potted plum trees

It’s about 1 hour train ride from Kyoto station to Nagahama located at the northern end Lake Biwa, the biggest lake in Japan, in Shiga Prefecture. Just one hour ride takes us to snow-country... but it wasn’t when I went there.
At least I saw Mt. Ibuki covered with snow, it looked beautiful but it wasn’t close enough to make me feel that I had come to snow-country.

108

In the last hour of the year 2009 I visited a temple to participate in the ceremony of ringing the bell 108 times. Because of the crowds my friend and I along with the four others took our turn as groups of six were allowed to ring the bell in turn. The idea being to get rid of so-called “worldly desires” in 2009 before the start of the new year.




After that we went drinking until 5 o’clock. I’m not sure how successful I was in getting rid of “worldly desires”.


(left: a new year's ornament at Sanjusangen-do
/ right: a new year's ornament in Kyoto style)

A Happy New Year to you all.

a house with the flag

”Golden Week” has gone.

(the photo was taken in 2006)

I don’t know what is “golden” about it, wherever I go I have to see crowds. Of course, there are lots of events going on and it will make things a little more interesting.

I read the term Golden Week originally comes from a film distributor’s campaign in the 1950’s.

During Golden Week I saw the Japanese flag flying in front of someone’s house and it caught my attention because it’s something I haven’t seen for a long long time. When I was little it was easy to know when it was a national holiday as every house used to fly a flag. The custom has all but died out and it’s hardly seen nowadays.

a special open week of Kyoto Imperial Palace

Kyoto Imperial Palace, Kyoto
京都御所一般参観(京都)

Kyoto Imperial Palace(京都御所),open to the public on weekdays,
needs pre-enrolment on a guided tour
run by the Imperial Household Agency’s staff.

There is an special open week in both spring and autumn
when it isn’t necessary to join an official guided tour.



This is Shishinden (紫宸殿), the hall for official ceremonies
and where the Imperial Throne is placed.



There is a cherry tree on the right and a citrus tree on the left,
you may see the same layout at Heian shrine
which was built as a smaller scale replica of the original Heian Palace.



In front of Shishinden is an open space
of raked pebbles enclosed by a cloister.
The view reminds me of Nara rather than Kyoto.

This garden is located in front of
Kogosho, court room, called Oike-niwa.


This is what I wanted to see more than the structures. Stones, suppose to be a beach in the garden, in the foreground of the picture are smooth and oval shaped like a bars of soap and which are a glossy pitch black in the rain. That’s what I saw in a book and I would have loved to see them like that. It wasn’t the perfect day for me, a bright, sunny and dry day which didn’t show off the rich colours of the garden.

You can’t have everything.

This particular open week there is an additional attraction,
in commemoration of the Emperor’s golden wedding anniversary,
the Empress’ residence and its garden,
not normally open to the public, can be viewed.



It is smaller scale than the Oike-niwa garden,
and it has a cosier atmosphere
with scarlet azalea bushes making it more colourful.