#katsura river

[fentonphoto]

Katsura River, Kyoto Japan. @visitheworld

[redsamuraiii]

My Japan Trip : View from Sagano Scenic Train at Arashiyama

[japanicus-nerdus]

Photo of the Day: Kyoto Fisherman

Taken at the Katsura River, Kyoto. For some reason I decided that I would walk from the Kyoto Station area to Arashiyama. I basically walked to the Katsura River and then followed it to Arashiyama. I think it took a couple of hours as opposed to a 10 minute train ride.  My idea was that I could get photos of places that most tourists don’t go to. In my experience, most of the “off the beaten…

[holespoles]

Today, June 1, is the “Day of Ayu (sweetfish)” because many areas in Japan have opened the ban on ayu (sweetfish) fishing. The summer greeting postage stamp “Wagashi in Summer” (issued in 2023) is designed with the famous “waterfront young ayu fish” from the Nagara River in Gifu Prefecture and the Kamo and Katsura Rivers in Kyoto Prefecture.

今日6月1日は、全国的にアユ釣りの解禁日としている地域が多いことから「鮎の日」だそうです。 夏のグリーティング切手「夏の和菓子」(2023年発行)は、岐阜県の長良川、京都府の鴨川や桂川などの銘菓「水辺の若鮎」がデザインされています。

[regnigt]

Spelling You A Ginzura acrostic poem

Part one - Katsura's POV

Grounding me tangibly so I won't drift off rootless Into wild daydreams, loose errant paths, darkness; Now you are here, all shameless and slovenly, Telling me true things so I can move forward Onto the new dawn, my reprobate lodestone.  Keeping me upright and anchored, you're holding Innermost fire. I need you so much. 

Part Two - Gintoki's POV

Keep yourself still, now. It's too hot to rumble, And too hot for silly gags, stick to the shadows; Trust me, you terrorist. You'll get a heatstroke.   - Somehow, you listen. And here by the river Under the bridge, it's your presence I reach for, Restful, accepting. A blessing I'm craving, Always this shining. I want you so much.

(In an acrostic poem, the first letter of each line spells out a word, name, or phrase vertically.)

[nuri148]

My Trip to Japan! ⛩️ Part 3

16.12

We had breakfast as soon as service started at 6:30, and then went to take the Shinkansen to Kyoto. The trip lasted just under an hour, and we arrived at 8:30. It was an adventure to get out. It would take us a day and a half to figure out the right way to move around the gigantic Kyoto station without getting trapped like a rat in a maze. We left the suitcases at the hotel, conveniently located just opposite the station, and went straight to Kinkaku-ji, the temple of the Golden Pavillion. The titlepavillion is one of several that make up the temple, though none as spectacular. The gardens were a delight. We had matcha tea at the temple's tea house, with a very tasty sweet bearing the pavillion’s outline and a touch of gold leaf.

We continued to the next temple, Ryō-An-ji. I liked this one a lot; it has a large stone Zen garden that invites contemplation... until the school outing arrives and misaligns all your chakras. On the way out, I bought a beautiful maiko doll for my niece, and we had a butaman, a very fluffy bread ball filled with pork. Very tasty.

Next on the itinerary was Ninna-ji, with an impressive monumental gate and a cherry blossom promenade that must be a dream during hanami season. Ninna-ji is an extensive complex, with many pavilions and a five-story pagoda. It was already 1 pm so we took a cute vintage train to Arashiyama, where we had some delicious sobaforlunch, looked at shops, and peeked at the Katsura River before attacking the fourth temple of the day, UNESCO World Heritage Site like the other 3: Tenryū-ji. This was the one that caught my attention the least (or maybe I was already saturated), but next to it ther’s the bamboo forest. You don't enter the forest proper, which is fenced, but walk through a pathway opened between the canes. Still, the height, greenery, and coverage of the bamboo canopy are impressive. You could hear the crackling of the canes hitting each other.

On the way back to the train, we happened to pass by a Shinto shrine in the middle of the bamboo forest, Nonomiya jinja, beautiful in its simplicity. Imperial princesses came here to purify themselves for at least a year before going to the Ise Shrine to ervve there on behalf of the emperor. Even if the custom ended in the 14th century, Nonomiya shrine still enjoys the favor of the imperial family.

In the evening we strolled a bit through the picturesque Gion district at night, had dinner, and went to bed for the next early rising.

17.12.

