The Original Imperial City
- Mar 5, 2017
- 9 min read
Location:
Kyoto, Japan
When one thinks of efficiency, one will always think of the Germans, but I will tell you something for nothing, only the Japanese can show them up! Waiting on the platform for the ‘Shinkansen,’ Japan’s rather impressive ‘Bullet Train,’ the track was lined with cleaning staff waiting to board the train as soon as it arrived. You want to see them! Every seat turned around, every headrest cover was changed, whether it was dirty or not! A procedure that is followed before the start of every route! Once the train was clean, we could board. When it comes to comfort, the Shinkansen has it in abundance. The leg room, oh the leg room! There was plenty of it! My legs thought it was Christmas! Even though we were going super-fast, it felt as though we were just gliding through the countryside with incredible views of Mount Fuji. How impressive the snow-capped mountain is! We have all seen photos of it, but nothing can prepare you for the real thing. 459KM’s later, we reached our destination. Hard to believe it only took us 2 hours and 20 minutes. Now that is impressive, supersonic impressive!
Getting from the train station to our hostel, ‘Mosaic Hostel’ was super easy. Once we left the station, it was only a short ten-minute walk to the hostel, past a shopping centre and through some side streets. Arriving at our new hostel, we were warmly greeted by a young woman behind the counter who gave us some advice on what we should do in the city based on how much time we have. After checking in, we were able to go up to our rather large dorm. As you can imagine, we have stayed in quite a few hostels over the last few years, but this place is in a league of its own! As soon as we stepped out from the lift, that ‘New’ smell hit us! Everything was so modern. The whole floor was divided into three separate areas. The first space was the toilet and showers, then you go through into the locker area, then you enter a room filled with beds. There were two rows of beds, built in, and with a roller blind that once you pull down, you have complete privacy. It was pure comfort!
No matter how comfortable the hostel maybe, there is way too much to see and do in the country’s second city! With a bit of discussion on what we could do, we decided we would start our exploration of Kyoto in the city centre by having a look around. Walking down the main shopping street, we passed the, ‘Teramachi Shopping Centre’ which is like a large Grafton Street, but with a roof over it. In and out of different shops including a shrine, we eventually made it to the other end, only to discover a second large shopping street to walk down. This place is huge. As the time went by, we began to get a bit peckish, thankfully, we were in the right place as there were lots of restaurants to choose from! I don’t know what it is with the Japanese, but they can cook anything. You think you know food! You don’t know anything until you go to Japan. Even simple things like pork are cooked to perfection. There is nothing like it. It makes one’s mouth water just thinking about it!
Considering we didn’t arrive into Kyoto until mid-afternoon, it was beginning to get dark. All the shops were starting to close, and the centre had an airy feel about it. Not wanting to hang around much longer, we ventured back out onto the main street. We walked towards the ‘Kamo River.’ Just before the river, this rather interesting little side street, ‘Ponto-Chō’ caught our eye. It was like stepping into a world of yesteryear! The street was lined with traditional geiko houses and traditional tea houses with many bars and restaurants that run parallel to the river. Like every place we visit, there are always certain must do things that we have to tick off no matter what! The only problem is, in a country like Japan, that list is quite large. I guess I better get on with it! As I am sure you may have guessed by now, we are all about the food! Imagine being paid to travel the world, blogging about food! My dream job! Over the last few years, myself and Jason have gotten more into the rather small, intimate settings where one can enjoy nice food, in an intimate environment. If there was anywhere we were going to try one of the countries famous delicacies, it is here! Oh my, ‘Wagu Beef,’ where have you been all my life?
Back at the hostel, we were advised to check out the lantern festival taking place each evening at ‘Shimogamo Shrine’ which is at the top of the main thoroughfare. Lit up with all the festivities of the celebrations, it’s a feast for the eyes! From large lanterns, to candles floating on water, to market stalls, it has it all! There is a really good atmosphere and it is not hard to see why it has been a centre point of the Kyoto calendar for many, many years. It is a good way for us to finish our first day in the former capital. Casually walking around taking in all the atmosphere, sure, what more could one want!
If I thought sleeping in the last place was amazing, nothing compares to the comfort in this hostel. Probably the nicest hostel I have ever stayed in. That really does say a lot! It’s our first full day in Kyoto and we want to make the most of it! What better way than a trip over to the rather impressive ‘Kinkaku-Ji’ AKA ‘Golden Temple.’ The original structure was completed in 1397. During the early hours of the morning on July 2nd, 1950, a 22-year-old monk decided to burn down the pavilion, destroying a fundamental part of Japanese history. The current structure was rebuilt in 1955 and is three stories high with a height of around 12.5 metres. I enjoyed our few hours here. The temple is beautiful, as it sits at the edge of the water, with its reflection visible through a small lake.
Like Tokyo, Kyoto has a lot to offer, not just in the city. What I really like about this historical place is how it has a little bit of urban and a little bit of rural! One area that is worth visiting is ‘Arashiyama.’ With lots to do, you certainly won’t be bored. Probably the most popular attraction is the ‘Bamboo Grove’ where the bamboo and the leaves rattle as the air passes through. Let’s not forget ‘Iwatayama Monkey Park,’ an area nestled in the mountainside overlooking the river, comprising of over 170 ‘Snow Monkeys,’ or, as their officially known, ‘Japanese Macaque Monkeys.’ They may look cute, but don’t be fooled, get too close and they will let you know. Something that always seems to happen to me! Thankfully, this time I wasn’t chased down the mountain! It is fascinating watching a young infant monkey climb up onto a one-story building. I wonder how the mother felt. Imagine an Irish mammy? That would be funny! Maybe not for the mother!
