Adventures in Japan

And only one shifty foreigner selling hemp goods and jewelery

Once a month, To-ji temple in Kyoto holds a great big flea market. Today we went, and it was indeed very, very large. And very, very crowded. There were dense masses of shoving humanity pretty much everywhere we went. Except when it was raining. But then out came the umbrellas, pointy bits right at my eye level. Luckily it didn't rain long.

There were some very expensive old things for sale at that market, and a lot of dishes and things that looked like they had been picked out of the trash. There were a bunch of bonsai and other garden-related things all grouped together at one end, and food stalls just about everywhere I looked. But the one thing there was more of than just about anything else was recycled kimonos. Some booths sold them whole, some sold the fabric in pieces, some sold clothes made out of bits of old kimonos, some sold purses, some sold crafts like dolls and goldfish and other decorative doodads. All made out of old silk. Maybe not all of it was old, but yeah, there sure was a lot of it.


I'm not sure why, but there were also a lot of people taking pictures. One old couple in particular seemed to concentrate on taking pictures of foreigners. I noticed their big cameras pointed in my direction on more than one occasion. I think they were camped out on a bridge for a while, and I'm sure I saw them taking pictures of two women looking at sweaters. It could have been coincidence, but it was still weird. Also kind of creepy: the man taking pictures of the shirtless mannequin.

After I was done with the market and Tyler was done with work, we went out to eat with one of the women he teaches with. She knows all the cheap places to eat and even cheaper places to drink. She's my favourite.