totemo iidesu-nee!

Saturday night- 8pm. just checked in to brand new capsule hostel, slightly disappointed that capsules are not actually enclosed tube-like structures, rather, they are nice little mini-rooms. I am experiencing a twinge of sadness to leave Kyoto, a place that rapidly zoomed to the top of my list. I love the teeny tiny bars piled on top of each other in unassuming buildings off alleyways that we spent three nights exploring, staying out till 5am on a wednesday and finding people on the streets even as we made our way home. The zen temple that has a 700 year old garden filled with moss and carp so contemplative that they stay completely still. The bike path along a river that is visited by cranes and crossed on large turtle shaped stones. The best meal I may have ever had made in an unassuming restaurant, with food so fresh and delicious that sometimes I laughed when I first tasted it. And real live geishas. I glimpsed two luminescent figures whiz by in a human pulled rickshaw and saw one exiting a job in the Gion neighborhood, where tea houses have played host to wealthy men being entertained by geishas since the 18th century. The combination of history, beauty, energy and care in every thing I have experienced here makes me love Japan more and realize how my outlook has changed since I was 16, when I first came here. Its nice to know that I had some inkling that this place appealed to me in a special way and now that I have grown up I can appreciate the style of living here and wonder if 16 year old me had some special insight. A question I am sure I will continue to ponder as I re-explore Tokyo for the next few days.