Thursday, December 17

Peace from Kyoto : New Years Eve near the Yasaka Shrine

Without fail, the people we met in Kyoto were warm, congenial and full of life. New Years Eve was extraordinary as we made our way through the streets toward the temple for the traditional bell ringing to welcome the new year. Unforgettable!


Some of us had to work harder than others to make our way up to the Yasaka Shrine for the New Years Eve bell ringing. As we made our way past the street festival and the shrine to the stairway above, I heard the most enchanting music. 

As I climbed higher and distanced myself from the noise of the crowd, I realized that it had become quiet but for a lone flutist whose music mesmerized his little sleeping dog at his feet. Dear moment. 

We climbed farther to ascend the stairway to one of the spectacles in Kyoto which is indescribable ~ the late afternoon sunlight streaming through the forest of bamboo trees towering hundreds of feet in the air. Like a prayer.