Sayonara to Asia

Since I just heard from one of my new friends on the other side of the world, I think I’ll talk about my last day in Asia. In Thailand I met friends of friends who were Peace Corps connections. After that I met Princeton connections – two people from the Princeton-writing e-list who I had been in touch with for years but had never met, one in Indonesia and one in Hawaii, and one in Japan. I mentioned to the friend in Indonesia that I was stopping in Osaka on the way back for a twelve-hour layover and that I had been told to go to Kyoto, and he introduced me to a classmate in Kyoto, who offered to show me around for a day! It’s true, when alums of Princeton gather anywhere, there’s a place they think of, longing to be there…or not, but there is a bond and an opening for an interesting conversation.


Elizabeth is a professor in Kyoto, teaching religion – she listened to my impressions of Buddhism and I am sure could have told me a lot that I didn’t know – and has been there for decades. It was great to see Kyoto with someone who knew the language and knew her way around. I took a red-eye that left Bali at 1 am and arrived in Osaka around 9:00 in the morning. There was a bullet train that left right from the airport for a 90-minute ride to Kyoto. Elizabeth met me at the station with a hat and gloves (and her son’s coat, but I decided that with the hat and gloves, I would be okay) – first time I had been cold since Madrid (December 5 – January 15).


We went to a Starbucks – which didn’t seem at all out of place - for coffee and a snack; I was wowed by the heated toilet seat. I came out of the restroom and said I would just spend the day back in there on the seat! But there was more to see. Elizabeth wanted to show me a temple that was kind of off the beaten track, but it was closed. It was still pretty, with a nice Japanese garden. She then gave up (I don’t mind the beaten track; usually must-sees are must-sees for a reason) and took me to the Golden Pavilion. It was beautiful. I had to say, though, that it didn’t seem all that exotic – maybe I have seen so many Japanese gardens and temples in the United States that they didn’t seem exotic. I had to remind myself that I was seeing a Japanese temple in Japan! There were some neat aspects to it though – watching a group pray and buying a good luck token. You can buy items for all sorts of good luck, including test-taking. We also experienced a traditional tea ceremony - as I said, I don't mind the beaten track.


We then went for some local food and I had something I had never had in a Japanese restaurant elsewhere – kind of a giant pancake, one with cheese and one with meat. I don’t remember its name, because Elizabeth took care of everything, but I think this food could stand up to export! We also stopped at a shop and she talked me into buying some clogs with a painted traditional pattern. I am not one to buy shoes on impulse but somehow I did!


She had to get going, so I thought I too would get going; it was already getting dark and it was just as well I got back to the airport, even though I did have some time before my 9:00 flight. Two overnight flights in a row (yes, in coach). Got to Japan on January 15, spent the day there and got to Hawaii on January 15! My first time across the international date line.