Day three. Kyoto is overwhelming. It’s the Rome of Japan.
Every street hides an exceptional sight, whether a temple, a shrine or a zen
garden. But the highlight of the day was the shrine of Inari and it’s thousand
of toriis (the brightly coloured arches that are so typical of Japan). While
the guide book presented it as a place where it was interesting to walk under
toriis, the reality was that there were thousands of them, creating a maze that
ascended a mountain using convoluted pathways that kept crossing each other
with the non-guidance of unintelligible maps. The bright orange toriis and the
green of the forest created a very unique atmosphere.
Asking two Japanese guys who were doing the hike, i found out that the Kanjis for torii are 鳥居. Who would have believed that these things were just bird houses in fact. But each of these bird house are engraved with the words 納 (receive) and 奉 (give). That must create the necessary transcendence.
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