No Kinkajou at Kinkakuji.

After a 15 year hiatus, I finally got to see Kinkakuji. I visited Kyoto on Golden Week 15 years ago and due to the crowds, didn't even bother with with the Golden temple. I went the day after GW on a Monday and the darned temple was hidden behind a tarp for cleaning and restoration! This time around, I did manage to snap a few nice photos of the place and its surroundings.

I ended my visit to the Gold Temple with a Goldfish.

ps. In case you're wondering what a Kinkajou is, watch this.

Kamen C'mon.

In a right place at the right time situation, I lucked into a live show of Kamen Rider as they battle a battalion of baddies. Unfortunately, I was at the very back of the theatre and therefore my photos are mere blurs of the action. Still it was very enjoyable with lots of acrobatics and special effects. (Btw, this is Part 2 of my trip to the Toei Kyoto Studio Park.Click this for Part 1.)

There is a hall of heroics displaying heaps of Riders throughout the years. To me, they all look alike; it's the villains that I like, yet they didn't have many on display.

There are some intriguing posters of some pre-Ultraman kiddie shows. I'd be interested in them if they still exist. The last one, National Kid looks to be the most interesting.

I also caught two 3D shorts. The first one, Poseidon, was well done and whet my whistle for another one. Ninja was excellent.

All in all, a very fun afternoon and I even won a gold medallion at this game.

For The Birds.

I'm going to take a break from castles and take a look at some of the birds I saw on my trip. I was seeking out a youth hostel on Lake Biwa but alas it was full up. I did manage to land a cabin in Otsu later.

Some hawks floating around Hikone Castle.

A few ducks swimming in the moat surrounding Hikone.

A cormorant fishing before the junk shows up. (Click link for tons of cormorant photos.)

I spent two nights in Otsu outside of Kyoto and travelled around using it as my focal point. I stayed in a beach-side cabin off Lake Biwa and enjoyed kicking back on the beach in the early morn watching the various seabirds flocking around.

Be it ever so humble, my room in the cabin.

The following morning on the beach.

A few days later at Nagoya Castle, a crow was scamming rope from a fence while his spouse looked on approvingly.

A few more days later, some swans at Matsumoto Castle.

Finally, a crow picking away at a garbage bag.
(Full disclosure: this is not a real crow, rather a prize from a capsule machine.)