Kyoto: Bush pissed in my coffee !!!

So we arrive in Kyoto, get settled in at the Ryokan and are ready to the Imperial palace. We trudge there for 40 minutes and guess what ? The imperial palace is closed ! And who might the culprit be ? Why, everyone's favourite assmonkey, Dubya ! We walked around the city some more and went to Shikokuji temple (ok) and then later after losing our way and our map (thanks to me, yes) we went to the Chio-in temple. It was really stunning at night with crystal clear ponds reflecting everything perfectly.

Then we went to a restaurant where they brought us some nibbles with our drinks. We had not ordered these but were charged for it. These are called charms. She referred to them as a Japanese custom. Luckily I had read about them in the guide and was not surprised. Otherwise a typical north american accustomed person would be pretty upset.