Himeji and Kyoto

After taking a tram to Hiroshima Train Station, we took a Shinkansen for the two-hour ride to Himeji. The train was pink, and one of the carriages was the Hello Kitty carriage where I had my photo taken and bought a Shinkansen model.
Leaving the train at Himeji, we walked to the beautiful castle, and I walked around the bailey and up to the sixth floor of the keep.
After lunch, we caught a Shinkansen to Kyoto, and went on the Metro to the Agora Hotel which was near the long, main shopping street with covered pavements to protect you from the sun and rain and many top-brand shops.
In the evening, we got soaked walking to the Kyoto Traditional Musical Art Foundation in Gion. The one-hour performance consisted of the Chanoyu ritual tea ceremony, flower-arranging, 650 year-old Noh theatre, Koto music, Kyogan comedy, and a Bugaku and Kyomai dance.
There were no wheeled holdalls at the first osprey dealership.
I had my only burger of the trip for dinner washed down with a beer which was the usual drink at dinner, either draft craft beer or a bottle.
Schoolchildren were usually in uniform with the girls sometimes having tartan skirts, and the boys wearing black trousers and white shirts, a combination continued by many office-workers. Czytaj więcej