Pictures from Kyoto

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.

Silver Pavilion - Ginkakuji - Kyoto, Japan - World Heritage SiteThis 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.

Golden Pavilion, Kinkaku-ji, World Heritage Site, Kyoto, JapanI 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.

kyoto, sparrows, rock wall, birds in a bushI 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

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Wednesday Word Search – Gold

Welcome to another Wednesday Word Search where I pick a word and share some of the images I find in an image search of the blog.

I am going to take a break from my ?at series and go with a word you hear often with the Olympic coverage.

The word for tonight is: Gold

What images will I find?

Golden Pavilion, Kinkaku-ji, Kyoto, Japan, Snowy DayThe first image is from Japan. This is Kinkaku-ji or the Golden Pavilion in Kyoto. I visited this amazing structure on a snowy day. Since it doesn’t often snow there it was a chance visit for a wonderful picture.

Jerusalem Golden Gate - Eastern Gate - Palm Sunday - Jerusalem - Temple MountHere we have the Golden Gate or Eastern Gate of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

record, vinyl, record player, Let's Take the Bus, memoriesHere we have one of my favorite records from when I was a kid. Here Comes the Bus was released by Golden Records.

Many records have been broken at the Olympics for athletes to win Gold medals.

Valley Carpenter Bee, Xylocopa varipuncta, pollination, rose bushes, gold bee, snitchThis gold Bee is a Valley Carpenter Bee. This Xylocopa varipuncta, was pollinating my roses.

Golden Gate, 2000, 18 years ago, disk cameraThis picture was taken about 25 years ago, but is the last that I will share tonight. Of course I had to share a picture of the Golden Gate bridge. Especially as I shared another Golden Gate above.

I have a few more images for ‘gold’ but my usual number to share is five, so I will bring this to a close.

Which is your favorite ‘gold’ picture?

What should I search for next? It will probably continue with more ?at words.

Steven

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