Roaming Brood

Kyoto is steeped in Japanese culture and we didn't even scratch the surface. We did, however, get a chance to visit Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavillion), a Buddist Zen temple.  It was the retirement villa of shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu in the late 1300s. Unfortunately, it burned down several times over its history.  The present structure was re-built in 1955 after it was set on fire by a fanatic monk in 1950.  Each floor represents a different style of architecture and the top 2 floors are covered completely in gold leaf.  This temple is in a beautiful setting and we enjoyed the leisurely walk around its grounds. Arashiyama is a popular tourist destination in western Kyoto.  We visited for 2 reasons: a bamboo grove and monkeys.  Stay tuned for Nathan's post about monkeys. We have visited many forests in Canada- both deciduous and coniferous.  This, however, was our first time walking among towering bamboo trees.  We were shocked to le...

As noted in the previous post, Kyoto is the cultural capital of Japan.  It is much smaller than both Tokyo and Osaka and is considered a very walkable city. We've walked several kilometres daily in our time here, exploring new neighbourhoods and recommended sights. Typical side street in Kyoto Another side street One of the popular sights in Kyoto is the Fushimi Inari Taisha (Shrine).  Fushimi Inari Shrine is a Shinto shrine famous for its vermillion torii gates. Inari is the Shinto God of rice and foxes are thought to be its messengers- leading to many statues of foxes on the grounds as well. There are thousands of torii (gates), each one donated by individuals or companies.  The oldest, and largest, one dates back to 1589.  These gates straddle a network of trails that head into the wooded forest of Mount Inari.  There are other smaller shrines nestled among the trails and gates.  Fushimi Inari is p...

Getting Around We really got the hang of the subway system in Osaka, which paid off getting us to Kyoto.  Japan is zig-zagged with train tracks all over - it's truly amazing.  On the upside, you can score a clean and convenient ride anywhere, anytime.  On the downside, the Japanese rail system is not immediately easy to navigate for those who can't read Japanese, but it's do-able!  Kyoto station, midday - busy but not insane We are by no means the first English speaking tourists in Japan... apparently, since the 1960's English signage has been steadily improving.  It is now at a point where most transit ticket machines have English menus and options making it very easy to get around. English - a nice treat! Nuances like which trains are "Rapid Transit" and which are the "slow boat to tuna town" are tough to decipher.  We only realized you could buy tickets for your entire ride (provided you don't switch rail providers - all subw...