First Visit to Kyoto
Our next destination, after Himeji, was Kyoto, and we spent about two and a half days here. With limited time in Kyoto, we focused on some of the most famous temples and gardens. We joined a walking tour that went through some of the oldest and most traditional areas of the city, going past many temples. We also had the opportunity to see a couple of Tanuki (a Japanese raccoon dog) at a local Japanese cat cafe.
One of the streets we walked along, during our walking tour, that passed a canal. All the houses in this area were of a beautiful traditional style.
The gate and some buildings for the Chionin temple. This temple belongs to a sect of Buddhism that I believe was followed by many of the common people from the 17th century.
The Grand Bell Tower (Chionin Daishoro) for the Chionin Temple. The bell is rung at new years and it was cast at this spot as otherwise it would have been too huge to move.
The outer gate and pagoda at the Kiyomizu-dera temple. Our walking tour finished here and we could have payed to enter the temple but we saw plenty just in the free public access area near the entrance.
The Yasaka Pagoda of the Hokan-ji Temple. We walked past this pagoda twice, once with the tour guide and the second on our way back to explore a different temple. I loved how we could spot this pagoda from a distance while walking down the traditional streets of Kyoto.
Kodai-ji Temple, a Zen Buddhist temple that has beautiful gardens surrounding the beautiful buildings.
Part of the Kodai-ji Temple grounds was filled with a bamboo forest that was beautifully lit by the afternoon sun.
We raced across Kyoto to see the famous Arashiyama bamboo forest before the last light of the day.
On our final morning we visited another Zen Buddhist temple (Ryoan-ji) that had a rock garden and dragon artwork.
The final temple we visited in Kyoto was Kinkaku-ji that was decorated with gold leaf making it glow brilliantly in the sun.
Mount Inari Torii Gates
Mount Inari is famous for all the orange torii gates. The mountain is full of shrines to Inari, the god of rice, that has since become a patron of successful business. There are thousands of torii gates packed along the trails up the mountain making the path feel like its going through a tunnel. We hiked all the way to the top of the mountain. Near the base there were large crowds of people but as we climbed higher the crowds thinned so we could more easily enjoy the experience.
The gates on some sections were large while in others they were smaller. Early on there were many people walking up and down the mountain.
The orange torri gate tunnel lit up with some dappled sunlight.
I believe each of the torii gates are donated by a business and the name of the donor are printed on the back of the gate.
Foxes are the messengers of Inari and there were many fox statues found on the mountain.
On a couple of occasions we could see a torii gate enclosed path from the outside.
The Botanical Gardens
We visited the botanical gardens on our first day in Kyoto, and it rained all day. However, in the gardens there was a large green house where I could enjoy the plant-life sheltered from the rain. I did also walk around the outdoor area of the gardens a bit, thankfully our hotel lent us each an umbrella that helped keep us dry on this rainy day.
The green house was overflowing with vegetation and the pathway wound its way through the lush jungle.
A couple of the beautiful flowers on display.
As I left the green house I walked past a beautiful display of orchids.
The gardens were nice, but I couldn't fully enjoy it due to the constant rain.
The Cat Cafe
On our first day in Kyoto we also visited a cat cafe. These are apparently quite common in Japan, they offer patrons the ability to relax with house cats. The one we visited also had some other animals, including tanuki. Tanuki are a Japanese raccoon dog that are native to the country. We really wanted to see a tanuki and this was one of the places we could guarantee seeing one. When we arrived, the tanuki were resting, so we spent an hour with the cats first. We then could enter the tanuki enclosure and offer them the snack we bought for them. They were incredibly cute and definitely worthwhile visiting.
Some close up photos of the cats.
The tanuke couple, a boy and a girl. They were well rested when we visited them and fed them a snack.
I really enjoyed my time in Kyoto and I was already planning on visiting again later in my travels through Japan. On this visit though, we made the most of the one and a half days of good weather, visiting as many cultural sites as possible in that time. As we traveled quickly, from one place to another, I didn't spend as much time focusing on taking good photos, instead I enjoyed the experience. Later, when I returned I would re-visit some of the historic streets and be more intentional with my photography. However, there were some locations (such as the temples) that I did not visit again and so these are highlighted only in this post.
Thanks for reading – Edward
Written 6th of April 2025