Some Kyoto Architecture (old wooden architecture)

Hey! 

Japanese architecture commonly found in the alleys of Kyoto


We walked near my university campus one day and found some buildings to look at. In the limited time that we've been here, it seems these areas are everywhere in Kyoto (every two or three blocks).
Pic1: Walking through an area with old buildings after school one semi-rainy day in Kyoto.



































The grounds had a couple of these buildings scattered on opposite sides of the football field-sized area. I'm not sure what they were used for, but the wood detailing underneath the roofs is quite cool. Difficult to describe the structure design, but the ends of the 2x2" wood are painted white. You can barely see them just under each roof.
Pic2: Another big wooden structure in the same grounds of that day in Kyoto.


























Pic2 shows the wood detailing better than Pic1 as well as showing the scale this particular building. I find it quite interesting to stand next to these buildings and imagine the buildings and landscape being used for their original purposes, to imagine what sort of people also looked at these structures as part of their daily routine as they fulfilled their duties of their respective era hundreds of years ago.

Pic3: The main building of the area we stumbled upon that day in Kyoto.


























Pic3 shows the main building of the grounds. This building was in center of all the other buildings, in between Pic1 and Pic2. It is huge! Kailey and her umbrella are so small standing next to it! I think it's hard to capture the scale of the building with pictures, but I would have to say it might be as tall and almost as wide as the front of the UVic library. The right and left of the building couldn't fit in the photo, but on either end this building is a covered walkway to other parts of the area. The most fascinating thing to me is that I THINK it's all made of wood! The lines and design to me is very aesthetically pleasing haha.

We went to Osaka Aquarium today - it was amazing! We'll post some pictures soon! Tomorrow we're going to Hiroshima with some friends! We're taking a night bus there and back - transportation AND accommodation. We're looking forward to that as well! When we come back we're going to meet a friend of ours from Victoria, B.C, Canada! He's stopping by and staying with us on his way back from a conference in China!


Ben and Kailey

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Similar Post: Kyoto Architecture #2New!


Completely Different Post: Daily Life 6: Baseball gloves
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3 comments:

  1. So glad to see the pictures and you're having a more relaxed time of your life and enjoyment in Japan. You think of Japan of being a crowded place, yet these old buildings don't appear to be used very much, very neat and tidy with no public signs.
    Thanks for the photos and new ideas about Japanese products. We'll be looking forward to seeing more. Life is evolving here with summer jobs looming. The garden is being planted here. Davin and Keith were out helping rototill the garden on the weekend. Kyle Kshamta and Kaamya also helped. Beth is heading for Prince George to continue 2 mos studies. Auntie Bonnie's back to work. We've all had bad colds but are on the mend. All my love, Grandma

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  2. Hi Kailey and Ben: Nice to read of your adventures. I love those photos of pagodas. Pagodas are/were used for religious purposes--Buddist. Maybe they use them for other things today too. From a friend who travelled in Japan years ago, I heard that there's a 5 story one called Toji (sp) in Kyoto that is centuries old. Maybe you'll be able to see it too. It's got nice surroundings apparently. Japan looks like such a beautiful country; it's such a shame that it had that horrible tsunami after the earthquakes. We had a story on the news yesterday about a container that washed up somewhere on Haida Gwai (Queen Charlottes) this week and had a Harley motorcycle in it. It was pretty bashed up. They found the guy it belongs to in Japan; he lost everything. Harley Davidson is going to restore it and send it back to him. Nice, eh.
    Your Grandma loves to hear of your travels and experiences. All the best, Maureen

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  3. Hey! Yea, it seems the main tourist spots can get quite busy, but if you move just one or two streets over it will be completely empty. I enjoy walking through the streets with houses - streets are narrow, but it's quite and relaxed with the warm air.

    Pagodas! We went to a few impressive pagodas this last week. I'll get the pictures from Kailey's phone and post them! That's fantastic about the man getting his Harley back!
    Ben

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