Kyoto- 京都 part 1

Kyoto. Where do I even begin? I had the privilege of spending two days here the summer after my eighth grade (aka 10 years ago, what?!) and fell in love. Ten years later and I'm still enamored.

Many cities can be called beautiful. Many have a rich history. Many boast enviable architecture, shopping, scenery, cuisine. But for anyone who has experienced Kyoto, I think it's safe to say there is just something special about this city. Wherever you go you can feel the history, the patina of hundreds of years, the depth of beauty and memories that exist. Even with all the people, buses, taxis, and modern storefronts it seeps through. I can't really put it into words and photos can't really do it justice, but it is there. And it's a beautiful thing to experience.

With three days and our city bus passes (Russel from UP anyone?) in hand, we trekked all over, taking in many of the famous sites. What follows are pictures from the "landmark" places we went as well as the back alleys I wandered. And fair warning, there are quite a few photos, but these also aren't nearly ALL the photos I took so count yourselves lucky ;)

Without further ado, Kyoto the first two days.


The streets of the Gion/Kiyomizu area

The wood, the rooflines, the patina. It's the best.

Wandering the streets of Gion we came upon this quintessential Kyoto scene

Hokan-ji

 

Posing

loved everything in this store, especially these vibrant little blossoms

Putting our feet up along Kamogawa at golden hour

 

Day Two- Philosopher's walk to Honen-in temple and Ginkakuji, Takano and Kamo rivers fork, Shimagamo-jinja, Nijo-jo, and Kiyomizu-dera

Sand art at Honen-in

mini Hobbit-sized door

Teeny little jinja gate



Ginkakuji- the Silver Pavilion

Immaculate grounds at Ginkakuji

Overlooking Ginkakuji grounds to Kyoto

Moss

The photographer gets her own picture

Standing on giant turtle rocks where the Kamo and Takano rivers meet

rock piles at Shimagamo

Shimagamo shrine- lots of orange

Nijo Castle: standing here I had flashbacks to when I was here ten years ago



Love this roof so much, it's just perfection

Kyoto tower from Kiyomizudera

Kiyomizudera, an incredible structure and gorgeously illuminated

Omiyage shop with FREE SAMPLES

Lantern installations in Maruyama koen

Giant floral arrangements in Maruyama koen

The most famous sakura tree in Maruyama koen

Lanterns at Yasaka shrine

With Johnny, a fellow Bruin, now teaching with JET in Kyoto. He was kind enough to act as tour guide one evening!
Also, love the photo-bomber desperately trying to get out of our picture hahaha

 

 

Kyoto- 京都 part 2 can be viewed  HERE

 

Osaka- 大阪

Osaka was a fun city to explore. They have a day pass for 2000 yen ($20) that allows you entrance into a bunch of different museums, attractions, and historical sites. We played professional tourist, packing in a lot of miles and a lot of memories in 10 hours. Here we go!

First on the tour is an area called Tennoji- Tennoji shrine, the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts and okonomiyaki for lunch.

View from the museum stairs overlooking the Osaka Zoo and Osaka Tower

Next stop was Osakajo, or Osaka Castle. It's a gorgeous structure architecturally and the surrounding grounds are equally impressive.

Panorama from the observation deck

Enjoying ice cream in the toasty 12 degree weather (celcius)

My favorite plum blossoms

Artwork made by survivors of the Osaka air raids during WWII- at the Osaka Peace Center

Artwork made by survivors of the Osaka air raids during WWII- at the Osaka Peace Center

Our final stop was the area around Osaka Station- Ferris wheel views and night views of the city from the Floating Garden Observatory in Umeda's Sky Building

 

Moon rise over Osaka

Looking down on the tracks of Osaka Station

 

The morning we left I stopped by the neighborhood shrine to explore a bit

 

Slightly initmidating...

 

 

Hope you enjoyed the whirlwind tour of Osaka!

It's a down-to-earth, energetic city and lots of fun to explore.

Sufficiency

 

"If you cannot trust God for temporals, how dare you trust him for spirituals? Can you trust him for your soul's redemption, and not rely upon him for a few lesser mercies? Is not God enough for thy need, or is his all-sufficiency too narrow for thy wants?"

Charles Spurgeon, March 7, Morning and Evening

 

image from Pinterest

 

 

El Shaddai in Hebrew is translated to the name God Almighty, or the God who is all sufficient. This idea of sufficiency is something I think about a lot. It presents itself regularly because I have trust issues. It is hard for me to completely let go and surrender things fully to the Lord. Things like next steps after stint, future relationships, even my daily to-do list. Sure I believe deep down he is good, he loves me, he is in control. But my sinful, prideful heart battle against those truths and cling to the desire to maintain control over my own life.

 

The three questions written by Spurgeon above have made me reassess if I am actually believing in El Shaddai or settling for some lesser god.

 

I would honestly say I'm banking on the fact that Jesus died for my sins and rose from the dead in victory over sin and death. But if I can trust in something to determine the destination of my soul for all eternity, how can I not trust the same something for the minor details of that which is transient and fleeting?

 

I claim to trust God for the redemption of my soul yet struggle to believe he truly knows the desires of my heart and has the ability to fulfill those desires. Spurgeon is pointing out a very real, very disturbing dichotomy in the human heart. It's incredible how ironic this situation is, but it is the reality of my own heart every day.

 

Do I really believe God is all sufficient? ALL sufficient. All means everything. One hundred percent. All SUFFICIENT. Sufficient means enough, adequate for the purpose at hand.

 

Do I believe he has given me yearnings and desires he can and will fully meet? Do I believe his goodness and his perfect timing at work in my life? When I read the promise in the scriptures of his good plans to prosper and not to harm me, do I believe that? The promise of full and abundant life in Christ. The promise that though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, there is no reason to fear because he is with me. Those and many more are promises made to me by El Shaddai, All Sufficient. Do I believe them?

 

Today I ask God to give me the grace to trust him for a few lesser mercies as well as the redemption of my soul. He is all sufficient after all. Let's all live in that reality today. 

From the Psalms

 

Three psalms the Lord gave me on our prayer and fasting retreat to Okutama.

 

 

 

Psalm 24: 3-6

 

Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
    And who shall stand in his holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
    who does not lift up his soul to what is false
    and does not swear deceitfully.
He will receive blessing from the Lord
    and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
Such is the generation of those who seek him,
    who seek the face of the God of Jacob.

 

 

Psalm 98:1-3

 

Oh sing to the Lord a new song,
    for he has done marvelous things!
His right hand and his holy arm
    have worked salvation for him.
The Lord has made known his salvation;
    he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.
He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
    to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
    the salvation of our God.

 

 

 

Psalm 103:1-5

 

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and all that is within me,
    bless his holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
    who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
    who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.