Now, where was I up to…? Ah, yes, re-visiting Fudo-myo, and watching him watch me. The next day’s schedule began with a bus ride to the Heian jinja and museum area. We started by going into the shrine and the lovely garden behind the shrine. It was a gloriously sunny day and perfect for wandering in a garden/park. We ended up sitting on the covered bridge, soaking up the sun, warmth and view. What a wonderfully peaceful and relaxing thing to do.

Once we awakened from our reverie, we went through a touristy shopping complex and then on to the Kyoto craft museum, where I spent some time imagining I had more money to buy, and the room to store, quite a few items. It’s nice to dream occasionally but the truth is I don’t actually need any of these items – it’s still fun to dream, though 😊.

Given it was a nice day, I had decided to walk back to the Gion area via the canal , which is also a pleasant way to spend time. We stopped part-way along the canal and had a drink at small café, sitting on some chairs outside. While we sat there, an elderly lady came out of the café, said hello to us and walked off. Around five minutes later she returned, gave us a bag of coffee lollies and then walked off in the opposite direction! Another example of the generosity of spirit that exists here in so many people.

Next morning was Sunday and so it was time to take our guests to the Ohara famer’s markets. Ohara truly is a lovey place, surrounded, as it is, by beautifully forested mountains. We went to both the markets, and ended up sitting drinking coffee and soaking up the atmosphere at both. We also bought some foodstuffs and had fun scouring the secondhand stall at the smaller market, making some wise (and very cheap) investments. My friend also bought and armful, or two, of flowers and foliage – and so, later that day, our dining room ended up looking somewhat like a florist.

After the markets, we continued on to Sanzen-in, walking up the pathway lined with small shops. While the hydrangea garden at the temple looked a little bedraggled, the Autumnal colour more than made up for that. It was fairly crowded there, being a Sunday, but still a very nice place to visit and spend some time walking around in nature. Again it was a sunny day and a most pleasant time was had by all.

While we were wandering around the Gion, we had noticed a poster for the Yayoi Kusama exhibition, which I had been to many months prior. The poster indicated that the exhibition had been extended and was currently still showing, so we decided we would take the opportunity to go while they were here. I am always happy to see her work, being one of my favourite artists, and there were a number of paintings and prints there that I wanted to see again. As it happened, the exhibits had been changed, including the large pumpkin outside which was now a red version. So, it was an entirely different exhibition and even had a large walk-through installation. A fantastic surprise.

From there, we took a bus to Nijo-jo, which is another place I am always happy to return to. One thing that always strikes me when I am showing people these places is how I can experience a new perspective through their eyes. By the time we had finished looking through Nijo-jo it was mid afternoon, even so, I thought it was worth going on to Kitano Tenmangu. As it turned out we didn’t end up having enough time to go into the wooded area, particularly as six busloads of people, mostly students, arrived as we were there.

Our final full day involved a sumptuous collection of temple gardens and Autumn colour. The colour was finally reaching peak perfection (although, it is still darkening up, even now). We first visited Kodai-ji, where I discovered one of the buildings had disappeared…Not sure why it was gone, but it looks like the replacement is going to be virtually identical, which makes me wonder if it was badly damaged by Typhoon 21.

After this, we went on to Nanzen-ji and then Eikando, a place I had never been before. All of these were visually superb and probably would have been enough in one day, but we had enough time to continue on along the Philosopher’s Path ending up at Ginkaku-ji. Stunning, not much more to say really.

 A sneaky shot

I know that the majority of the photos I am posting in this and my previous missive involve trees, sometimes with buildings as backdrops, but this time of year brings on a kind of warm-colour palette madness, I think. Even now, when we are walking back towards our home, with the hills as background, I don’t get tired of looking at the Autumn colour as it continues developing. While I always love Spring; the renewal of life and the prospect of the warm seasons, I actually have many more photos of Autumn here than the blossom – and I just love to inflict them on you!!!

So, that’s the end of this post and my second year here, but definitely not the end of Autumn, yet.

Cheers for now

My friend…

 Illumination at Kyoto station

  Oops