Spending a week in Kyoto is probably just about the right amount of time, but we did it in 4 days, concentrating in eastern Kyoto, where most of the interesting tourist attractions are.
Though I'm rather fond of Arashiyama, which is a little far out in western Kyoto, for its beautiful bamboo forests and quaint village area (which offers awesome chopsticks, personalized embroidered handkerchiefs, and soft serve ice cream in interesting flavors, to say the least), we didn't visit there this time. I'll probably give a more thorough day-to-day account later, but in summary, here is Kyoto and the places we went to in it, as well as my opinion on each.
Tourist Attractions/Landmarks
- Nijō Palace (Nijō-jo) - (¥600; best in spring) Interesting interior with nightingale floors (squeak and chime musically to warn about trespassers) and many rooms dedicated to a single specific function. Worth going to at least once (I've been twice) to look at the beautiful wall paintings and wood carvings. The grounds behind the Palace are even more beautiful, studded with blooming cherry trees in the spring, and definitely worth walking through thoroughly. There is also a separate building famous for the booby traps and security measure built into it, but it is currently closed to the public.
- Kyōto Imperial Palace - (Free; must reserve tour spot at least 20 minutes in advance; best in summer) In my opinion, the Kyōto Imperial Palace is dreadfully boring. It's interesting to go to once, perhaps, in the summertime, mostly for the two gardens in it. The gardens are heavy with Japanese maple trees that are gorgeous in the summer and fall, but in the springtime, when they're bare, the entire Palace grounds get repetitive. As one of Tina's guidebooks said, it's a bunch of black buildings on stark white gravel. Occasionally, the Palace is open to the public (free admissions, no tour reservation required), but then it gets super-crowded and even more boring.
- Kyōto Imperial Palace Grounds/Gardens - (Free, best in spring) A huge park surrounds the Imperial Palace, with various shrines and gardens within it. The best part is possibly the north-west corner of the grounds, right above the Imperial Palace - the Children's Park is here. Aside from being a great place for children to play, the Children's Park is absolutely full of cherry trees that bloom in the spring - few other places had quite as many as there were here! It's gorgeous and a pleasant place to walk. The rest of the grounds are good if you like walking on loose gravel (we don't), with super-wide avenues that guarantee you won't have much trouble with crowding and lots of grassy areas for you to throw a frisbee or bat a badminton birdie around on.
- Kinkakuji Temple (Golden Pavilion) - (¥400) While the Golden Pavilion itself is worth looking at - it's a gold-gilted pavilion (hence the name) on a lake that reflects the pavilion perfectly - it's not worth the ¥400 admission, as there's absolutely nothing else on the grounds worth seeing. 5 minutes after stepping onto the grounds, you're done. It's also rather far out from main Kyoto and requires about a 30 minute bus ride to get to. The gift shops have a few interesting items, and they serve sakura soft serve at one of the food stands, but otherwise isn't really worth it.
- Sanjusangen-do (Rengeoin-Temple) - (¥600) Worth going to. East of the Kyoto station lies the Sanjusangen-do temple, home to 1001 figures of Kannon, a major personage in the Buddhist religion. Rumor says that the 33 gaps between the rows of Kannon figures multiples against the figures somehow to mean that they represent 33000 manifestations of Kannon (or something). 1000 smaller figures of Kannon surround the main giant representation of Kannon, with Buddhist monks actively praying to the figure. The 1001 representations of Kannon are protected by 28 guardians of the Buddhist religions, including two deities, the Wind and Thunder gods. Definitely worth walking through, as they have English descriptions of each guardian's place in Japanese Buddhist religion and its equal in the original Buddhist religion. All 1000 figures of Kannon are also theoretically unique, with slight differences in their facial expressions, clothing, and the objects held in their many arms to distinguish one from another.
- San-nen-zaka Path - (Free) San-nen-zaka, or the Three Year Path, leads up to the Kiyomizu-dera Temple and is lined with all sorts of interesting, fun, and cute restaurants, souvenir shops, and treat stands. Try the triangular mochi in its many flavors or fried rice crackers, both specialties of Kyoto.
