Riben... its the Chinese word for Japan. The land of the Rising Sun is is not fondly regarded still here in Shanghai despite the burgeoning numbers of Chinese tourists who venture across the water for as little time as 120 mins. For us it was chance to meet up with our daughters and to also take a journeydown memory lane as 30 years ago we first spent time in Japan.

Yep...hardly changed... (the one constant is our smiles!)

This trip we headed into Tokyo for a few days before taking the Shinkansen to remarkable Kyoto ( an anagram of Tokyo) One of the highlights for me was spending a few hours at Museo D'Arte de Ghibli... either you know about it... or you dont really. Howl's Moving Castle or Tototo ring a bell? Ok, then how about Spirited Away?

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There is a kindred spirit of Gaudi here. The narrative is off-beat and the form is likewise... which is part of its appeal. 

Enter the noose... why knot.

So many beautiful vistas...

Beautiful water... followed by   beautiful Kyoto beer... is a small step... and after beer... iPhone time..

At last, I now understand the origen of the language use... this explains why they call them "busts"...

Family moments.... Mother and Daughter