Kamogawa Hanami

We had a hanami today (flower viewing party) for Darrin's birthday. (Also, his dad, his stepmom, his mom, and her friend are visiting, as you can see.)

Recipe for a hanami: One blossoming cherry tree, some drinks, some food, some family or friends.

Birthday boy had a good time.

These students near us had a little too much of that second ingredient. They invited us to sing with them, but we didn't know the words. Sorry guys...we have to brush up on our pop lyrics!

Nine Kyoto Images

Happy Saturday!

Here are nine pictures we took today. First, a bunny barricade.

A bunch of dolls looking out at their shrine, known for women's health.

Alek and Hugo at Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum. Hugo is shoveling coal, and Alek is taking us to Osaka.

A tetsudo otaku? (train geek)....

Did you know there is [or sed to be] a video game where you could pretend to be a train engineer? You can get points for following the speed limit and stopping right on the line.

Alek, his swirly, and our 36 sushi plates.

A few minutes earlier...Hugo eating a crispy fried fish skeleton. The boys ate two bowls of these.

This bench was parked in clear view of about 8 JR train lines near Kyoto station. I like to think these ojiisans hang out here every day, chatting and watching the traffic.

Some plum blossoms in the palace park. It's almost plum blossom season...can you believe it?!

We have a really big show planned for you tomorrow. But I don't wanna jinx it.

Nanzenji Temple

Another day, another temple. We try not to overdo it, but our kids are still getting templed-out; it's an occupational hazard of being in Kyoto. However, Nanzenji is a gorgeous one. One draw is the big gate (which we paid to climb). There is also a lovely garden (which we did not pay to see).

Big gates have large thresholds.
Here I'm going for a reprise of a photo I took two years ago, at the Jefferson Memorial in D.C.
Hey...more stairs!

More incense!

In interesting bit of zoning, a aqueduct goes through part of the temple grounds.

Here is a little side temple.

And then we walked on....

Little Kyoto Shops

We see things like this in Kyoto all the time. We turn a corner and and see some tiny store, selling something or other. There's never a lot of it, whatever it is. And not in a large space. But it's adorable. Here's an example:

Homemade string for sale.

Omiya Kotsu Koen (Omiya Traffic Park)

Sunday. Cold weather. Near the end of a 35-week school break. Did I say 35 weeks? Sorry--just feels like it. I meant 3.5 weeks.

We headed up on Bus 46 and met our friends at the Omiya Kotsu Koen (or traffic park), otherwise known as that place in Kyoto where you can drive Go-Karts!

We arrived at 12:20. No go karts--it was lunch break!. So we admired the miniature street scene, complete with cross walks and working traffic signals.

The kids played on the excellent playground that is mixed in with the go-kart tracks.

I thought this looked like some kind of old school torture device. Can you imagine trying to swing and grab each of these rings? This was the least popular equipment...

They had parked some old street cars there (you can see them above). Of all things, each car had a bookshelf filled with children's books! Hugo loved this. (But of course, Hugo doesn't like posing for pictures, so here is a photo of Alek, before his snack.)

At 1:00, it was time to GO!

Kids in Grade 3 or up can drive their own car. Three rides = 500 yen.

Younger kids have to go with a parent. (Three rides = 600 yen). Can you see my knees? Let's just say I'm glad I've been doing yoga.

Hugo and I got busted by the "cops"--I was letting him do the brake.

Then later, Alek and I got busted because I was letting him steer.

But other than that, this was a total blast for all of us. The cold wind in our hair, the revving of engines, stopping at cross walks...we did it all!

They also have a set of mini pedal cars, for the Grade 1 and 2 kids who can't drive their own go-karts.

The people working here are very friendly, but there is virtually no English at this place--you have to know kanji even to go into the right bathroom! But if you're ever in Kyoto with kids, this is a great place to visit.

Vrrrooooom!