Previously on Lenka’s diary: Got me shoes soaked
To follow on the shoe issue, no, they didn’t dry throughout the night. Luckily, there was a blow-dryer at the hotel room, and even more luckily, we were leaving and didn’t have to deal with the consequences of blow-drying our shoes (if you know what I mean). And the most luckily, the skies seemed to have cleared up, at last.
We headed for the place I personally wanted to see the most – Fushimi Inari shrine, or rather the torii gate passage. Again, a tourist hotspot, but this time I didn’t mind as it wasn’t rainy, most of the time anyway. Truly April weather with short showers in one minute and beautiful sunshine in another. But am I getting too excited talking about the weather again? Suppose you’re not here to listen about it, are you? So anyway, we enjoyed a Shinto musical performance that started the moment we were about to walk away after waiting for a while. Got my omikuji, fortune, but in this shrine, it was a special one, not like any other I had before, so I couldn’t really make out the meaning. And then we started walking through the passage. And oh boy, was it a looong way to the top. … or so I’ve guessed, we never made it. But you know what, it’s about the journey and on our journey, we got some precious minutes without other tourists for a little photoshoot. Priorities.
Next on our journey, the Golden pavilion, Kinkakuji. (The sun seems to be a good influence on my memory, I know the names!) In all honesty, it was really nice, especially as it reflected the sunrays. However, all you could do is walk around it along with the crowds in one direction, trade taking photos of them for getting your photo taken, trying to get the best shot and that’s it. I’d like a bit more. But, we did get to try a wasabi peanut sample and I found out I actually like the taste of wasabi. It’s the self-discovery at these trips. 😀
And the final stop of the day was Nijo castle. We didn’t expect that getting there would be such a struggle, but when you’re sitting at the very end of a packed bus, getting off is not easy. Good thing that the panic from the bus starting to move was greater than my anxiety of speaking up, and I managed to shout out that we’re getting off. The real MVP, if I can say so myself.
At the castle, I decided not to go in, unlike my friend, so instead, I found a sunny spot and watched people for good 30 mins. I felt like a little kitten in a sun puddle and I enjoyed every moment. Then it was time to move on, to see a bit more of the garden. The interesting thing about Japan is that everyone says they have 4 seasons. But no one says that you can kinda find them all at once, with red leaves and Sakura blossoms mixing up in my view. But you know what, I like both autumn and spring, so it was a little Hannah Montana moment, getting the best of both worlds.
The only issue left was what should I do till 11pm, when my bus arrives. I might be young in the eyes of the world, but people who know me know that in reality, I am a grandma who goes to bed with the chickens. But on my way to the bus stop, I stumbled upon a Disney store and the joy from that took over my worries. Surely a metro stop or a konbini would work (as it started to rain again).
On my way back home, in my dreams, I reflected on all the nice moments of the trip as well as the reason why I shall never travel by an overnight bus ever again. ♥
