we booked a Kyoto All Day Bus Tour that took us to SO many places, then finished up with a Special Night event. Let's start from the beginning, shall we?

Nijo Castle
The castle was completed in 1628, then in 1750, it was struck by lightning and burned to the ground. The site wasn't rebuilt until 1867. The gardens were gorgeous!


Now, we WOULD have alot more pictures of this castle, but no photography was allowed inside the castle because of the priceless wall paintings that covered all of the special rooms. One of the coolest things about the castle are the corridor floors:

They are called nightingale floors, and they are built so if any one walks on them, they squeak like the sound of birds to protect the Shogun and others from sneak attacks!

Kinkaku-ji (The Golden Pavilion)
The next stop was Kinkaku-ji. We only had like 4o minutes here because we need to rush to the next venture. I won't write about the castle, since you can go back to the post where we talked about it.

Kyoto Imperial Palace
It was the residence of the Imperial Family until 1868, when they moved to Tokyo. The present date on the structure is only 1855 because the place has been burnt down/repaired several times. Because of this, there are restrictions on entering the castle. You can read them HERE.

By this time, if you can't tell from the pictures, it was pouring rain, and this whole section was outside. We were glad not to have spent too much time here, even though it was pretty interesting.

After the Imperial Palace, we headed to the Kyoto Handicraft Center for some lunch, buffet style! Good eats, and nice to have some relaxing time. We looked through the Center until it was time to board our next bus. The Afternoon tour was about to begin!

Heian Shrine
Our first stop was the Heian Shrine. Now, Karleen and I had already been there [see post], but it was still neat to see again.

Oh, really?

The one thing that was really new was that we were able to go into an area that no one else was allowed to go to unless you were in a tour group! The back gardens.


The first things we layed our eyes on were the Stepping Stones. You might recognize them, they were from one of the scenes in Memoirs of a Geshia. Photos ensued.

Sanju-Sangendo Hall
Now, there are really NO pictures of this place, because Photography wasn't allowed. Bummer. This place is famous for it's 1001 statues of Kannon, the goddess of mercy. The temple was made in 1164, and most of the structures are still from around 1266. Another reason this is a famous temple is because it's the longest wooden structure in Japan, stretching over 100 meters.
Of courses, being the rebels that we are, we took a sneaky shot at some of the statues. Aren't we a bunch of stinkers!

Kiyomizu Temple
Jack, Karleen and I were here a few days before, so Jack decided to take a nap while the rest of us checked out the place.

In this pic if you look closely you'll see me across the way,
in the corner of the far balcony!

This was the end of the Afternoon tour, so we were dropped off at the hotel where our next portion was going to begin.

Tea Ceremony & Zen-Style Tempura Supper
This was the beginning of the Kyoto Special Night tour. The tour group was split into 2 and one had the tea first and the other started with dinner. We started with the food...YEAH!

Here's the set list that we had (exactly from a piece of paper we got):
1.Tempura
-Protein out of soybeans
Toufu (curdled soybeans milk)
Yuba (Membranous layer of protein and fat skimming of the top from a boiling milk of
soybeans) ?????
-Deep Fried soybean paste
-Protein out of wheat
Fu (steamed raw wheat protein from kneaded flour d-startched) ?
Seasonal Vegetables
Mushrooms, Ginger, Sweet Potato, Lotus root, Egg plant, shiso leaf, Green pepper,
pumpkin, Kelp
2.Soup
Miso (soybean) soup with toufu
3. Steamed Rice (topping dried shiso)
4. Tea

We're going to end here for now because we're off to work but we'll finish more soon!!!