The Ancient Capital of Kyoto

Day 17, Grand Asia 2017

Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2017 – Osaka/Kyoto

As we sailed into Osaka this morning, an unfamiliar sight greeted us: sun and blue sky. The mood of the entire ship seemed to lift after days of rainy Japanese ports.

We cruised through Osaka Bay and docked at the foot of another giant ferris wheel. In many ports, either the city or Holland America offers a shuttle bus to the center of town or the local train station. Our daily program announced that there would be no shuttle in Osaka today because the station is less than a mile from the port, which offers a shopping and entertainment complex on the pier.

I joined seven other Cruise Critic members for a private tour to Kyoto for the day. We started early and made the one-hour drive with few traffic snarls while our excellent guide Ken reviewed the area’s history and culture. He is a retired businessman who spent 16 years in the United States and grew bored playing golf every day in retirement, so he became a licensed tour guide. We also took advantage of the van’s free and fast wifi.

Kyoto was the imperial capital of Japan for more than 1,000 years and escaped bombing during World War II. As a result, it boasts a large collection of palaces, temples and shrines. We started with Nijo-jo Castle, built in 1603 by the first shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate. The shogun was the chief samurai and wielded political rule while the emperor served as head of state.

We passed through the intricate Kara-mon Gate on our way to the Ninomaru-goten Palace. There we removed our shoes and walked on the ancient floors past a series of large rooms with tatami mats, beautiful wall paintings and intricately carved transoms. Visiting feudal lords waited for audiences with the shogun in many of these rooms. We were itching to photograph them, but photography is banned inside the castle.

Our second stop was the Golden Pavilion, part of the Zen Buddhist Rokuon-ji Temple. The pavilion sits within beautiful gardens, said to represent the Pure Land of Buddha in this world. Like the other sites we visited, it was packed with visitors and tourists.

We stopped for lunch a few blocks away in one of Ken’s favorite small restaurants, where we had chicken or pork dishes and for me another Japanese beer.

Next we stopped at the Ryoan ji Temple, a country home of the shogun Tokudaiji Clan. Ken described it as a kind of “Camp David” where the shogun would bring visitors. Amidst the water lily-filled pond and gardens is a rectangular Zen rock garden with white gravel – perfectly raked daily by monks – surrounding 15 rocks. Some in our group felt its powerful meditative presence, while others were not as impressed.

After crossing to the east side of the city, we walked up a narrow lane lined with shops toward the Ginkakui Temple. The shops proved too much of a distraction for some of us, who begged off for some retail therapy while the rest of the group visited the temple.

Our Kyoto visit ended with quick photo stops at the Heian Shrine and at a stairway where the actor Tom Cruise was filmed in The Last Samurai.

We drove through one of the geisha districts, where we saw what Ken described as “fake geishas” – Asian visitors who don rented geisha costumes, makeup and hairstyles to pose for pictures with tourists. I enjoyed seeing the neighborhood I had only imagined after reading Memoirs of a Geisha years ago.

After an almost perfect day weather-wise, clouds gathered late, and the captain delivered the discouraging news that rain is in the forecast for tomorrow in Beppu. The Holland America singers and dancers entertained us at tonight’s show.