We didn’t have too long to wait before our bus arrived and we were on our way to Kyoto. The first hour or two was very scenic as we traversed the mountains and passed snowy villages nestled in the valleys. As we neared the coast, the terrain flattened and lost much of its magic.
After two rest stops, we arrived at Kyoto Station right on time and opted to taxi to our hotel as it was a fair distance, and being dark, we didn’t feel up to lugging our luggage through unfamiliar streets. Staying at Airbnbs can make communicating our destination a little tricky, especially when they don’t have a name to google map, but we manage to share our maps with the drivers and so far, we have ended up where we need to be.
Our hotel room was simple, but nice, with a good size bathroom. After the tiny bathroom in Takayama, this one seems huge. We set off to find a restaurant for dinner – google maps indicated a gyoza restaurant not far away, so we set off to find it. Our hotel is in a suburban area, and even in the dark, the streets look quaint and pretty.
We reached the spot where google maps said the restaurant was, and the only likely candidate we could see looked very small and appeared to be up a flight of stairs. Colin went up and opened the door, only to be told, quite rudely, ‘no’, and had the door shut in his face. Hmm, not the greatest start to our stay in Kyoto, especially considering how lovely the locals have been to date.
Plan B was to go to the nearest Lawson convenience store, just a couple of minutes away. We picked up dinner and headed back to our hotel. Eating has been cheap, and the convenience store meals have been delicious.
For our first full day in Kyoto we set off for Nijo Castle. Our bus stop is not far, and google maps gave us a direct option of bus 15 which looked like it would drop us right in front of the castle. What google maps didn’t tell us, and we eventually discovered by finding signs, was that the Kyoto marathon was on and some of the bus had been rerouted. Okaaayyy, plan B – take the 204 which would get us close. There had already been plenty of 204s come past, so we settled to wait for another one. And waited. And waited. The schedule said they should be arriving every 15 minutes or so…hmmm. After sitting at the bus stop for almost an hour (!!) we decided to do the 33 minute walk. So far, Kyoto has been a little frustrating.
It was an easy walk, and certainly helped earn our step count for the day. We walked past an Izumiya grocery store near the castle and popped our heads in to see what was on offer. We hit pay dirt – the pre-packaged meal options, snacks and drinks looked incredible. Tucking this valuable piece of information away, we continued to the castle and bought our gardens and Ninomaru palace combo ticket for about $15. The palace was impressive, (and not so cold for our toes when we had to remove our shoes), with some of the external woodwork inlaid with what looks to be mother-of-pearl really beautiful.
The gardens were also extensive, with some really pretty areas and we were able to enjoy the whole experience without too many tourists crowding the site. As it was definitely time for a late lunch and much needed rehydration, we headed back to the supermarket and grabbed a bite, hoping to be able to eat at the small space with tables and chairs. Unfortunately, all spots were taken, so we sat by the nearby waterway and ate instead. Japan’s policy of no eating while walking, and carry your rubbish meant we had to keep our empty packaging while we set off to the Kyoto National Gardens.
The walk to the gardens was a bit further than we thought, but we still had plenty of time in the day. The gardens were huge, with expansive roads which looked like they could be used for large state functions. The gardens themselves were a bit of a disappointment though – a lovely shrine and a pretty little pond area, but the rest of what we saw was uninspiring.
On our way home, we stopped in at the supermarket again to pick up dinner. Colin was ‘called’ by the sashimi platter which was a bargain at $8, while I went for a chicken and rice curry (at least that’s what I thought it looked like – and it was). We were rather tired by this stage and when a taxi arrived before the bus, we spent the extra $3 or so and got dropped to our door.
We had a better night’s sleep after our big day. Our first night in the hotel was punctuated by the upstairs guests stomping around until about four in the morning. Soundproofing was an optional extra apparently when they built the hotel and sound travels very easily both through the ceiling and the walls. Our next door neighbours talked until about 11, but once they went to bed everything was blissfully quiet.
Feeling inspired, our second day in Kyoto was another busy one and we set off to Nara to see if the infamous deer actually bow when they are fed. Our journey took us to Kyoto station where we eventually found our way to the Kintetsu train line where we were able to use our Icoca transport card for our ticket. The limited express service takes about 50 minutes to arrive in Nara, with a dozen or so stops.
