Cape of Good Hope, South Africa

April 2024

Penguins at Boulder Beach

Kirstenbosch Botanic Gardens

Cable Car to Table Mountain, Cape Town

Tokara Windery, Stellanbosch

Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto

We visited the Fushimi Inari Shrine famous for its thousands of bright orange and black torii gates. Inari is dedicated to the Shinto God of rice, sake and prosperity and the gates are erected at the shrine to bring good fortune to your harvest or today, to your business. Each gate has the name of the family and the date on which they were donated. Founded in 711 AD it is Kyoto's most revered Shinto shrine.

Fushimi Inari Shrine Entrance

The gates were gorgeous and the higher we climbed the fewer people we encountered so we could get these amazing shots.

 After almost two hours of climbing, we reached the top! The shrines were much older and primitive than the ones below.

Once we got to the top, the guys decided to go off piste and followed this trail down the mountain. I was reluctant at first as we had already hiked up for two hours and the trail was empty. It was breathtaking - the scenery from a natural bamboo forest to the older and less cared for shrines, water falls and people's homes captivated us the whole way down!

The foxes on the shrines were there to guard the granary of rice for the people. We saw some with keys to the granary in their mouths.  These were in a remote shrine and were really eery looking.

We reconnected with the trail below and were thankful for the peaceful and picturesque descent.

As we were leaving, a family with mother and daughter dressed in their kimonos entered the shrine!

This was a beautiful day of exploring in Kyoto. We are very thankful for the opportunity to experience this part of the world!

xoxo,  Phil, Kathy & Andy

Temples and Gardens in Japan

 Photos will not do the garden and temple sites justice as you had to take it all in - the sites, smells and the quiet solitude! The meticulous gardens were breathtaking - over 150 gardeners were employed at this temple and every time a leaf fell, they swept them up with primitive branch like brooms. They even dusted the moss.

Water features were part of every garden and inspired us to start thinking about a water feature in our own gardens in Center Valley. The pathways even had a mosaic quality about them.

The bamboo forests were huge and nearly blocked all of the sunlight. Bamboo is still used for a lot of structural trellises and pavilions in the gardens.

I want one of those in my garden!

 On our way to dinner one night, we jumped off the bus and wondered up this hill to see the temple at the top. There were rickshaws and lots of quaint stores along the road.

 Once we reached the top of the hill, we were amazed to find this huge statue of Buddha! It was breathtaking in the setting sun.

 The temples next to it were painted in a brilliant red!

 One of our favorite spots to gawk and site see, was in Nishiki Market. A pedestrian mall with shops on both sides selling everything from teas, dried fish, chestnuts - you name it, it was there. At the end of the market behind all of these lanterns was a Tenmangu Shrine. So, you could pick up dinner and say your prayers all at the same time!

Kyoto is famous for its alluring Geisha girls and there is a long history of geishas in Japan. Today, they are quite rare as most business men are looking for more contemporary companions. And yes, karaoke plays a big part in the shift.

Phil and I were wandering the streets in what we now know is the Geisha district and a tour group was taking photos in front of a particular doorway. After they left, we went to check it out and with that two geishas were dropped off by limo behind us and hurried down the alley to the doorway and disappeared inside! It was like spotting a unicorn. Here is the shot we got . . . 

And here I am in front of the doorway. The plaques above my head are used to let you know which Geishas are in for the evening!  It is an exclusive club - you have to be invited in to enjoy a Geisha.

After the Geisha siting, we watched a documentary narrated by Susan Sarrandon about The Life of a Geisha. It was really interesting to find out about their history!

Tomorrow we head to the Inari Shrine!
More to come.
xoxo

Japan - Konnichiwa

Andy has always been interested in Japan and we had never been there, so we decided to take a family trip and check it out! There are so many sites to see, we did not get to them all but we were exhausted trying!

Our first morning in Tokyo we headed to the largest wholesale fish market in the world - Tsukiji! They have a tuna auction each morning at 4:00am that is well known and then open up the market for all to see. We were overwhelmed by the variety of sea creatures, the hustle and bustle of vendors and buyers and the exhilaration of being in the middle of it all.

Tuna Carpaccio

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Just outside of the Market, you can duck in to a sushi counter and eat the freshest seafood you have ever had!

After the hustle and bustle here, we decided to head to one of the local downtown gardens for matcha green tea and peace and quiet!

xoxo,

Phil, Kathy & Andy