We had an early departure for the bamboo forest. The trail is enveloped by giant bamboo trees forming a canopy overhead. Because of our early arrival(by 6) we were able to get several nice shots with the early morning sun. By the time we departed there were large groups of people entering and I'm certain it just got more busy.
We were ahead of schedule so we stopped at a Otagi NembutsujiBuddhist temple that contained over 1200 stone busts planted into the surrounding hillside. They each had different expressions. I could have stayed here for hours looking at all of them. They were so fun and uplifting. The moss covering their heads just added to their appeal. There was a photography one, a tennis player, a happy face, a grumpy face, and hundreds of others.
Our next destination was to see monkeys at the
Arashiyama Monkey Park. It was quite a hike to get to the viewing area, involving, stairs, a path, more stairs, resting on benches, etc. When we finally made it to the top there were monkeys everywhere. There was a building with screens that you could go into and buy food for them which you then held up to the screened windows for them to reach in and take. There were caution signs letting us know not to get too close, crouch down, or look them in the eye. It was a fun stop.
For lunch we walked into town to
Mama Pizza House. Some of the toppings were a bit unusual but it was a nice woodfired pie.
We had our second review this afternoon. For dinner we went back to the Pontocho area to eat at an Italian restaurant. Believe it or not I had another pizza that I split with a friend. It was quit different from the one I had at lunch since it had a tomato base. Some of our group walked around the area but I went straight back to the hotel to pack and turn in for an early bed time.
Tomorrow: Mt. Fuji
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