We got up at six sharp to go to the world-famous Fushimi Inari-taisha, the “shrine of the thousand torii” (ritual gates). We missed the train we wanted to take, lost in the mega-station, but we still arrived in time to start well before the hordes of visitors arrived. Even before entering, I witnessed something that gave a hint of how special this place is: while we were have breakfast in front of the konbini opposite the main entrance, a taxi stopped, the driver got out, prayed facing the temple right there on the tarmac, and continued his route.

The shrine was founded in the 8th century, dedicated, like the mountain where it sits, to Inari, the Shinto deity of rice, agriculture, and business, whose messenger animal is the fox. Therefore, fox-shaped statuettes are omnipresent on the altars spread all about the mountain. We went in, toured the different halls, and started the climb up Mount Inari along the torii-lined path. These gates are erected as votive offerings; the large ones, like the ones along the path, can cost as much as a luxury car, so they usually come from companies, but many minor shrines hold small, smaller, tiny, keychain-sized torii gates. Throughout the mountain, there are literally thousands of shrines: new and old, luxurious or very humble, alone or in groups, next to the path or hidden in the forest, pristine or claimed by nature.

Regardless of each person’s beliefs, Fushimi Inari has more than earned its sacred mountain status. Its atmosphere is tremendously spiritual. Even as I write this I get emotional, as I recall the overwhelming feeling that gripped me most of the way, despite the growing number of people appearing as the day progressed.

After leaving the shrine, we ate some takoyaki on the go and went to the center, to Nishiki Market, a covered street with very nice shops, especially food ones. I stopped at one which had all kinds of beautiful things, had my loot, and when I got to the cash point, the old lady took all her time to perfectly wrap the humble set of Hina dolls that I had bought. Position, bag, box, bag… I legit felt like Alan Rickman in Love Actually when Mr. Bean wraps the gift for his lover. Three times I told her she didn’t need to peel the price tags, as everything was for myself. Forget it, the price tag must go. We ate some more takoyaki to complete lunch at a place that only sells that. The basic ones were ¥280 (€1.90) for 6. In Europe, they charge you €5 for 4 balls. After eating, we went to Ginkaku-ji, the Silver Pavilion, with beautiful gardens and not as crowded as the golden one (spoiler: it's not covered in silver. That was the idea, but it never materialized).

We went down a little street that borders a canal called "The Philosopher's Path". A very bucolic and pleasant stroll, with a lot of green, traditional houses and hardly any shops, just art galleries or craft workshops. The last temple of the day was Eikan-do. Larger than we anticipated, it’s set within lush gardens and is beautiful: its many pavillions include a pagoda and a curved staircase nicknamed "sleeping dragon." Next to these stairs stands the three-needle pine, whose needles grow in groups of three, not two. It’s said to symbolize the virtues of wisdom, mercy, and sincerity. And that if you get a pine needle like that, you will be blessed with all three. Unfortunately, with everything being so clean, there was none within my reach.

⬆️ I haven't talked much about shopping so far, because the truth is there was hardly any AoT merchandise anywhere. These on the picture above are the only items they had at the Kyoto Animate store: One (1) chibi Levi clearfile; random manga volumes; One (1) Ereh acrylic stand and One (1) Levi one but it was teen Levi, not looking hot; and a "surprise" box with some chibi stuff but I'm certainly NOT spending 880¥ in a surprise. That's it. Neither Donki nor the discount place opposite had jackshit.

We had dinner on the 11th floor of the train station. Kyoto Station's building is a monster of engineering; the north hall rises ten floors above street level and includes a monumental staircase with LED colors on the risers that play with lights and even reproduce entire videos in full color (we saw the trailer for the latest Disney movie); on that side, there’s a huge department store, of which the last two floors are food courts: the 10th floor is only ramen restaurants, and the 11th floor has a bit of everything. We had beef tongue, a favourite of mine. After dinner, we went to the Sky Gallery, a walkway emerging from the 10th floor, with  panoramic views of the station and the city.

18.12.

We woke up early and had breakfast at the hotel buffet, supposedly "western style," which turned out to be a hit-and-miss, not so much because of the Japanese version of what you can find at a buffet in Europe or the US, but because many of those dishes were cold, when they’re eaten warm in the West.

We started the day at Kiyomizu-dera, very spacious, with a clarity inside the temple that I hadn't seen in other Buddhist shrines. The impressive views over the city from its balcony supported by a structure of 13-meter-high wooden pillars are noteworthy. We walked down, looking at shops in Gion (there was a Ghibli shop here too!) and then we looked for an early lunch, as we had booked a kimono tea ceremony at one.

