As the Olympics draw to a close I am still thinking about Japan.

Tonight I will share some pictures that I took in Kyoto.

The first picture was taken while waiting for the Subway in Kyoto.

I love the way that we have the static images of the passengers waiting for the arriving subway car. The car arrives in a blur of motion and a rush of air and sound. Unfortunately, you can only see the picture and not feel the rush of air, the sound of the arriving train or the smells of the track and tunnel. For me, the picture brings back those memories. One of the great things about International travel is visiting cities where there is great public transit. This can be said about only a few American cities.

The Momoyama-mon at Nijojo was built in 1603. The word Momoyam means Peach Hill, and the Momoyama Period (1573–1615) is also one of the periods of Art in Japan.

The suffix -mon means Gate and -jo means castle. This gate is at the Nijo Castle in Kyoto. The grounds of the castle are absolutely gorgeous. The Nijo Castle is one of the many World Cultural Sites in Kyoto.

This is the Silver Pavilion or Ginkaku-ji in Kyoto. The picture was taken from a trail that takes you through the gardens that surround it.

I shared a picture of the Golden Pavilion or Kinkaku-ji in my post yesterday and here is another one from up on the hill behind it. The building is so beautiful, especially with the snow covered roof.

These two pavilions are part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto that together are designated as a World Heritage Site.

I had a hard time deciding on the fifth picture for the post. I thought about sharing a picture of a bicycle garage, but instead decided on this picture of sparrows.

I took this picture on the grounds of the Kyoto Imperial Palace.

How many sparrows do you see in this picture?

I also realized that even though I have been to Kyoto a few times all of these pictures were from a trip in February 2012. It was a good weekend for pictures.

Which of these do you like best?

Steven