Day 5, how is it day 5 already…
Waking up, the first thing I realized were my legs letting me know their disdain for my choice to climb a mountain the previous two days. I decided after burning my self out a little in Tokyo and the rush of the trip to make it to Kyoto the night before, that it was best to just enjoy and take the rest of the trip in stride.
Damage Report
I had my electronics in a plastic bag, but it unfortunately tore and the rain managed to soak most of the stuff in my bag. I had a Sony point and shoot, a GoPro, an old iPhone 4s as a travel phone for wifi, an LG Optimus as my Korean Phone, and a small chormebook laptop that’s small and light, but comes in handy while traveling when mobile sites don’t work.
It seemed though that the time between giving up on the umbrella and getting the poncho, was enough to do some damage. The iPhone was on the fritz and wouldn’t charge, but instead would constantly make the “charging” ping every 5 seconds, half the buttons on my Korean Phone weren’t working as I could see water behind the screen, my laptop charger was dripping water out of the seems, the laptop it’s self was dead so no way to diagnose that, the only things that seemed to survive was the GoPro, which after how much it cost I expected it too, and the Sony point and shoot, which after how long I’d had it, it owes me nothing. I kept the laptop and iPhone off for the rest of the trip, letting them dry out for as long as possible. Luckily by the time I was home, everything was working…mostly.
I barely cared though. Most of those electronics I brought with me had filled their use, and I figured that at some point they’re probably gonna get wet, fall off a truck, get stepped on by a large elephant… etc.
I took a quiet walk a few kilometers to the subway station. Kyoto as it turns out, is a beautiful city, an absolute Jewel. I decided I’d been rushing this entire trip so far, it was time to slow down and soak it in.
Fushimi Inari Shrine
I slung my backpack on my back and decided the first thing to see was the main reason I came to Kyoto, the Fushimi Inari Shrine on the outskirts of town.
It doesn’t take long to get to from Kyoto station, and once you exit Inari Station, there’s no guessing on where to go next. You exit out into a shallow set of steps gated by a another towering Tori Gate.
Worth Seeing: 5 Tori Gates out of 5. Spend an afternoon here. I wish I could’ve spent more time, but was on a schedule.
Getting There: From Kyoto Station, Take the JR Nara line two stops to Inari Station.
The archetecture, bright oranges contrasting against the green foliage and surrounding bamboo makes the area peaceful and serene, even with a steady crowd of people going through.
Walking a little further, you come up on the famous rows upon row’s of gates which stretch on into the forest. If you’re over 6 feet tail though, watch your head, as the height drops quickly and you’ll be scraping the top of the gates.
Once you get through the first stretch of tori gates, you come up on a small area that hikes up to a quiet pond. You can certainly climb higher up the mountain, and I regretted a little not doing it, but I was on a schedule and had a cooking class back in Kyoto that I had to make.
As with all of my posts, the rest of the pictures can be seen on my flickr here.