An appreciation for Kyoto
Oh shit, I’m about to say nice things about Japan. Well LET’S GO. I feel I haven’t appreciated Kyoto enough. I’ve always been viscerally aware of how much I enjoy Tokyo, but Kyoto was my rock. I went there so often, and I definitely could have gone a lot more. It was the largest city close by to me; I could meet people, do things, it was a space for me to be me. It has cultural sights, but also just normal life stuff to do. It was an easy escape, a place to feel normal. To carry out my existence in a way that I wanted to. Kyoto is a big city, but it’s not a massive metropolis. Combined with all the shrines and rich history, it’s a calm little city with a unique atmosphere. I’ll always remember the train rides down the lake from Maibara, seeing the landscapes over the different seasons. As much as it was a long train ride, it was calming, a time for reflection (or, on the late rides back home, a time to stare out the window really drunk while blasting pop music on my headphones...