Arashiyama

After visiting the monkey park I saw something on the map that read "Bamboo Street." Curious we walked that direction and found a long pathway surrounded by bamboo. It was fall when we visited so the colors weren't as vibrant as some of the pictures I have seen online. It was still a beautiful sight.

Along the way back to the train station we came across this terrifying ninja!

The crowds parted for him to come through. He was that intense. :)
As we waited for our train to take us back to the city I found a teeny tiny dot on the map that said "foot bath". After a little confusion as to where it was we found this great natural hot spring to wash our feet. It was just a small shack between train tracks off the main area.

Rinse first!

Free towel

Obligatory Foot Picture

The water was wonderful! It was a nice respite after climbing Iwatayama mountain and walking all day. After drying off our footsies we bought Mitarashi dango. These are small balls of mochi dipped in a sweet soy sauce glaze and sprinkled with peanuts. Mochi is made by pounding rice to make a gluten-like paste. The mochi is then shaped into balls and boiled. The soy sauce glaze was very sweet and reminded me of a less-viscous honey. It was delicious!

 

 

I loved them so much that I found a recipe online that even I can follow. (I haven't grilled them yet. I like the boiled taste.) The whole day was very relaxed and a nice change from hundreds of temples and shrines.