- Kiyomizu-dera Temple - (¥300; best in spring or fall) My favorite temple in Kyoto. It overlooks the entire city and has many tiers of pagodas (?) and shrines, all surrounded by cherry trees. There is also a famous fountain with three streams of water representing Longevity and two other things that I can't remember - you can pay to stand in a long line and drink from one of the fountains with a long steel ladle, or you can be like me and stand back to take pictures of the people who do so. The temple has an amazing view of the city and folds back upon itself; it is also surrounded by trees that turn to gold and crimson in the fall. Definitely worth going to, though it requires a bit of a hike up the hill to reach. (Alternatively, you can be lazy and take a cab up the hill)
- Nin-nen-zaka Path - (Free) Nin-nen-zaka branches off San-nen-zaka at an obscure point distinguished only by a stone marker and the number of tourists turning off there. Perhaps even more fun than San-nen-zaka, it is also home to many quaint restaurants and shops that are fun to browse. I like Nin-nen-zaka because it was in a pastry shop there, and not on San-nen-zaka, that I was able to find the obscure Caramel Pudding Cake sweets that I bought on San-nen-zaka two years ago. Nin-nen-zaka leads north towards the Ryozen-Kokoku-jinja Shrine, Kodaiji Temple, and Ryozen-Kwannon Temple.
- Gion (Gion Corner) - (Free) Gion is most famously known for the avenues of tea-houses where the geisha work. Around 5pm, if you go to the right streets and wait, you can see genuine geisha walking down the streets to their tea-houses for the night. You can also join the crowds of curious tourists that chase after the poor geisha for a good picture - genuine geisha pay no attention to tourists and more often than not scurry (gracefully) away as quickly as they can to escape the tourists. Some geisha even take a cab from one end of the short street to the other just to get there hassle-free. Gion also has some busy streets with little boutique, stationery, and other stores to browse; it's quite a good shopping district. If you see any geisha stopping and posing for pictures with tourists, they're probably tourists themselves - a few businesses in the Gion district let you pay to dress up and be made up as a geisha for a few hours. Only fake geisha-tourists pose with tourists. :P
- Miyako Odori performance - (¥2000 for unreserved seats) Gion Corner, a performance center (I believe) in the Gion district, holds a geisha and maiko show featuring seasonal kimono. It's a performance that's been going on for years (I believe) and is fairly genuine, as it's not just a fashion show and tells a story. However, if you're like me and my sister/her bf, and don't understand Japanese, the show is nigh incomprehensible. The kimono are beautiful, but the story is confusing and told in a sing-song manner accompanied by percussion, shamisen, and off-stage yowling (which I didn't mind, but Tina likened to a "dog having its tail trodden upon"). As I was tired from lots of walking, I almost fell asleep a few times. The music and slow dancing was so soporific. Considering how little we got out of it, I'm not sure it was worth going to; the one high point was when all the various kimonos were worn and displayed together at the end.
- Chion-in Temple - (Free) We only passed through this temple as we walked from Gion Corner northwards; not much to say here, except that they have a lot of lanterns that are somewhat interesting to look at. Much more interesting to come here at nighttime, but there's really not much to the grounds, and I'm pretty sure you're not allowed in the temple.
- Maruyama Park - (Free) We came here by accident while they were holding one of their sakura matsuri (cherry blossom festivals). It was crowded and filled with all sorts of food and souvenir stands - the food was fun, but there weren't that many sakura trees - mostly one large tree standing majestically atop a hill and surrounded by admiring photo-taking fans. The park is supposed to be fairly fun to walk through, but we just hurried through dodging the crowds on our way north.
