One of the many great things about being a teaist in Kyoto is the abundance of opportunities to attend tea ceremonies. With most temples hosting a tea ceremony at least once a month, and with Kyoto having a high concentration of Japan’s most famous temples, there is no lack of places to indulge in that welcoming bowl of tea, and places to oogle at expensive tea utensils.
Tea ceremonies are not only available at temples but also at gardens , machiyas and Japanese style tea shops all over the city. With so many places to chose from, it is difficult to have a favourite and be faithful to just one place. Monogomy is not an option for me, I simply love them all. Last month I had tea at Daitokuji temple, but this month (today actually) I went to kenninji Temple where soba was included as a part of the ceremony. The soba was delicious and the fact that my seat overlooked the elegant garden tripled the effect.
With cherry blossom season at its peak, many places are having tea cereomonies to celebrate the pink buds. Therefore for the rest of the month I will be having tea surrounded by thousands of pink blossoms at Heian Shrine, and Nijo Castle‘ where 2 types of tea and a light meal will be served. Such indulgence!
What’s in store for next month? I have decided to play fair and share my affections evenly between the tea ceremonies at Daitokuji and Kenninji Temples (of course unless, you know, something else good comes along then there will be 3 or even 4 temples to go to.).
Blog by Japanese Elegance 