Nara Park is only about six minute’s walk from the station and is easy to find – just follow the crowds of people. The deer are tamely wild animals and are not fenced in – they wander freely (including crossing the streets) but I guess they stay where the food is. There are more than 1200 deer roaming the park and bullying willing tourists into feeding them the crackers that are sold for 200 yen per pack of 10 or 12. There is not time to count how many crackers there are – as soon as you have them, you’re mugged by starving deer, who do, indeed, bow to you to be fed. Some are more respectful than others; Colin and I both got nipped or head butted when we were not fast enough to hand over food.
This was so much fun and even with lots of tourists, there are still plenty of deer to go around. Part of the park includes the grounds of Kasuga Taisha Shrine, which is just beautiful. The surrounding forest is majestic and worth a long stroll. The deity enshrined is Takemi Kajichi no Mikoto and it is said he road to Nara upon a scred deer from Kashima Shrine in Ibaraki Prefecture. Because of this, deer were thought of as sacred animals and helpers of gods, so they have been carefully protected and continue to be protected as natural monuments.
The crackers that are sold to tourists are healthy for the deer and are made of wheat flour and rice bran, although their main diet is typically grasses. We strolled through the park for a bit, then wandered some of the surrounding streets on the hunt for a café as we had been travelling and walking for quite a while. The houses we passed were typically lovely and Nara looks to be a lovely town.
As we have been discovering, many businesses are closed – whether that is a permanent or seasonal situation we can’t determine – so, also wanting to avoid the tourist cafes near the deer, we found ourselves back at the station. There always seems to be plenty of shopping and eating options near the stations, and we soon discovered a ramen ‘chain’ restaurant. We joined the short cue and five minutes later, we were seated at the long table, watching the various dishes being created. Colin opted for the ramen and gyoza set (thankfully sticking to the regular size) while I tried the fried rice with a side of gyoza.
Excited to finally being able to get gyoza, Colin was soon served his HUGE bowl of ramen. My rice and the gyoza were delicious and it was entertaining to watch the small range of dishes getting made.
With our daily steps well past the 10 000 mark, we set off back to Kyoto after a fun and beautiful day out. It is an interesting point to note that while the food is delicious and we are quite active, our appetites are low and we are saving a small fortune on food as we are really only eating one substantial meal a day. We are both starting to hanker for a big feed of stir-fried or steamed vegetables though…most of the meals are tasty, but not big on vegetables. I find myself fantasising about the steak meal we had in Takayama a lot.
Kyoto’s weather has been a lot colder than expected, with quite a few sunny snow showers. It’s a bit weird walking with snow falling in bright sunshine, but if the wind isn’t blowing, it’s not too cold. We are both thankful for our winter clothes and they are definitely getting put to good use. With a plan to check out some more Kyoto attractions, we set off towards the Kyoto train station as we noticed a temple near it yesterday when we were catching the train to Nara.
The 205 bus took us on a slightly different route to yesterday’s 26 but, but it’s a great way to see the city, even though the narrower side streets are much nicer to wander than the main roads that the buses follow. The bus stopped almost in front of the temple, which turned out to be Higashiyam Hongan-ji, a Buddhist temple, one of two dominant sub-sects of Shin Buddhism. Higashi Honganji was established in 1602 by the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu and the temple was first built in its present location in 1658.
As with so many historical sites, various parts of Higashi Honganji have burned down and been restored. This is a spectacularly beautiful temple complex and we were lucky enough to explore it without too many tourists.
Our plan for the day included getting to the Fushimi Inari Shrine which was why we made the stop at Higashi Honganji as we needed to catch a train to the shrine. We are getting good at navigating the public transport, although the train station does present some challenges. Through luck rather than design we found our way to the D line and managed to board the next train. It filled rather quickly as we expected as the Fushimi Inari Shrine is possibly one of the most visited sites in Kyoto.
Fushimi Inari is an important Shinto shrine, famous for its thousands of torii gates straddling the network or hiking trails behind the main shrine buildings. The torii gates that make for such an interesting hike have been donated by individuals and companies.
The shine and trails lead into the wooded forests of sacred Mount Inari which rises to 233 meters. This shrine is the most important of thousands of shrines dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice. Foxes are often featured throughout the area and are thought to be Inari’s messengers. Fushimi Inari Shrine predates the move of the capital to Kyoto in 794.