- Shin-kyogoku-doki Shopping Arcade/Teramachi Shopping Arcade/Nishiki Street Market (Free, unless you buy stuff) Three of the major shopping arcades/markets in Kyoto. Shin-kyogoku-doki and Teramachi run parallel to one another, while Nishiki is perpendicular to Teramachi. Shin-kyogoku-doki and Teramachi are mostly dedicated to non-foody clothing, boutique, and inedible product stores, though there are a few food places, like egg tart stores and places selling little freshly baked lotus paste-filled pastries. Nishiki Street Market is mostly interesting, as they sell fresh produce and meat to locals, as well as tourists - we bought and ate a stick of sesame-marinated sashimi-on-a-stick for ¥100 - it was pretty yummy and interesting to browse around. Worth a walk.
- Pontocho-dori - (Free) We only poked our heads in briefly, but Pontocho-dori is a quaint little pedestrian-only alley chock full of restaurants that open around 5PM. An interesting place to browse and probably eat, I'd definitely like to come back and explore it in more depth in the future.
- Daimaru Department Store - (Free, unless you buy stuff) A huge variety of products are available in the Daimaru Department Store. If you want to buy clothing, houseware, or beauty products, it's a good place to browse, though probably not the cheapest. It's on Shijo, one of the busiest avenues in Kyoto.
- Kodaiji Temple - (¥600) We went here to see the nighttime illuminations. It's a fairly nice temple, with a beautifully illuminated bamboo forest at night, and some beautiful garden areas. Near the Kodaiji Temple are several interesting restaurants and food stands, as well; it's a nice area to visit at night.
- Himeji Castle/Kouko-en Garden - (¥720 for both; best in spring for the Castle, best in summer for the garden) It was cold and gray the day we went to Himeji Castle, which is about 55 minutes by Shinkansen west of Kyoto. It was actually really interesting, but as it was closing on the 11th for 5 years of renovations, it was also extremely crowded. With old people. Old people Japanese tourists are annoying, I must admit, because they are not only slow, but they are also really, really pushy. The castle is 8 floors high and, though it has been renovated several times over the years, features much of its original construction and features. It's interesting to walk through the main structure, as well as the nagatsubone (long corridor) where the women lived. The grounds are replete with cherry trees, as well, and many interesting historical features. Definitely worth going to. The worst part was that, like many other historical temples and shrines, they require you take off your shoes and carry them with you before entering the building. Considering how cold the wooden floors were, and how large the structure was...well, I recommend wearing thick, padded socks if you're going to visit Himeji Castle. The Kouko-en Garden, about 3 minutes north of Himeji Castle, is comprised of nine linked gardens. Unfortunately, most of the gardens were not blooming while we were there, but they were beautifully cultivated and likely worth going to in the summertime.
- Fushimi-Inari Temple - (???) I skipped this part of our trip because my legs and feet were killing me, and I needed to wimp out to rest in our hotel. Located in south-eastern Kyoto, the Fushimi Inari Temple features 100 or more torii gates in a gorgeous, brilliant corridor (or so I hear). There's a lot of walking and steps involved, but it definitely sounds like a place worth visiting at least once, if only for the sight.
- Shijō avenue - (Free) One of the major commercial streets in Kyoto, it's definitely worth a bit of browsing if you like shopping. Incredibly busy at night, with a few lit-up canals intersecting it that have willowy cherry trees leaning over them.
- Heian Shrine - (Free, but ¥200? to enter the garden) Not much to look at. I'm sure the Garden was much more interesting, but we'd had enough of gardens at this point (unblooming ones, nonetheless) that we skipped it after peeking into the shrine. About the only thing that makes this one even a tad bit interesting are the two fountains in the courtyard, but they're not really interesting enough to make a special trip for.
- Nanzenji area (Sanmon, Eikan-do temple) (Free, unless you enter some of the gardens and structures - In the spring, especially, the Nanzenji is a beautiful, refreshing area to walk around. There are tons of tall trees shading your path, tall gates to walk through (Sanmon), and even old, still-working aqueducts to explore (don't know the name, but they're close to Eikan-do Temple). The entirety of eastern Kyoto is really quite beautiful - the streets are quiet and lined with cherry blossoms, and the uncultivated natural surroundings are breathtaking. Definitely worth a leisurely walk.
