Blogs from Kyoto, Japan, Asia

This is a quick blog about travel insurance companies and the caution you must take in committing to any travel insurance purchase. Japan, May, 2017 one of my tour members fell breaking her hip. she was rushed to a hospital in Kyoto and the nightmare began with her travel insurance company. The company she paid for the insurance outsourced it to another to execute the claim. It took 24 hours and an act of God to get them to provide the air ambulance she needed to return to the USA. At first they wanted her to pay the $130,000 to fly back. She had paid for a $1,000,000.00 policy for repatriation. Not only was this woman incapable of handling the "but clauses" of this policy, but she was in pain from the injury, blurry in her ... read more

The one day we need the kids up early for a day trip, they both sleep in and have to be dragged out of bed. We are heading out to Arashiyama and hope to beat the crowds. For a city with mountains on 3 sides, Kyoto city is remarkably flat. Every bit of flat space is filled with the suburbs of Kyoto. Arashiyama is further out at the base of Mt Arashiyama. We've come to check out the bamboo forest and so have the other thousands of tourists - both Japanese and foreign. The bamboo grove is beautiful but crowded. The surronds are calming but the crowds diminish the vibe. Beyond the grove and avoiding the tourist trap of a traditional garden, we find look-outs that provide a breathtaking veiw of the Oi river and the ... read more

Futons are not our friend. After waking with a sore back each morning we've been here, I was pleased to wake without pain. Only to sneeze while reaching for a tissue and put my back out. And the 'pillows' aren't doing Jules' neck any favours. I don't remember these aches and pains last time, but we weren't 40 somethings last time. Kyoto is the city of a thousand shrines and we plan to check out a few of them today. It's also the city of a thousand transport options. Trains are so patronised here that private operators are justified to build private rail lines adjacent (in parts) to the existing JR lines. There is also 2 subway lines and multiple bus operators. This makes in unnecessary to own a car and most people ride their bikes ... read more

Sunday 19th March A day of waiting and travelling by train today. As usual we awoke early and after showers, breakfast and cleaning the unit we were still too early. We made the decision to go to the station and catch an earlier train. This was a good idea except today is the Sunday of a long weekend and everyone seemed to be out and about. We were told by the ticket office that all the reserved seats had been filled. We therefore took the chance for a seat in the unreserved carriages only to see that they were packed also. Therefore we sat back and waited for the next train, coming in an hour, where we had reserved seating. Three and a half hours later we arrived in Shin-Kobe where we had to wait another ... read more

When i arrived in Kyoto i was very pleased indeed with the hostel i can recommend it Piece Hostel is the name very close to the train station and super comfortable. I had my first bath in 6 months i didnt want to get out could of happily sat there all night and just kept refilling the hot water. I was also introduced to my first Sake which is the Japanese rice wine and im quite a fan i must admit it's a lot easier to drink that the chinese rice wine put it that way. So between my Sake my bath and my comfy bed im well happy. Fushimi Inari shrine My favourite film is Memoirs of Geisha i know original when travelling Asia but hey never mind. One of my favourite scenes from that ... read more