I must not be very Japanese yet, because irony is rarely thought of as funny over here (though regardless of country my all-too-cryptic humor rarely hits home). In any case, I arrived at the one-day option by necessity rather than choice; I had only the weekend, and the first half was already booked for writing with new friends also participating in National Novel Writing Month. Here's how my two-day, night-bus (combining travel and accommodation) itinerary came out:
Friday: Made the bus stop five minutes before departure. Paused to let my heart start beating normally again, griped into my diary about the intrusive ads scattered all over Tokyo and then enjoyed the provided slippers (hooked just above the foot rest in front of me) on a pre-sleep bathroom run.
Saturday: Kicked off the bus at 6 AM, an hour from my destination and 4 hours from the agreed-upon rendezvous time. Read and prayed for a while in a cafe, then noticed
this little station shop I hope to patronize the next time I'm in the Kansai region (it's a branch of Cafe Du Monde, which I've visited twice in its home city).Met the other writers--all English teachers from America--and enjoyed a leisurely stroll around the Buddhist temple where Murasaki Shikibu [pen name of the world's first novelist] is said to have begun work on the renowned melodrama Genji Monogatari. We boosted our word counts over a cheap spaghetti meal and I then crashed in the cheapest place possible: a rent-your-own-cubicle Internet cafe.
Sunday: Woke up just in time to avoid extra charges. Rented a nice bike and tooled over to the western area of Arashiyama, where I spent restful time
visiting three temples, all of which had gorgeous fall foliage and one of which was connected to another famous work of literature: Heike Monogatari, in several ways Japan's Iliad although it was written in the Middle Ages. It was fulfilling both due to literary-geek dream realization and the abundance of silence, not really attainable in Tokyo. I can see why country people are renowned for loathing living conditions in that metropolis.Spent the rest of the day visiting two summer-program friends and biking around the Gion district, famous for geisha entertainment. Had a split second of pure poetry: on "Flower-Viewing Street" I saw a kimono-clad, sandal-shod woman with white makeup and a bright-lipsticked smile ushering a business-suited Japanese man across an intersection. She was definitely either a high-level maiko [apprentice geisha] or master, as no one else would accompany an obviously important customer. No room for pictures, but that only underlines the ephemeral spirit of much Japanese art.
Monday: Woke up with my back complaining from the third night sleeping in a chair. Took longer than usual in the shower to make up for skipping the two previous days. Unpacked presents for dorm friends (social obligation over here, usually in packaged-cookie form) and uploaded photographs. Flipped idly through my country guidebook in search of the next adventure.
Best personal souvenir: free 8x11" posters from a Kyoto temple when I asked where I could buy the lovely one hanging by the ticket window
Best food: soba topped with mackerel at a 300-year old restaurant Sunday evening
Best sign on the trip: One that promoted litter cleanup by inventing the phrase "Beautification Enforcement Area."
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