- Philosopher's Path - (Free, BEST in springtime) The Philosopher's Path/Road (AKA the Lane of Philosophy) is a narrow pedestrian/biking path (the latter only if you really like navigating through a thick crowd of pedestrians) that runs from Nyakuoji-jinja Shrine in the south to the Ginkakuji Temple (Silver Pavilion) in the north. It runs alongside a long canal lined by cherry trees (trust me, you don't really get tired of blooming cherry trees. They're pretty breathtaking and gorgeous no matter what) and is dotted with several small shops, restaurants, and food stands. Altogether, it's relaxing on a nice day - walk as you like, or take a break on one of the many small bridges that cross the canal; pause by the warabe mochi stand for some tea and delicious soft mochi; or enter one of the more interesting stores that features designer jeans, wall hangings, and magical umbrellas (I bought one of the umbrellas for ¥2000). It only takes a couple hours to browse the entirety of the Philosopher's Path, and it's worth every minute. One of my favorite places we went to.
Places We Ate
- Café Hanadaikoku - Randomly encountered. Café Hanadaikoku was a very cute place with a charming atmosphere. They have a rather limited menu consisting mostly of plates involving curry of some kind, as well as several tea and coffee drink options. For ¥1000, I enjoyed an omelet filled with white rice and topped with their sweet, ketchup-flavored, mushroom-ridden curry (omuhayashi), and also received a glass of ice coffee on the side. I rather liked it, but Scott, who ordered curry and rice, was disappointed by the lack of meat and presence of mushrooms in the curry, while Tina got the best deal by getting what I got plus a piece of tonkatsu (breaded and fried) pork. Interesting note: many places in Japan provide sugar packets for hot drinks, and little containers of gum syrup for dissolution into cold drinks. Very neat and tidy.
- Houzan Restaurant - on San-nen-zaka. Compared to other restaurants in the area (especially along Nin-nen-zaka), Houzan was somewhat expensive and not really worth the price, but we were really hungry and thought we'd already passed by all the restaurants. Houzan specialized in varieties of hot and cold soba. I got cold soba with dipping sauce and tempura - it was decent, but nothing special compared to soba and tempura that I'd gotten in the the US before, and cost ¥1400.
- Sushi-se (not sure if this is the right name) - On Shinbashi-dori Street. Specializes in curry udon, which is what I got - curry udon with niku (beef meat) that replaced the tamago (egg) that it normally comes with. It was pretty good, but really hot temperature-wise, and somewhat hot spicy-wise, as well! Very simple, though, and cost ¥880 for a bowl. Worth trying for uniqueness, but not particularly outstanding.
- Honke-kamadoya - Near Himeji Castle in Himeji. A popular bento (boxed lunch) place. Its options are all various combinations of Japanese hamburger, curry potato cakes, tempura, tonkatsu, and/or chicken, served over rice with a packet of special original sauce (tasting much like traditional tonkatsu sauce) and sides of sweet natto beans and pickled vegetables. Pretty satisfying for ¥560 (I got a deluxe combo box with all of the above entrees and sides).