The buildig where the tea house operates is a registered cultural property. They dressed me in a kimono for me: an underrobe, tied with a ribbon (which straightens your back), the kimono itself, tied wit another ribbon, a plate to hold the obi (sash) in place, and the obi. They did my hair, and I proceeded to the salon, where Husband was already waiting for me looking like a full-fledged samurai. We were in a group of 8: us, an Australian couple about our age, and an Asian-American family of dad, mom, and two teenage children. Luckily, everyone was motivated and respectful of the place and the ritual.

After the hostess showed the entire process, she taught us how to whisk the matcha, and we enjoyed our tea (the traditional way is that everyone takes turns drinking from the same cup, but since the pandemic, each one gets their own bowl). Previously, we tasted sweets. One of them was a kind of dumpling filled with anko that blew my mind. It's called yatsuhashi and is a Kyoto specialty. The hostess wrote the name on a piece of paper for me and everything, but... My joy was short-lived, as when I went to buy it, the expiration date was quite short, so I could only got a small package to eat as soon as we returned home. Once the ceremony was over, we took photos at will in the house garden before returning the kimono.

In the afternoon we went to Nijo Castle, with impressive paintings on the door panels and exquisite marquetry on the lintels and ceilings. The historical significance of this castle is enormous, as it was the place wher the Tokugawa shogunate, better known as the Edo era, both began and ended. After the castle and more walking around the city centre, we had dinner and dragged ourselves back to the hotel, exhausted, and prepared everything to go to Nara the next day.

[theworstbastardhere]

Part 2 of what might have happened to Zura's ponytail after it was cut off.

I'm glad I did the Takazura one first, because this one turned out cuter and I actually ship them. For the record, he doesn't know what's going on with his hair, it's like in anime where you sneeze when people talk about you only he gets feelings when people snuggle his lost ponytail.

As I said on the other post, it's most likely the ponytail ended up with Elizabeth, who buried it when she made the funeral mound for Katsura by the river.

Part one and my diatribe about Takasugi and his love songs about domestic terrorism here:

[zurajanaizurakoda]

My current pet is "Always check for a Major Character Death Tag Before Jumping to Conclusions" and it was supposed to be about looking for Katsura on a battlefield after he doesn't check in but it's become mostly a "Let's see how much tragedy we can pack into Katsura's backstory" free for all, and this section is before even that and is just proof that the thing about Gin and Katsura sleeping together and you don't know if it's romantic or not has just been so thoroughly accepted into my headcanon that I can't stop it from happening. This is a short bit of Takasugi and Sakamoto speculating about their relationship.

Sakamoto shuddered and glanced around.  “Let’s go back anyway, camp isn’t that far.  We’ll get some food, and maybe some extra eyes to help us.  Zura’s probably at camp, anyway!”

“He’s not,” a voice behind him said.

“‘Sugi!” Sakamoto’s voice was originally light as he turned around, before the weight of the words hit him. “…oh”

“And you can forget about extra men.  The only reason they let me out this late  is because I told them I’d drag you guys back.  You know we don’t do searches.  If we looked for him, we’d have to look for everyone.”

“Yeah, but Zura is…” Sakamoto’s voice was devoid of its usual cheer.  “Half of our strategies are rolling around in that idiot’s head. They need him.”

“They don’t need a corpse,”  Takasugi said darkly.

“Ahaha!  Stone cold, ‘Sugi, that’s your buddy you’re talking about!” He smacked Takasugi’s back roughly.

Takasugi ignored him.  “I found a few of his men.  Apparently they got pinned down by the river.  Zura gave the order to retreat, but he stayed behind to hold the line.”

“That’s bad general etiquette!  He’s supposed to be the first to run!”  Sakamoto said lightly. He thought for a moment.  “Oi, Kintoki, check by the river!  ‘Sugi says that’s where he was last!”

“Fuck you!’  Gintoki yelled back.  “If I lose my spot, I’ll have to start from the beginning!”  However, the next time he moved, it was in the direction of the water.

Sakamoto watched him. “So, what are they?” he finally asked.

Takasugi eyed him.  “What do you mean?”

“I mean, what are they?” Sakamoto repeated.  “Him and Zura.”

“Oh,” said Takasugi, in a voice that said he already knew what Sakamoto meant and was just avoiding the question.  “You've seen them enough to know.  They’re friends.”

