A Beautiful Geisya Girl in Old Shrine of Kyoto

The Kitano-tenman-gu shrine is one of the famous shrines to wish your succeed of studies. When you tried your best for an exam, and there's no option to study more because of the lack of the time, please go there to just wish. That's Japanese style. So many students go there in an exam season for universities.

By the way, have you every seen a giesha girl, like following photo. 

She was so beautiful. The beauty is not just her appearance, but her manners.

It's one of the manners she's leaned to make her polite and humble, which mean beautiful.

She met a boy. He was looking at her, burning his curiosity. And she said something to a boy. A boy smiled. It was in a Japanese plum garden in February, the end of winter.

After a few words, she left. The scenery is much Japanese. From old Japan, people come across somebody. They talk a while. And going back to their own way, if there's no chance to meet again. It's much Japanese. Someones explain this kind of things, using the word "En"(縁). En means simply the human relationship. The meaning is sometimes very deep. 

According to En, you meet people, and make friends, and they may be a best friends of you or your boy/girl friend. Yeah, it's also much Japanese!

   

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

How was Japanese Plum Today?

If you know this sculpture of a cow, you are an expert on Kyoto. When you caress the cow, you will get a good luck. It's said from old Japan.

I was in Kitano-tenman-gu shrine(北野天満宮） in the end of February. I wanted to watch Japanese plum trees blooming so beautifully. But, February in this year is too much cold comparing to others. So the plum was blooming a little bit, like 30% of the full blooming.

Of course, I took photos. Walking slowly and sometimes standing, I watched the trees.

Some parts of the garden is not so bad. They were enough beautiful.

And also, you can smell the flavor when you stick your beak near the buds or flowers. It's fantastic! It's not all to watch during your travel, but you can enjoy scent if anything has it!

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

Journey with a Big Snowboard

He checked in today, he was very nice and friendly, he traveled so many places in Japan. Yeah, of course with the snowboard.

It's one of the biggest luggage, if you call it luggage, you can, in a travel to abroad. I've never seen this nice guy with a very big snowboard in our hostel. He went to Hakuba, which is good place for snowboarding and skiing. He did great jobs, I guess!

If we travel to the oversea, should the luggage be light? In this case, NO!!

He loves snowboarding, and his own snowboard, although it is very big and heavy. Of course, it's a good buddy!

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

Snow in Kyoto, a historical city covered with white

When I wake up and go out side, roofs were covered with snow, and the temperature is very low like 0 degrees centigrade. It's really cold to us!

A tree is also. It didn't feel freezing. It was just there.  

I found some citrus fruits. Nice color. In the white, there's vivid yellow. And I love the flavor :)

Japanese local scenery with snow. The sky is still without sun.

Yeah, of course car was with snow. If I drive the car, I can't see anything... Let me pour hot water on it!

Kyoto is not famous for snow. But this city sometimes has quite big amount of snow. It was not. On the ground I found just 3 cm of snow. I need more to play snowball fight!

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

Japanese Treasures on Special Exhibitions

This free paper is about special exhibitions of Japanese treasures in this winter. Kyoto has a lot of national treasures, and some of them are non-public. In the winter event you can enter the temple to watch them. Yeah, that's special!

Opening the free paper there's the information. I know some, yet don't know everything on the page.

They look very nice! A golden Buddhism sculpture and a big red kitchen. Actually the right one is a kitchen space. Wow, I should take a look.

Kyoto is in winter. So cold. But there're a lot of things worth seeing! Enjoy!!

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

Snow in Japan

Last week it was very cold in Kyoto. It was snowing in the morning.
I was freezing...



In Tokyo it was colder though.
I visited Tokyo last week for private business.

Tokyo was like this.
Snow was left unmelted.

Usually I don't go to Tokyo.
I was a totally stranger there.
However I was excited to visit a unfamiliar place, so I will write about Tokyo this time.


I went to a hotel which was close to Tokyo Dome, so......

Tokyo Dome!!!


Unfortunately I didn't have time to go inside.
In summer baseball games are played in it and it is filled with baseball fans.

This is a souvenir shop.
It sells a lot of items for baseball supporters.


