Day 52: 88 Temples - Kyoto

Still waking up way too early so I headed out to do a memory lane walk around Kyoto.  I first came to Kyoto in 1967 and have probably been here close once a decade since.  I had a pretty big gap between 1994 and 2015 which erased a lot of my location memory.  I think I remember the block my Dad grew up on.  Kyoto Tower was here my first visit; it seems smaller now but it is still visible around the city.

I first headed to Nishiki Market.  Along the way I got a croissant at a bakery and ate it as I dodged commuters on bikes.  I was a little early for Nishiki.  Most of the vendors were just starting to set up.  An hour or two latter I would have found some good snacks.

I continued up Teramachi were we went all the time when I was a kid.   I remember my cousin, Tomoko, taking us to an Ultraman movie there.   It was not far from the house where my father grew up and we often stayed.  I think I remember the block but most of the buildings have been replaced.  There aren't many houses from the 1920s still standing in Kyoto.

The Kyoto Imperial Palace is a an impressive place.  It was also one of my favorites places.  It is huge.  I've never been inside the building compounds but the grounds are what I like.  We Played baseball with Dad and brother and sisters on the paths.  No chance of hitting one out here!

A few blocks away was Mori Mansion.  We lived in an apartment there during the summer of 1972.  We flew there without my mother who was undergoing breast cancer treatment - unknown to us kids at the time.  She joined us and was fine after that.  Mori Mansion has a restaurant in the basement we went to all the time; it's a martial arts studio now.  It was the type of place we saw the ruins of all over Shikoku. 

I passed by the Manga Museum but didn't go in because there was no store and I was looking to buy.  In 2015 we commissioned a manga drawing of the two younger boys which was memorable and fun.

Next up Nijo Castle.  While packed with tourists the World Heritage Site is worth the stop - and the admission fee.  The wood building walk through is pretty amazing.  As you walk it sounds like birds chirping but it's the wood floors creaking.

On the way to Nijo I spied a Ramen place and wondered, ramen two days in a row?  Sounds good to me!  Ramen dishes are selected from machine at door; put in money, get change and a ticket, hand ticket to waitress who points you toward the glasses and the water.  I got the thick soup, large size.  Lots of meat and the soup was almost as thick as gravy.  That changes the slurp factor.  It was very good.

I walked back to Teramachi and found a manga store on the 4th and 5th floors.  I took a creaky little elevator up.  A lot of the manga on the 4th floor looked a little pornographic ... on the 5th floor it was total cartoon porn.  There were a lot of creepy dudes in the store.  The lone young girl who worked there looked a little skittish.  I bought two books for my boys; one title I recognized (One Punch Man) and another based on the cover might be a ghost story.

Back at the hotel I took advantage of the Guest Lounge and drank lattes and ate bit sized Snickers while watching hockey game summaries - Sharks beat Red Wings in a thrilling come from behind win!

I didn't have a lot of energy to go out for dinner but a  little TV improved my strength.  I hadn't had tonkatsu for a while so I picked the nearest tonkatsu place.  It turned out to be a good choice.  Basic counter place staffed by high school kids.  The set had pork, chicken, vegetables and a soft boiled egg served in succession.  Each was breaded and fried perfectly.  There was also endless rice bowls - I had two.  I think the chicken had cheese in it.  It came with a tasty curry dipping sauce.