Quintessentially Kyoto

This morning, I randomly found myself in Kyoto.

It dawned on me that living in the heart Osaka can sometimes deprive a boy of all things traditionally Japanese, so in a bid to get to the heart of the Japanese heart, I randomly found myself in the heart of a plum blossom viewing festival being held at kitano Tenmangu Shrine.

Is there some kind of weird repetition thing going on here or something?

Is there some kind of weird repetition thing going on here or something?

Anyway.

At the risk of calling me a big flower, it was absolutely beautiful.  Pastel hues blossoming right, left and centre. There was even an ikebana flower arranging contest. The whole thing was completely dripping with the very essence of the Japanese ‘wa’, or harmony. Anyone who knows me, knows I am utterly obessed with this. It’s what makes Japan so incredibly special.

After scoffing a hot bowl of ramen noodles, I braved it on the bus back to the station. What another quintessentially Kyoto experience. For a country with such an obsessive fettish with mobile phones, not a single one in sight! And the bus was rammed like sheep (no rams, mind). Is that what you call patience or saving Kyoto face? So different from Osaka! (Keitai a-go go!) To ham up the whole ‘wa’ thing even more, the entire bus was effectively a calligraphy exhibition on wheels. Every available inch of wall space was taken up with the local primary school’s efforts at kanji practice. Amazing! Not just yer mundane slogans like ‘Rice balls going cheap at yer local 7-11′, but rather completey adorable things like 「温かい心」, 「新風」 and 「希望」.

Hurrah for the ‘wa’, where would we be without it?