Sayoonara

Before the sun rose this morning we kissed our sweet friends good bye in Kyoto. It has been an amazing trip and if it weren't for our incredible husbands and kids at home we would all be happy to keep traveling together. Thank you Cheryl and Malcolm for another tremendous life moment. We leave Japan looking back on our trip fondly and looking forward to more laughs as we reminisce for decades to come.

Happy 7th Birthday Mac

Domo Arigatou

Amy was such a gracious hostess. She held our hands through Tokyo and directed us to local neighborhoods and restaurants. The trip would not have been nearly as cool or personal without her. Your kindness is overwhelming. Thank you for your friendship and the deep generousity you showed to us and our kids. We can't wait to see your beautiful family when you are back in The States.

Student Survey

Kiyomizu-dera Temple

Happy 7th Birthday Mac

Ingrid and Malcolm spent the more favorite hour of Mac's birthday skipping around the cemetery behind Nishi-otani Mausoleum. To reach Kiyomizu-dera Temple we had to walk up a granite covered hillside. The headstones proved to be the perfect landscape for a game of hide and seek.

Ingrid

Dress The Part

I know these are our kids but it is impossible for me not to mention that they are the cutest little people ever. Ingrid and Mac, kimonoed and ninjaed their way through the dusk lit streets of historic Kyoto. I have a hard  time believing that either of them will dress in character on their return visits to Japan.  They were so open hearted and uninhibited I applaud them for seizing the moment.
Especially それその暗闇の中で忍者 Ninja.

Mac Ninja

オーバーすることを何ですか？ある小さな男の子や忍者 Ninja. それその暗闇の中で忍者 Ninja. オーバーすることを何ですか？ある小さな男の子や忍者 Ninja?

Kyotoween

Mac and Ingrid wanted to celebrate the upcoming holiday overseas, that is how Kyotoween came to be. The grassroots revelers hit the streets in the Shijo-dori neighborhood of Kyoto. They visited some traditional Japanese shops, stopped for pizza by the Takasa-gawa River,  explored a new play ground and generally amused the locals.

Traditional Kimono

Thanks to Amy we found a beautiful kimono shop that would dress Ingrid in her kimono properly. It was interesting to watch as the woman assembled the traditional layers of the dress and when she was finished Ingrid looked like a very elegant little girl.

Starbucks and McDonalds

Apparently, we can't travel without them.

Pretty Girls in Kyoto

Yet another awkward moment for Cheryl and I on this trip was the spontaneous photo session that happened between ourselves and a group of Japanese girls. It began by my asking them to take a picture with Ingrid and ended with their iPhone photographing us and our iPhone photographing them. We must've been standing 2' apart and it went on and on for around 45 seconds. I am still laughing about it.

Nishiki Food Market

Today we walked the kids through the Kyoto street market to explore new foods. Though many of the smells turned them off we were all pleasantly surprised by some delicious new culinary finds. Little Man had an unwelcome shock when he grabbed for the octopus on a stick, I assume he was thinking that it was a red lollipop. He put the body of the octopus in his mouth and was unhappy for the rest of the visit.

Kyo-Machiyas

Our Kyoto digs.

The Kyo-Machiya in Kyoto was completely different from the modern tower where we stayed in Tokyo. The traditional townhouse had been restored to its fundamental 100 year old architecture. The place was gorgeous. The kids took little time turning the spare bedroom into their Dojo which meant the neighbors could feel the concussion of every karate kick. We should consider it good fortune that Mac never decided to take his new ninja sword up to the dojo.

Good Food In Kyoto

Awesome soba noodles around the corner from our townhouse. And pretty sake presentation.

When in Rome...

...drink out of the same cup as everyone else visiting the shrine.

It was impossible to stop our kids from drinking from the temple fountain cups. Those around us would take a ceremonial sip of fountain water (they didn't ingest the water) but our kids wouldn't do this, no matter what guidance we provided. I guess time will tell if we picked up a parasite along the way.

I found this online:

How to visit a shrine:
Behave calmly and respectfully. At the purification fountain near the shrine's entrance, take one of the ladles provided, fill it with fresh water and rinse both hands. The transfer some water into your cupped hand, rinse your mouth and spit the water beside the fountain. You are not supposed to transfer the water directly from the ladle into your mouth or swallow the water.