Day 11 - lunch & shrine

We stopped for lunch in a little hole in the wall, down a narrow pathway. We were the only ones there & sat at the counter. There were two ladies behind the counter...older one (in her 70’s?) presumably the owner & a younger one (20’s?). 

I ordered “parent & child” on rice, again. My guide had udon (noodles). Then we got to chatting. Apparently, I speak with very little accent & I speak “elegant” japanese. The Japanese government wants to increase the number of tourists to 40 million a year (!). With the increase in tourism already, the owner (a lovely lady) has been learning english for 6 years. Good for her, I say! 

The food was good & the company excellent. Before we left, the owner gave me a gift of a key chain flashlight. She also wanted to give me a box of matches, which I had to refuse...very carefully, as it is an insult to refuse a gift...it is also an insult to bring a gift to someone’s house. 

If anyone ever finds themselves in Kyoto, I recommend this little spot. Learn some japanese first, and you will have a wonderful, heart warming time! PS - they use phone numbers more often than addresses to navigate, here.

Random bamboo forest

After lunch we headed off to another temple, shrine...and then...to the shrine to Inari, the god of business and rice production. The Messengers of Inari is the fox. Business men would come to the Fushimi Inari Taisha shrine (founded in 711) hoping to improve their business or harvest. If things went well, they donated a Torii gate or dedicated a shrine. There are over 10,000 gates & over 10,000 shrines, going up & down the mountain.

View of “tunnel” created by Torii gates

Entrance to Torri gate tunnel