Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Shimogamo Shrine (下鴨神社)

I met up with my friend Aiko from Kyoto University this afternoon and the two of us went to Shimogamo Shrine in downtown Kyoto. Since it was super hot and humid today, she made a good choice by selecting a place that was situated smack dab in the middle of a small forest - we took full advantage of the cool breeze.

Shimogamo Shrine was nice, albeit not too different from the dozens of other Japanese shrines and temples I have visited during my stay in Kyoto. There was a small replica of an old Japanese wooden house. That's about all I can tell you, because that is all Aiko chose to translate for me off the incomprehensible sign's kanji characters.

Also, there are lots of birds in the Shimogamo area, from sparrows to ducks to crows to herons. There also is evidently some linkage between a Japanese soccer team perhaps named the crows (?) and a wooden sign at the shrine we visited that had the word "crow" written on it. Again, I would tell you more, but that is the extent of the information that Aiko passed on to me.

Enjoy the pictures below!

B.E.W.

2 comments:

shinticre said...

hey you,
I'll be working in Japan from August, as a CIR for JET. I'll be in Mie-ken - we should try to meet up!

Anonymous said...

more details about Aiko, please...