We hiked our way to the lookout, just shy of the summit of Mt Inari and, once it stopped snowing, we got some great views over Kyoto. On our descent, we opted to not go back through the torii gate tunnels and were rewarded with seeing many smaller shrines and even some houses that border the main shrine area. What a fabulous place to live!
Once we joined the throngs of tourists again, we were enticed by the smell of small vendors selling a variety of food, and of course, all of the trinket shops. We lined up for a short time at a restaurant that promised more good food, but when the line hadn’t moved after about 10 minutes we decided to head back to Kyoto and home. Dinner was NOT from Lawson – we got adventurous and bought our pre-packaged food from Fresco. Who says we don’t know how to live!
Even though the weather was forever changing, it was dry at least. We discussed doing a day trip to Osaka, but by now we were a bit templed out, and the touristy options such as Universal Studios lack appeal. We want to see and experience the country, but it’s also about the living experience. Colin found a bonsai garden experience, so we set out to explore a different part of Kyoto. The walk from where our bus dropped us to the garden was lovely; lots of pretty gardens and the area was generally nice and green.
The temples and shrines and associated gardens were lovely, although if they were open, there was a fee to go in. We are getting used to being able to enter many sacred sites for free, so this was a bit of a shock. We came to this area specifically to see the bonsai garden, which had a 10 000 yen entry fee, so we paid and enjoyed the garden by ourselves for a while. The bonsai are beautiful and some of them are hundreds of years old, with one claimed to be 800 years old. The garden was small, so it didn’t take long to walk around it and it didn’t feel like great value for money, but perhaps taking care of bonsai is expensive work.
As we wandered the area, we could see a large bamboo forest, but even though we walked around it, we couldn’t find a way to enter, which was disappointing. With this being our third day of lots of walking, our feet were already a bit sore, so when we spotted a little coffee shop, we popped in for a breather. The staff were very friendly and being a genuine coffee spot, the café sold coffee beans and coffee paraphernalia. We opted for the house special dark coffee (strong) and some strawberry toast. The coffee was amazing, and the toast yummy. With our appetites being what they are, that was dinner.
Google maps indicated a nearby park which we made our way to. The area was massive and as we made our way to the top, we passed an outdoor amphitheatre, playground and, at the top, the castle ruins. The forest was lovely; the ruins – underwhelming to say the least.
Our plans to eat out collapsed as the thought of getting back to our room and then trying to motivate to go out was unappealing to say the least. Three days of lots of walking was good for the body, but the feet had had enough.
Our last day in Kyoto and Japan was uneventful as we both lacked motivation to get out and about, although we promised ourselves a proper dinner at a restaurant. Using google maps, we found Yamota, a Yakitori restaurant just a short walk away. By the time we set off it was almost dark, but we did get to wander some new streets. On arrival, we were thrilled to find the restaurant was small and simple, so with the rave reviews we had read, we settled in for an experience.
Yakitori is skewered meat, usually chicken, but this restaurant offered chicken as well as port and beef. And if you wanted chicken, you could have any part of the chicken…well except beaks or feet. There was cartilage, liver, gizzard and the meats on offer. Opting to stick with meat, I ordered chicken thigh, beef, mushroom and pork belly with rice. Colin went with a mixed plate of skewers and some fried chicken and rice.
When our food arrived, it was a bit less than we had expected, but it was tasty. Colin’s mixed skewers included octopus and, we think, cartilage as he said it was rather crunchy to eat. My chicken and mushroom skewers were yummy, the beef a little on the tough side, but still tasty. Confusion set in as we couldn’t see the pork belly skewer or the fried chicken, although we did have a plate of crispy (and yummy) something that we thought might have been the pork belly as it tasted like pork crackling. In the end, we worked out that I ate Colin’s fried chicken, which we thought may have been the pork belly, and Colin ate my pork belly skewer. It was a rather expensive meal for not a lot of food, although my serve of sake for 5500 yen had me stumbling back home.
Kyoto has been a treat and our location, while out of the tourist centre felt authentic and we enjoyed walking the narrow neighbourhood streets. Public transport was not far and it was easy to get anywhere we needed to go.