What a day! Exploring the area nearby, close to the Shugakuin Imperial Villa. Of all the temples, shrines and gardens I visited back in 1983, Shugakuin made the biggest impression on me, but I have no plans this time to visit villas or temples. It’s the surrounding hills and narrow roadways which beckon. Yukio, my old partner in crime back in China, has a house up near here and he arranged a place for me to stay here in 2018. Otherwise I might never of have been reminded of how beautiful the area is.
Bears in the hills of Kyoto. A jogger pays little heed and after a friendly “konichiwa” skirts past the barrier warning dire consequences and runs on.
Is it sensible to fly across the Pacific for the sole reason of partaking in the culture of ofuro? I would say a resounding YES. Today I found the public bathhouse, or sento, practically around the corner. This is what I come here for, a tradition which has made the routine daily practice of bathing into something approaching total bliss, shared with local women, the very old, young and in between, all shapes and sizes, including me.
What does water do?
Heal, clean, nurture, flow, destroy
I will keep swimming
