Kyoto, tourist capital of Japan

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Kyoto is the city described in the Lonely Planet guidebook, and by everyone else I've met, as the ONE place you HAVE to go when you visit Japan. Therefore I really didn't want to go. However, after talking to several people, (Rich, Micah, random woman at Fireside lodge coffe shop in Portland) I was convinced that I would at the very least feel guilty if I didn't go to Kyoto, so I decided to give it two nights (three days).

The reason why Kyoto is supposed to be so cool is that it is jam packed with important shrines, temples, and other historic sites. It is also jam packed with tourists. Also, the important touristy sites and kind of far from each other and it takes a while to get around. And for some reason, I ran into more problems with the bus system than I normally do and I think only once did we catch the bus that we actually wanted to be on on the first try. It's not like they weren't clearly numbered, but I guess I just forgot to see if the bus number was the one with the destination I wanted.

By the time I got to Kyoto, I had already had my fill of temples and shrines, but I hadn't seen too many castles. I have to admit that I did really enjoy Nijo-jo, the castle in Kyoto that one of the most powerful shoguns lived in. It had these floors called "nightingale floors" that were intentionally constructed so that they squeak when you walk on them, alerting castle residents to the presence of intruders. The castle was made of wood, not stone, so that was new for me, and the walls were made of these sliding partitions covered in cool paintings of pine trees, tigers, etc.

Other than that, I made it to a grand total of _two_ temples in my entire time in Kyoto, which was more than fine with me. I was ready for a break from my sight seeing madness, and found better ways to occupy my time😊

So thats all you're going to hear about Kyoto. Worth the trip for sight seeing, I suppose, and its centrally located, so would probably make a good place to base yourself out of if you don't have somewhere else to say. I am glad that I went.



xannex

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Photos

Kinkakuji
The golden temple. yeah, i _guess_ its cool :)

tiny neighborhood temple
If you wander randomly through a city, you may run into one of these. I really like them, they often have a distinct character.