I would like to watch a baseball game there someday.

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

Special objects for Osyogatsu(お正月), which means a new year

If you are very interested in Japanese culture, Osyogatsu, a new year is one of the best to observe so many things. Because that event's begun from old Japan, like a thousand and some hundred years ago. It's oldest event of Japan.

And what is this? At the above of a front door, you will find them everywhere. A guest said "I saw something like hair with orange". 

No, no, it's not hair and orange X(

What do you think?

Link to Wikipedia"Shimenaswa".

And on the left and right side of the entrance, there are 2 objects.

Come on! Take a look at them very carefully. 

It looks like pipes and weed? Well, The answer is:
Link to Wikipedia "Kadomatsu".

This time Wikipedia was my teacher. Yeah, how deep! That's the culture!
I will buy them next year to adorn my home!!

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

This year 2013 is for a SNAKE!

Happy new year in a department store. They sell something cute.

They are snakes. So cute. But, I don't want to mention about cuteness of them. Japan has animal symbols of the years. Yeah, 2013 is the snake, according to the Oriental Zodiac.

Snakes are considered as a kind of harmful animal with poison. Just watching the photo above, I can say "Oh, cute snakes! I should bring them all to my home."

We, Japanese, decorate a lot of things in the new year days. The snake is one of them.

By the way, in this year if you will be 12 or 24 or 36 or 48 or 60 or....., you have the tendency of a snake, refering the Oriental Zodiac system.
The Snake Character is:
Implacable
Diligence
Warm Hearted
And tendency to Love people.

Yeah, snakes wait in a bush to get prize with the Implacable.
The Implacable will be Diligence.
It's sometimes believed snake is Warm Hearted despite the chill attitude.
And snake loves others.

People in the old era invent really the interesting thing. Yeah, let's look for a person of SNAKE character!

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

At the beginning of Winter, finding reddest leaves on Philosopher's path(哲学の道, てつがくのみち)

Here's the Japanese scenery in Autumn or sometimes the beginning of Winter. It's just a empty lot, yet they were nice to watch. It has colors, and it has their own specified figure. 

I walked along Philosopher's path. And I found the reddest leaves in this year to me. Around the tree, almost all leaves have fallen down. That tree is something special!

It was located in the middle of Philosopher's path. It was weird because of the redness. 

Colored leaves trees have many types, and according to how it grows the term of being red is different. So the term to enjoy them is long.

Some of temple or shrines still have colored leaves trees. 

Oh, but the temperature is getting lower! It was cold, when I come to work for the hostel.

Sure! Please bring your coat and sweater! And go out to enjoy the city!

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

Japanese winter pot for offal

When I go back to home, I find this restaurant.

"Motsunabe" restaurant, the name is Kyogame, these kanji means "Capital" and "Turtle".

And there was very nice smell, creamy soup and beef or pork. Sure I went inside!

Before hand, I took a photo of the restaurant. Because that red lantern is a very important sign to find it!

Yeah, if you like this kind of Japanese "nabemono", I recommend you to go there. Or if you don't like to eat offal, it's better to go a Sukiyaki restaurant or others.

Anyway the winter is the best season to enjoy "nabemono"! They makes your body so hot! And you feel like being in a warm place of spring until you don't go outside.

Winter is a great season! The temperature is lower, but people are hotter to get together!

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net

Christmas in Kyoto

I can hear the sound or Christmas. I will come to everybody about a half month later.  

Do you love it? Sometimes you may think about religious things of Japanese. Basically, we don't mind them. Buddhism and Shintoism, they look same from our view. It doesn't matter. And also about the Christmas, almost all Japanese don't care about the religion. It seems like just a lovely event from our view. 

That's a sculpture of a metallic lady and the bottom part is like a tree. Or course, Christmas tree! 

I was surprised because the color of bottom part changed. Wow, high technology here!

The Christmas is so lovable. We meet our family, friends, and boy or girlfriends. That is one of the best days to give presents to your lovably people! Yes, we love them too!

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The backpackers hostel in Kyoto is located in its historical district, Gion.
Good access by buses and trains. The center of Kyoto.
Please contact us, if you want to book our hostel.

info@ayado.net