After the intense business focus of the Tokyo phase of the trip everyone looked forward to the Kyoto portion of the trip ….. and I can say without fear of contradiction that they were not disappointed in the Kyoto experience.
The hotel was a traditional Japanese inn, the Three Sisters Annex, where students shared rooms, sleeping on tatami mats and observing other Japanese lifestyle activities.
The sites and experiences of Kyoto are a complex composite of visual, intellectual and emotional connections.
One highlight was participating in a traditional tea ceremony where students not only observed the process but were taught how to make a drink the special tea by a tea master and her assistants.
Another interesting stop was a tour of a sake brewery located in an area identified as “old Japan”. Many may have thought they walked onto a movie set.
A final night tofu dinner offered everyone a taste of Japan not often found in Japanese restaurants outside of Japan.