December, 2022 | Dog Eaters

Dog Eaters

Christmas Eve in Osaka, Christmas in Kyoto

Posted on 12.28.22 under Uncategorized

Heading towards Junie Moon Osaka in Minami Horie

This is the third Junie Moon store. The other two are in Shinjuku and Daikanyama, Tokyo.

Neo Blythe Cinnamoroll and Neo Blythe Sweet Bubbly Bear

These two limited edition Blythes are highly sought after and re-sell for about twice the original retail price.

Wong Family with the Junie Moon Horie staff

View from the Zentis hotel. Ground level street, highway, and the floor levels of other hotels in the Osaka Kita Ward.

The next morning, Christmas Day, off to Kyoto.

Kyoto Station with the reflection of the tower

Lovely grounds of multiple buildings for any occasion! The street is lined with restaurants like this.

Junko’s mother is interred at Otani Mausoleum.

Shinran was a Japanese Buddhist monk in the early Kamakura period. He lived in this cave. In the winter, it is very dank, damp, and cold! Shinran founded Jodo Shinshu Buddhism which is unusual in that monks had no commandments and were allowed to eat meat and to get married — at the time a bit sacrilegious. Since it values rationality and has simple manners and teachings, it was widely accepted among the public in early modern ages, but on the other hand, it provoked antipathy from other sects and often got ridicule such as “Monto (Shinshu followers) know nothing”.

We have only seen this tree wrapped up for the winter as we only come at the end of December.

*Ryoanji Temple* (龍安寺, *Ryōanji*) is the site of Japan’s most famous *rock garden*.

Not crowded, we were able to sit and contemplate. And try to find the 15 stones…

From the outside, you don’t realize the depths that this restaurant and ryokan offers.

This tempura restaurant and ryokan is deceptively rustic. It’s expensive! We had the full course and as a bonus, a geisha (on the left) and a maiko (a geisha in training) were entertaining in an adjacent room. We heard them playing a game which was accompanied by a shamisen and the verbal prompts: “One, two!”

When they came out, the Yoshikawa staff asked if we would like to take photos with them. Of course!