Utano Youth Hostel

Day 4: This is the Start of a Beautiful Friendship

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August 24th 2009
With a little help from Kenichi and Masahiro, we "planned" a trip to Kyoto and looked up a few possible places to stay, though the instructions for getting to those places were never specific, usually only going so far as to explain which train station to get off at. Still, we weren't worried and after saying goodbye to the Koseki family, we made our way to Tokyo and the Shinkansen line to Kyoto. ... read more

Asia » Japan » Kyoto » Kyoto

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In 1603, a Tokugawa shogunate (military dictatorship) ushered in a long period of isolation from foreign influence in order to secure its power. For 250 years this policy enabled Japan to enjoy stability and a flowering of its indigenous culture. Fol... ... read more