Last Day in Kyoto :(

1001 Kannons at the
Sanjusangendo Temple

Here is my first attempt to update from the email on my phone so I apologize for any formatting errors with the attached pictures!

My masterpiece before they
put it into the fan making machine

We woke up early and moved school to an afternoon session as we knew today would be our last day to enjoy this wonderful city. Our first stop- the Kansendo Fan Shop. For anyone that spends a summer in Japan (or if you are a Terry woman), you understand the necessity of a good fan. As you step foot in this historic shop, you are overwhelmed by the elaborate designs and striking colors of the traditional Japanese fan. It would have been a relaxed morning if we were to simply walk through the store, but I've learned already this group likes to raise the stakes. Escorted up to the third floor studio, instead we spent the entire morning designing, sketching and painting our own personal fan masterpiece. I am definitely not the artist in the family as I have two very talented brothers- but hell, I'm only doing this trip once! I grabbed a pencil and the largest eraser available and went to work. My finished piece- a striking silver metallic sky, golden moon and purple lilly covered fan. The studio then will keep them to dry, do all the fancy folding and ship directly to my house! Despite the pressure for perfection, it was a wonderful morning.

Tired artists!

After a deep breath and another noodle lunch, we stopped at the famous Sanjusangendo Temple. The temple's name literally means "hall with 33 spaces between columns", although this name gives it no justice what you see on the inside. As I turned the first corner my mouth literally dropped. Here stood 1001 gold plated life size statues of Kannan, goddess of mercy, each with 42 arms, multiple heads and numerous weapons. Amongst these statues stood the 11 meter gold plated statue of Kannan adorned with 1000 arms and 11 heads. It is believed that each of her arms saved 25 different worlds. In front of the Kannan's were 28 separate guardian diety statues. It truly blew my mind! We finished the night with a sushi dinner as we are trying to get as much in before we leave Japan! Off to bed- heading to Nara tomorrow :) More to come soon.