Carefully prepped - 1 minute to get on bullet train - they run ON TIME.

200 miles an hour - hard to capture so must maintain that speed thru station??? Great ride - quiet, smooth, one can see countryside.

Bill, Karen, Judy and Christine waiting in pristine station

Super guides Cathryn and Rich Robinson from Cornell and AHI's Christine Guyot

Beginning of Cathryn's Philosopher's Walk. Rickshaws for tourists only but early on functioned as cabs

Popular, crowded, but lovely cherry tree lined walk along a canal meandering along base of mountains. Named for Kyoto U prof.

Waiting for everyone to catch up.

White bibbed deities carved from stone

Artist at work in very inspiring area

Cemetary w/simplier grave markers. Wooden sticks still being used for bio info, poem or prayer.

Loved their signs and ads - so classy

Karen, Bill and cherry blossoms

Bonsai quince, I think, but full sized blossoms

A most unusual iris. Meiji Shrine in Tokyo has vast iris gardens - full bloom in June - mentioned in guide books.

Garden along the walk - not sure if private or temple

My endless fascination with roof lines - must be frustrated architect.

Private home. This walk was like the Japan I remember.

Bamboo growing and being used as fence - like duct tape - a 1000 uses.

Cathryn, one of the 3 librarians on the trip, Gail Shulman and Prof. Takeshi Takahara for U of MI

Container gardens in Kyoto

We reached our destination

Believe it or not, I did "remove" some pictures.

Photo ops at every step.

Everywhere one looks there are masses of blossoms - even men saying "magical".

Fabulous night show - held just 4 nights a year. Violins playing classical and new age music waft thru trees.

Bamboo grid allows walking beneath weeping cherry tree. Note twisted trunk - perhaps some grafting work.

Cherry blossoms up close and personal