Today was our last day in Kyoto, and instead of going on a day trip like we planned, we spent the rainy morning catching up on TV shows in bed. Sean didn't even wake up until around 11, so I just chilled on the top bunk with my laptop. It was great.
After stopping in for a quick lunch at "Pooh's..?" (yes, that's the real name of a cafe) we walked over to Chion-in, the biggest buddhist temple in Japan. The front gate alone was about 6 stories high!!
Inside was a little underwhelming though as the whole main temple is being renovated, and is currently under a gigantic shed until 2019.
There were some beautiful things inside though, and we had a good time dodging the rain under century old roofs.
After the temple, we went to a traditional tea ceremony where they taught us how to properly drink and prepare Japanese powdered green tea (Matcha).
The man who first introduced some history about the ceremony was 16th generation tea ceremony host - over 300 years of family heritage, all in tea!
The young girl who ran the ceremony was amazingly graceful and well-presented, and it was clear that she had years of experience under her belt already, with precise movements, all with particular meaning behind them.
After she made tea, I was lucky enough to be the guest of honor, and was asked to drink the tea she had made, and was deemed the head of the group. We were then asked to prepare our own tea - a skill I will definitely take home with me!
Tomorrow - Hiroshima xx