Girton Grammar Gojo Trip 2007: Day 7

The day began at 9.00am with us checking out of our hotel and leaving Hiroshima. We boarded a bullet train and set off for Kyoto. Despite not getting up long ago, many of us managed to sleep the entire trip! On our second train we were all surprised to find Risa, an exchange student who had just left Girton at the end of Term 3, waiting for us on the train. Once in Kyoto we were able to check into our hotel, which was also western style. Our rooms this time were even smaller than the ones in Hiroshima and our bathrooms were like those you would find in an aeroplane. Once again, we all bought lunch at a convenience store and then set off for Kinkakyi temple. It has three floors and the exterior is coated in gold leaf – it looks amazing. The gardens surrounding the temple were beautiful. The temple was originally the home of Yoshimitsu, the 3rd Shogun of Ashikaya and after his death it was made into a Zen temple in accordance with his will. Our next stop was Ryoanji temple and the rock garden. It is quiet and peaceful and it is said that it is p to the viewers to find out what the garden signifies for them. Although many of us did not work this out, it was still beautiful in a different way. For dinner that night we booked into a Japanese style restaurant – a private room just for us with tatami mats where we sat on cushions around two long low tables. It is a restaurant which offers every possible type of Japanese food. We ate everything from sushi, tempura, tofu, dumplings, salad, meat skewers, rice, noodles, raw fish and fish eggs. Some people even tried eating horse, however Mr Rankin didn`t tell them it was horse until after they had eaten it! Following dinner we were joined by Risa`s mother and sister. We traveled into Gion hoping we would see a Geisha. The first Geisha we saw was in a taxi which Mr Rankin decided to chase after in order to get a photo. Ashe was running the other way another Geisha walked straight past where we were standing. Mr Rankin then returned panting, with his taxi shot. In the meantime the rest of us had secured a photo without the frantic 100 metre sprint!! It may have been getting late, however many of us were not ready to go to bed. 13 of us, including Risa, her Mum and sister and Mr Rankin, decided to do Karaoke. All of us had a sing and even a dance with a mixture of both English and Japanese songs, with many ending up with sore throats at the end. Everyone returned to the hotel around midnight, by then beginning to feel both nervous and excited at the prospect of meeting our host families the next day.

By: Sarah Edwards