“But, like, are there benefits involved?  Normally figurin’ out who’s banging who is my specialty, but those two, I can’t tell at all.”  Sakamoto chuckled.  “Like they’ll kick each other’s asses over an extra serving of food, but when Zura’s sad, he goes straight for Kintoki’s bedroll.  Now, that’s not weird, but I’ve never seen Kintoki kick him out. One time an officer came in looking for a stamp from Zura and Zura was already asleep next to him, and Kintoki didn’t even acknowledge that it was weird.  He looked at the paper, crawled over Zura like they were puppies, grabbed Zura’s hanko and stamped it himself.  Told the kid to get lost. Didn’t even wait for the guy to clear the tent before he went back to his little Kin-Zura pile.  Zura started to wake up, and Kintoki smacked his head and told him to go back to sleep.  And ‘ya know, the guy must have been thinking that if they’re like that around strangers, what are they like alone?” he laughed.  “So, you must know.  Are they, or aren’t they?  Have they, or haven’t they?

Takasugi glared at the silver-haired man as he stumbled through the field, traversing distances between piles of the freshly dead.  “They haven’t.  I’d know if they had.  Especially Zura, you think he has a poker face?” He flipped his hair out of his eyes.  “There was a rumor that they were caught kissing back at school.  Supposedly Sensei gave them a lecture.  Not like ‘don’t kiss boys’, Sensei was surprisingly open minded.  Just told them to wait until they were older or some shit.  But you know Zura, getting told politely not to do something was worse than an interrogation.  He couldn’t look at anyone for a week.  If they had been anything, it stopped then.  I don’t think anything’s happened since then.”  He kicked the dirt listlessly.  “Hell, I don’t know if anything happened back then, it was just a rumor.”

“Childhood sweethearts, then?”

“Or they were just weird friends, or Gintoki was horny even back then and Zura was a people pleaser even back then.  Or maybe it didn’t even happen.  Kids talk shit sometimes.”

“...And now?”

“Maybe they don’t know how to approach it.  Maybe they don’t want to approach it.  Maybe they would want to if they knew how to talk about it and maybe they don’t.  Maybe Zura really does just avoid the girls when we go to town because he’s shy, or maybe he likes his widows but he’s not ready to make a woman a widow just yet.  Maybe he doesn’t like girls.  Maybe he doesn’t like anyone.  Or maybe…” he shook his head again, frowning.  “...Maybe he’s just waiting for Gintoki to get bored and ask if he wants to kiss again.”  He picked a chipped katana off the ground, ran his finger along the ruined edge of the blade before deeming it unworthy and thrusting it into the ground.  “None of those would surprise me.  The only thing that would surprise me right now…”  he swallowed, “Is if you told me Zura’s really gone.”  He abandoned the sword and stood.  “We should gather some firewood, we could be here a while.  Besides, if-’ he stopped.  “...We could be here for a while.”

[kankuroplease]

Do you have any wedding hcs for kawarama x Okami

Tobirama would tell Kawarama is about damn time. The two had thoroughly damaged each other’s reputations with their lewd acts in public, so they might as well make it official 💀

Kawarama would fire back with he’s just trying to live up to his big bros reputation of making his lover moan loud enough that half the village can her jk, but not really

Itama would have to stop Tobirama from obliterating their brother on his wedding day while Kawarama doubled over with laughter from the reaction

Hashirama would laugh happily about the two going at it like always. He just knows the day will be eventful

Okami wouldn’t want some big deal wedding and would feel overwhelmed that it turned into one anyways

She’d really only going through with it because Kawarama wants to get married and she wants him to be happy

She’d have a solemn look on her face whenever she’s not looking at Kawarama because she knows her parents never approved or accepted this relationship by their absence

Her mood and gaze towards the place where her parents should be wouldn’t escape Kawarama’s notice; taking her hand and asking if she’s alright with his concerned look

Her small but reassuring nod would at least let him know she’s not upset at him but he wouldn’t be able to shake the feeling she’s pushing herself

After the ceremony, Kawarama would turn to their friends and family to thank them for coming but there’s an urgent matter they have to take care of before scooping up Okami

Shouting that there’s food and drinks at the reception/they’ll be right back as he makes a mad dash off into the forest

The party goers are stunned, but Hashirama quickly tells everyone not to worry and to all enjoy this wonderful day

He’s running so fast Okami starts to laugh as she holds onto him

He doesn’t stop until they reach their usual spot and puts her down but doesn’t let her go; instead he embraces her and tells her he’s sorry that they (her parents) didn’t come. He’d promise that him and his family will love and cherish her forever in their stead

Which of course makes Okami cry and squeeze him in a bear hug. She’d be so happy to hear that.

