Although the Arashiyama (嵐山) area to the west of Kyoto is dismissed in most Western guidebooks in a brief paragraph suggesting "other attractions", the area is rightfully very popular with Japanese tourists and is well worth a visit.  When we read about the possibility of feeding the macaque monkeys atop the mountain in Iwatayama Monkey Park we just couldn't resist checking this out.

When we woke up in the morning it was a miserable, rainy day, and we weren't too sure about whether we wanted to make the trek in the yucky weather to see the little creatures.  We then remembered our lovely rain-proof parka's we had purchased in Milford Sound and had yet to use, as well Jason just could not resist the idea hanging out with monkeys (he feels a strong comradery with the animals), so we braved the trip.

Lets just say what an experience! I seriusly thought this might be some touristy, kietchy thing with a bunch of monkeys in a cage that you could throw bits of food at - yet that still sounded good enough to us.  Little did we know that after our 20 minute hike straight up the mountain, we'd be welcomed into a completely open, uncaged park area with over 150 monkeys wandering freely around the top of the mountain. 

I was definitely a little frightened at first being sourounded and very close to these wild animals, mostly b/c we were the only people that day who decided to make the trip up the mountain in the rain, so basically no other people for the monkeys to attack but us.  The fact that my bright red parka attracted a lot of attention we thought might be a problem as well.  They didn't give a darn about us though, that is until we got into the little caged room where we could feed them from. 

Good thinking with the barred windows between you and the hungry monkey waiting eagerly with outstretched hands for the little peanuts and apple bits. These guys couldn't wait to get their chow, and had it not been for those bars, they probably would have taken our hands off trying to get the food.

Wandering around the mountain and watching the monkeys frollick so freely was truly amazing, and Jason felt like he had come home to his mokey people.  We're definitely glad we got off the beaten path and explored this monkey park, since it's probably the closest we'll ever be to mokeys without them being in a cage.