- Manzara - in Gion district, off of Hanamikoji-dori street, 3rd alley on the left when coming from Shijo. Tina & Scott wanted to try a kaiseki meal, despite Scott disliking most things involving vegetables and/or mushrooms. This place was highly recommended by our hotel and is apparently a well-known chain with Korean, French, and Italian influences (though we couldn't really detect those). Tina & Scott got the kaiseki menu, which had a 2-person minimum to order and was about ¥4500 a person (if I recall correctly); I wasn't as hungry and decided to go for the "cube beef stake" (steak) with garlic salt, grated radish, and citrus sauce (¥1500). Tina & Scott got pretty full after a few courses, but they enjoyed their kaiseki, generally speaking. I super-enjoyed my cube beef steak. It was served medium-rare and accompanied with small piles of garlic salt, grated radish, and sliced green onion, a wedge of lemon, and a small dish of ponzu or soy sauce. At first, I tried to pile these on my cubes of meat, which was pretty yummy but frequently resulted in too much salt or too little radish or something - then I realized the key was to mix the desired amount of lemon juice, garlic salt, and radish into the soy sauce and dip the meat in. Mmm!!! Super-yummy. I especially loved piling the sauce-soaked radish on my meat before eating it. Mmm...so yummy...even now, I'm drooling just remembering the meal. Definitely worth it. For dessert (included in their kaiseki), they got strawberry sorbet with huge chunks of fresh strawberry in it, which I eyed and ordered a serving of immediately (¥400). Yummy finish to a yummy meal!
- Zanmai(something) - In Ramen Alley (ramen kouji) on the 10th floor of Itesen (attached to/part of Kyoto station). Ramen Alley features 7 "carefully selected" ramen stores, each of which serves a different regional variant of hand-pulled noodles (did you know that's what ramen is technically supposed to mean?). Unfortunately, it's not very English-friendly, so we ended up going with a restaurant that showed pictures of what we were most familiar with: thick bowls of tonkotsu (pork bone) broth with various toppings. I got mine with several slices of fatty pork, an egg, some vegetables, and generally lots of yumminess. You could taste the fattiness of the pork used to make the broth. I ended up mixing my leftover broth with Scott's uneaten rice and eating that, too - super-yummy. Very satisfying and filling for ¥850.
- Breakfast buns from various places, like Cookpolle in the Himeji station. Japanese buns and bread are delicious! Some of the more interesting ones included a yakisoba bun with pickled ginger & mayo (literally a bun with yakisoba in it), a croissant with a flan in the middle of it, and, well...general yumminess!
- Milk tea from vending machines - Lipton Royal Milk Tea is quite yummy.
- Sashimi tuna on a stick from Nishiki food market (¥100). Yummy.
- Fish-shaped pastry from stall in front of Kodaiji Temple. Fresh(ish) and filled with various things like anko (red bean filling), mine was filled with custard. Omnom.
- Egg tart from Andrew's Original Egg Tart in Teramachi Shopping Arcade. They claim to have invented the original egg tart that is now popular the world over. The custard in their tarts is delicious, yes, but the crusts are altogether too hard to eat.
- Warabe mochi from the Philosopher's Path - served with free tea. This is similar to a Taiwanese sweet, which features soft, droopy mochi coated in crushed peanuts - this is soft droopy mochi coated in...we couldn't figure out what, but we wanted more (it was slightly bitter to contrast the sweet mochi). For ¥200 a bowl, and not much more for a bigger box, it was delicious and a must-have.
- Fried mochi from the Philosopher's Path - more savory than sweet, and covered in pepper in some kind of sauce, I really enjoyed it, but Tina and Scott didn't want more than one bite. :P
- Fried rice crackers from Nin-nen-zaka - a regional specialty of Kyoto. It comes in various flavors - Tina got the sesame one, while I got the one wrapped in seasoned seaweed. Super-delicious and tasty rice crackers, but they're messy to eat. One bite showers your clothing with a flurry of rice cracker bits. Well worth the mess, though, at ¥150 a piece.
We stayed at the New Miyako Hotel, which is right across the street from the Kyoto station. In that way, it was absolutely super-convenient. The service was decent, the facilities new and pretty nice, and the staff friendly, but the room was rather small. They put us into one of the larger doubles and put in an extra "cot" (really more like a rolling bed) for me, which made our room rather crowded. Our view wasn't particularly spectacular, but they did give us plenty of shampoo/conditioner/body wash in large, refillable pumps (all the hotels we stayed at featured POLA shampoo, conditioner, and, in this case, body wash, which I loved enough to buy bottles of each to bring home). The beds, like in all Japanese hotels, were kind of hard, but it was good enough. It wins for convenience.
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