I will say it again, WOW, how amazing is Japan. Certainly, one of our favourite countries we have been privileged enough to visit. If there was one thing on our list of must do things in Kyoto, well, I think it’s safe to say, ‘Fushimi Inari Taisha’ was high up. After a long day in Arashiyama, we didn’t arrive here until after dark. I’m sure it is impressive during the day, but at night it is simply magical. A feast for the eyes as one walks through and marvels at a path of 5,000 orange coloured torii gates that twine through the hills forming a rather impressive backdrop for Fushimi Inari Taisha. This historic shrine dates back to the eight century and is dedicated to the god of rice and sake. It has to be one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen! At least visiting at night, we missed all the large crowds. Thinking of visiting Japan, put this place high on your list!
With so much to see, there is no rest for the wicked. There is always some place we need to be! To be fair, we are having an amazing time. Today we are going to get the train over to ‘Nijo,’ which is home to the historical ‘Nijo Castle’ which dates back as far as 1601, when ‘Tokugawa Leyasu’ instructed the feudal lords in Western Japan to partly fund the building of a new castle. The castle is an excellent example of ‘Edo’ architecture. In 1867, the ‘Tokugawa Shogunate’ fell and as a result, the castle was used as an imperial palace for a short period before being donated to the city. In 1994, UNESCO designated the castle, a world heritage site, further cementing the importance and significance of this important site. Surrounding the castle are two fortification rings, with each consisting of a wall and a wide moat. We had a nice, peaceful walk around the outer moat before crossing over the bridge, into the grounds of the castle. Trying to get photos with so many tourists is not an easy task! It is something that requires a lot of planning and a lot of patience. After finally getting the picture I wanted, well, kind of, I followed Jason in the ‘Niomaru Palace, which is built of Hinoki cypress. The palace is designed in such a way to ensure visitors no their place. One way this was done is by the height of the ceilings in different rooms. Low ranking visitors were welcomed in the outer parts and more important attendees were greeted in the subtler inner chambers. Unlike other castles, bodyguards were not hidden away. This added to the expression of intimidation and power. As you walk through the palace, every footstep you make causes the floorboards to creek. The ‘Nightingale’ floors in the corridor have been designed in such a way to alert the shogun and his team of any unexpected visitors. If I had known how large the palace was, I wouldn’t have insisted on reading every single piece of information. Mind you, it was all very interesting!
As you know, we are all about the food, among other things, of course. You can’t come to Japan and not go to an authentic sushi train restaurant, now can you. What an amazing experience it was! I never thought it was possible to love sushi. I remember trying to get Jason to try some when we worked in Dundrum. Who would have thought raw fish could taste so nice? My favourite has to be seared eel. It is amazing! As the dishes go past, you are left wondering which one to try next! It’s like I always say, the weirder the better! Maybe some crab meat?
After a long few days fighting the jet lag, we opt for an early night relaxing in the hostel. When your accommodation is this nice, it would be rude not to! After a nice sleep, we made a plan to spend our final day in this historic city, in Nara. Before we head over there, I want to have a look at ‘To-Ji’ or ‘East Temple,’ which is just down the road from our hostel, close to the train station. The temple dates back to the early ‘Heian period’ in 796. The temple is a five-story wooden pagoda which is the tallest wooden structure in Japan. It stands at an impressive height of 54.8 metres high. While I thought the admission fee in was expensive when compared to other places we have visited so far, there are some interesting buildings to check out such as the ‘Kondo’ or ‘Golden Hall’ and the ‘Miedo’ hall. One must remember not to take photos inside any historical building in Japan, as it is, according to the many signs inside these buildings, a criminal offence! As if that would stop my dare-devil fiancé!
With only a few hours to spare before we have to catch the train to ‘Osaka,’ it was time we headed over to the ‘Nara’ prefecture, which contains one of Japan’s oldest parks, ‘Nara Park’ which lies at the foot of ‘Mount Wakakusa.’ The park dates as far back as 1300’s and is home to over 1,200 wild ‘Sika Deer’ that are allowed to roam the grounds of the park and are by no means contained to one area. Over the years, these rather beautiful creatures have adapted to continued invasion of the many tourists that frequent the site on a daily basis. When we arrived, one rather cheeky deer, began eating our map. Apparently, they really like the taste of paper! Paper or Sushi? It’s a tough call!
What an amazing few days we have had in this incredible city. It is such a fascinating place to visit, with so much to learn! We could have easily spent a whole month here. For me, the balance between historical landmarks and the wild side of Kyoto makes it the perfect place for me! Being able to chill out with Santa’s reindeer and feed some rather hungry monkeys, made our experience in the original imperial city, that little bit more special! For in life, it’s the simple things that we remember with fondness! With so much history, we are only a mere drop in the ocean!
By Andrew
Comments