Another early morning today, heading towards a temple for some mediation! As a nice change of pace from the packed schedule of the previous day, we began the day with 2 Zazen mediation sessions. A monk taught us the practice of Zazen mediation, which involves sitting upright cross legged and in a focused stance. By counting to 10 repeatedly, we are able to meditate and clear our minds of troubling thoughts. During the first session, my legs fell painfully asleep so I was a bit distracted. However, for the second session I adjusted my seating position and found a way to sit comfortably and actually mediate. Overall, it was an enjoyable experience and a very relaxing way to start the day.

After meditation, we headed back the the Kiyomizu temple area for a tea ceremony. While the other group participated in the ceremony, we explored the area a bit further and got a stunning view of a pagoda-style buddhist temple.

Then, it was our turn for tea! During the ceremony we learned how to make traditional matcha tea and the steps of conducting the ceremony, and we even got to taste the tea and a Japanese sweet. Another relaxing and enlightening activity!

Finally, we ended the day with some delicious food at Nishiki market before resting and then going bowling with some people from KCG. While I definitely wasn’t the best at bowling, I also wasn’t the worst and by the last game I had improved a lot!