Kyo wa Kyoto e ikimashita, baby!

Woo! We went to Kyoto today. We had a killer time. We saw 3 temples, including Kinkaku-ji, "The Temple of the Golden Pavillion", pictured at left. And yes, I took the picture. It was a shiny shiny temple. I went with Ailish, Yuko and Maki. It was a good thing Maki and Yuko were there: I almost didn't make it out of the Kyoto train station. It was so big. Right now is prime autumn leaf-viewing time in Japan, so we spent the start of the day at Tofuku-ji, amidst its 2,000 or so maples. I rang a big bell at another temple, which is supposed to raise your intelligence. I'll keep you posted on that story as it develops. And I also got my fortune told (by a machine) and my fortune reads VERY GOOD: "Winds blow hard, the waves are high, yet calm is our harbour." How do you like them apples!