A Magical Evening in Lights

I just had one of the most mystical and magical experiences I think I might ever have in my time here in Japan. As a matter of fact, it might have been up there with one of the most spiritual experiences I can recall during my travels. I have had the fortunate opportunity and blessings to have been able to experience many things in my short (well, getting longer) days. The holy land and Chinese new year were some of the best. But the serenity of my time in Kyoto touched me in a deeper way. Maybe I am changing my view on this ancient city of ours...
This afternoon, I took the train over to Kyoto to meet up with a friend from my Target days, Andrea, and her boyfriend, Andres. Andrea and I were analysts in the same department at Target, but we left the company around the same time, and I haven’t actually seen her since she moved back to New York City last year.
We had a nice afternoon walking around in the city and ended up at an amazing and quaint little restaurant near the Gion area (Pontocho, actually, if you are familiar with the city). The establishments in this area are charming (albeit the potential for touristy joints) and it is a good place to go to catch a glimpse of a maiko or geisha. The restaurant we went to was a traditional Japanese-style place (the beautiful outer decore definately seduced us into going inside), where we had our own tatami (traditional Japanese floors – look like grass but made of bamboo) room overlooking the cobblestone street, with a narrow view of the river. It was my first time eating sukiyaki (cooked meat and veggies - cooked at our table) with local sake and beer and I was able to practice some Japanese.
I love the people I met in Japan, but there is something to say about seeing familiar faces in an unfamiliar place. I have been in Japan a few months now and am adjusting to the culture, but I was still elated to discuss the cultural differences with Andrea and get her perspective on the culture, food, fashion and language. Plus I missed hanging out with them! Both Andrea and Andres are wonderful people and I enjoyed the company. It was also a breath of fresh air to get out of town for a day. I feel like things have unnecessarily been getting somewhat dramatic where I live lately (perhaps another effect of the three-month hump or maybe people turning cold along with the weather?) and it was nice to leave my current sphere and spend time with people I know from a different setting.

So after dinner, we made our way through the narrow shop-lined streets to another area of town to check out the ‘Autumn Light Up’ at Kiyomizu-dera (Temple). I had stopped at the tourist office at Kyoto Station to grab a city map on my way into town, and the woman I spoke with told me about the event. For the next month, several (about 6 or 8) temples around Kyoto stay open late and tourists can visit and walk the sights by candlelight (Autumn Light Up!). The woman warned me that the temples may be busy, but when we arrived, I hardly noticed the crowds... what we discovered was more than I could have dreamed of expecting. It was spectacular.
Out of the temples we had the option of checking out, I thought Kiyomizu-dera would be the best because its beauty and tranquility touched me more deeply than any other site in Kyoto when I saw it with Mike this fall. The complex is huge so there is an opportunity to stroll along the hillside forest paths, the mountainous backdrop takes on a life of it’s own with the crisp and passionate colors of the fall leaves, and I thought the fountain of water famous for posessing those who drink it with healing properties was another bonus (although Andres did have a point that it looked like drainage from the rain rather than a waterfall)...
As soon as we stepped foot on the street leading up to Kiyomizu, we were immediately drawn to the site by a large spotlight coming from behind first orange pagoda. As we drew near and ascended the first set of steps leading to the temple complex, the light seriously seemed to cast a holy or angelic glow upon the stairs and buildings in front of us, all of which were lined with lanterns looking like Christmas luminaries. We stopped to try to take pictures, but really spent more time taking in the view. The soft rain peacefully falling in the light looked like snow, and all any of us could say to describe the scene was, ‘magical’.
As we were walking around the temple, soaking in the scenery and atmosphere (and ignoring the rain), I kept thinking that it really was almost like something out of a dream (especially considering I was walking around Kyoto, late on a Sunday night, through a temple in the forest... and with Andrea of all people...random). But it was a lot of fun, something unexpected and very appreciated, and definitely moving. I tried several (many) times to capture the experience on digital film, but none of the pictures would do the experience justice, so I put down the camera and enjoyed my time there for what it was. We were just lucky to have heard about it! It is also amazing to be someplace that you know can only be truly appreciated and lived when done in person.