Trip to Nagoya, Kyoto and Back (4)

Though I wanted to sleep more, I awaked at 6. Getting ready in the morning includes brewing a nice cup of coffee, getting some reading done, and applying sun block. By the time I reached the bus station, I knew I am going to miss the 9 am class. Oh well, not very good but I still walked into the temple complex with thick skin. Attending the 10:40 class, I was the only guest. The monk is surprisingly young, he explained that he only decided to take over his father's abbot role last year, speaking southern US accent English, the temple complex was tranquil and calming, it is so hard to imagine what it is like to grow up in this environment. We talked about the art work, history and Zen while strolling across the garden.

The Zen experience is amazing, by concentrating on the breathing, the body is very relaxing yet the mind is alert. Half an hour motionless sitting doesn't seem long or boring at all. I thanked and farewelled the monk, started my real Kyoto journey on foot and by bus.

Failed to hook up with my rollerblade friend in Kyoto, I set out rollerskating in the city, the town is very romantic, small streams ran through the heart of it, crystal clear that you can see to the bottom. I took a nap near the river under the shade, submerging in the tranquility and grace. It is something invisible yet so powerful, what is the difference between Tokyo and Kyoto? The architecture? The people? The food? Hard to conclude in one single sentence.

By the time I reach the bus station, I was sweaty, stinky and exhausted. However, my spirit is high because I will be boarding the flight back to Taiwan the next day. I awaited my bus patiently, however, it seemed no receptionists knew where my bus is. With my limited Japanese, I managed to find out that my bus was delayed. So I waited patiently. However, when the bus was overdue by 30 minutes only then I was alerted. I managed to miss my bus back to Tokyo. It is already 10:30pm, no more bullet train to take me back to Tokyo, and calling every hostel in Kyoto replied no spare bed available.

I was really panicking, it wasn't too fun to spend a night in train station after 72 hour lacking of good sleep. I called Irene to do an internet search for beds (running out of tricks in my sleeve). This smart girl, she immediate suggested to move westward, to Osaka. It is a bigger city than Kyoto, I might have a chance to find beds or even a ride back to Tokyo. I rushed to the JR ticket center, luckily someone is still there. Upmost helpful, he found me a fast train to Osaka and the invaluable bus ticket leaving from Osaka to Tokyo. However, I only have 10 minutes layover to find my bus station after touching down Osaka. He said to me with serious face, "Please run".

I did run and didn't miss my last chance to get back to Tokyo. After settling in my seat, I plug in my ipod and it plays the Viens, Mallika (Lakmé). At the moment I felt there are singing angels flying and flowers bloossoming.