京都の風景Japanese are taught that Kyoto is one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
It is not.
If the city were not so relentlessly promoted by Official Japan - in textbooks, by the Japan Travel Bureau, by Kyoto itself - it might relax into itself a bit.
Kyoto does of course have pockets of serene beauty. The many world heritage sites come to mind, as do the many remaining traditional homes. The Kamo River remains a favorite escape, as are the mountains that surround the city.
However, the cityscape always brings you back to reality.
After a recent trip to Krakow, Poland - in whose Old City it is nearly impossible to take a bad photo - the shock of returning Kyoto was sharp.
The telephone poles and wires, the pachinko parlors - the signature architectural statement of post-War Japan - and "mansions," neon and mess of the place beg the eternal question:
If Kyoto is so serious, nay desperate, to earn money off the tourist won and yuan, euro and dollar, why have the many rules and building codes failed to create a more unified and beautiful look?
Photos from my grandparents' trip to Kyoto in 1978 are also revealing. In fedora and tie, floral print dress and handbag, Bob and Mildred - two 60-something Americans - wandered around ordinary streets snapping away on a simple Kodak.
Ordinary homes and streets were dignified and simple and heartbreakingly beautiful.
© CycleKyoto.com
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