“I love you so much, Kawa Kawa”

“I love you even more”

The next couple of hours would be them playing in the river, making each other floral crowns, petting and feeding their animal buddies, chasing each other, and lots of kiss and hugs

When they finally do come back to their own wedding party, they look extremely disheveled. Okami even forgot her shoes. So of course everyone thinks they ran off to have sex

But they know their truth 🥰

Kawarama would immediately be swarmed by his men with many congratulations and questions he won’t dignify with an answer

Katsura would dust of her wild friend and take her to change clothes. All the while telling her how her husband’s brothers are too encouraging of tone deaf lushes and gambling woman, how dare you leave her with this huge brutes and a heavily pregnant emotionally unstable Aori!! And for what? Dick?? It’s not like she doesn’t get that every FREAKIN’ day he’s home💀

Okami would be happy their guest were having fun in their absence and tell Katsura to relax and maybe take someone home for her own entertainment/stress relief 😉

Once they’re back at the party Okami and Kawarama would be very cozy and cuddly with each other while they hear the speeches everyone prepared

Lots of laughs and smiles as their loved ones all recall all the good times and wish them well

Okami would be surprised when Kawarama says he wants to read something he wrote for her

Kawarama would be more nervous than he’s ever been as he reads his letter to Okami

He knew she was the one ever since their days in the cave and he was so scared he’d never see her again. He looked for signs of her, his gallant healer, on every mission no matter where it may have been

So when she reappeared, he felt so relieved. When she agreed to move to where he was, he was elated. When she said she liked him too he couldn’t help but cry tears of joy. and now that she’s apart of his family, he can die a happy man. But he promises not to die on her before they’re both grey haired… well maybe white in her case, and old.

Because by then she might me tired of him 😅

Okami would hug him and tell him she’d never get tired of him and would follow him into the afterlife and their next lives, because that’s how much she loves him

Cue the most disturbing PDA most of the crowd has seen because there’s no way he’s not kissing her passionately after she said that

Aori would think it’s kind of sweet still but Tobirama would escort her out of their because he’s not trying to watch them go at it

The two would be in their own little world and wouldn’t get any rest that night ✨

[passengerpigeons]

On mornings when my thoughts turn to the 'white retreating waves' of this transient life, I gaze out to the boats that ply the river at Okanoya, and savour as my own the feelings of the old poet Novice Mansei. On evenings when the wind rustles in the leaves of the katsura trees, I cast my thoughts to Xunyang Inlet, and pluck my biwa in the way of Tsunenobu. And if the mood is still upon me, often I play to the sough of wind in the pines the piece called 'Autumn Wind Music', or 'Flowing Spring' to the murmur of the running water. My skill is poor, but then I do not aim to please the ears of others. I play alone, I sing alone, simply for my own fulfillment.'

Yoshida Kenko, Hojoki, trans. Meredith McKinney

[wodimewoahtime]

KATSURA RIVER JYA NAI, KATSURA DA-

[redsamuraiii]

My Japan Trip : Katsura River at Arashiyama

[japanicus-nerdus]

Photo of the Day: The other side of Arashiyama

Arashiyama is part of Kyoto. It is famous for its bridge, Togetsukyo, which goes over the Katsura River. It is most famous for its bamboo grove. It is almost always very crowded with both Japanese and foreign tourists. If you walk about 20-30 minutes into the back corner of Arashiyama you can find Adashino Nenbutsuji Temple, which has an interesting history of its own. And tucked in the back of…

[masterenigmaart]

Hey! I like your shaman king oc!

Would you mind sharing more about them? Like what's/who's their spirit, and is there a backstory for them you though of? Or, like, any random facts?

Sure thing. I got abit for Megumi ^^

I didn't decide their ghost partner yet but it could be either shikigami or their mothers river ghost named Katsura.

Megumi is Haos and Hikari (another of my OCs) child which is born some months after the main events of the manga.

They live in Kyoto with their mother and would meet their cousin Hana at some point when traveling to Tokyo to learn about the Asakura.

That's it for the moment. Oh and Megumi is non-binary.

[kyotodreamtrips]

Boating on the Katsura River in Arashiyama Park, Kyoto City-Japan.

[myjapan-me]

Katsura River