Monday, April 2, 2012

Kyoto day ONE

After a long journey and jetlag for my daughter the first day in Kyoto was started late, as we just had to sleep. Sleeping on the Japanese madrasses is quite a challenge for a man my age.
It is on the floor and as Kyoto is quite cold in the night, it is kiind of chilly. Secondly the blanket is very short, so either your shoulders are cold or your feet are cold. Finally I decided to sacrifice my feet. Most important however is the hardness of the madrass - it is hard! Anyway - I think I was the most fortunate of the 3 of us and at 11 I forced the women to wake up...

Breakfast was purchased in a super amrked and was surprisingly good. We had sushi, sandwiches and fried chicken with french fries for breakfast. We ate the food on a public play ground in the sun and it was a nice way to start the day.

Wen had used the night, where she could not sleep to study options for public transportation in Kyoto and realized that a 1 day bus pass was the best option, and it turned out quite well. We went to a bus stop and drove all the way down to the Nishi-Honganji Temple which is UNESCO heritage. The bus ride was a local experience and the Japanese people are extremely helpfull, despite their limited english.






Later we strolled over to Higashi-Honganji Temple, which was quite close by.





After 2 temples we went to Shosei-En garden, which was a very nice experience. I love Japanese gardens, they are so out of this world and relaxes your head and makes you a better person.




One of the good things about this travel is,m that both my daugter and my wife share my passion for photography.




The last stop of the day was Sanjusangen-do Temple and unfortunately we only has short time here before the temple closed which is a 5 pm. This temple is VERY interesting and I could easily have used another hour here.





After darkness we went to Gion which is a place where we need to come back to, as most shops were closed. Still the nightly atmosphere was intriguing.








Tomorrow more temples await us - I cannot wait....

2 comments:

  1. I recommended "Philosopher's Path " you must to visit .http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3906.html

    Arashiyama is also very beautyful , there are small train , and even samll boat you can take along the river ....

    At night , you can visit Ponto-cho, for traditional japan small street for food , shopping ...

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    1. Thank you so much, I can see that Philosopher's path is very beatifull and will go there today. I hope ain is not too much, so I can post some decent photo tonight. Thanks again for your advice!

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