Summary: Kyoto, with its 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, is regarded as Japan's cultural and tourism hub. After dedicating our first day to exploring temples, we spent our second day in Kyoto discovering the Samurai, strolling through a Bamboo Park, visiting playful monkeys, and dressing up for a traditional tea ceremony in the Geisha District.
[This blog is part of a 15-days in Japan series].
Helpful Tips for this Touristy City. Kyoto is also know for it's crowds and unforgiving hot weather. Here are few of our tips to enjoy this popular City:
Go early. The busiest sites are best viewed while others sleep.
Pack water. Even though we visited in September, the weather was still super hot and humid. We filled our day pack with water and still needed to buy bottles from the many vending machines along the way. Buying plastic so often was not ideal, to say the least.
Take a moment to figure out the trains. It took a second but after a little trial and error, we figured out Kyoto's public transportation system. The short of it is that you need to be sure you're buying tickets for the correct line.
Eat at the train station. There's no shortage of places to eat throughout the City but we found the train station options to provide cheap, fast, and tasty food. So when you're on the go, don't hesitate to grab a quick bite while catching your next train.
Arashiyama Bamboo Park. Our initial stop of the day was Arashiyama Bamboo Park. This well-known location becomes crowded quickly, and by the time we got there at 8:00 a.m., it was already bustling. We managed to take this photo in a fleeting moment, but it was quite busy for the remainder of our visit. If you're pressed for time, we recommend skipping this stop for this reason.
Next, we walked over to Iwatayama Monkey Park which is a pleasant 15 minute walk through a park and next to a river.
At the monkey park, the monkeys are situated at the peak of a steep hill, requiring a 15 to 20-minute walk to reach, depending on your speed. As you ascend, the park provides preparation for your encounter with the monkeys.
About the Monkeys. More than 120 Japanese macaque monkeys reside at this Park, which was initially opened to the public in 1957. The land was originally donated by a local businessman, and it officially became a City park in 1974. Currently, the Park is managed by a committed staff that oversees the public's interactions with these amusing little animals.
We stayed about an hour, watching them play, eat, and pick gnats from one another.
The monkey park also as a great view of Kyoto below.
Back at the train station, we grabbed some cheap, quick snacks.
Back in central Kyoto, we stopped for a too brief visit at the Samurai & Ninja Museum with Experience. We had just an hour here and wished we planned better to stay longer. We did get to catch the tour which was worth the cost. It's funny and informative, with an impressive collection of Samurai artifacts.
Tea Ceremony in Gion District. The rest of this day was spent in the Gion District. This famous geisha district is filled with traditional wooden machiya merchant houses. Having read the book, Memoirs of a Geisha, just before we decided to attend a traditional Japanese ceremony. The experience we chose included attending and participating in the ceremony, including dressing up in a kimono. [Men can dress up too but ours opted out (insert eye roll from this writer)]
Matcha. After witnessing the traditional ceremony, we attempted to make matcha ourselves. We must admit, dressing up was quite enjoyable; the boys missed out!
Just as the sun was setting, we took a free walking tour to learn more about the history of the Geisha District.
The Geisha District features small restaurants that accommodate only a few guests. After our tour, we dined at one and had an excellent (and affordable!) meal. We regretted not noting its location for future visits, but we believe there are many similar ones in the area.
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