Kyoto: learning about Japan's imperial heritage and history

Kyoto is the former capital city of Japan and it has a population of more than 1 million. I had heard people say about their Kyoto experience: "once you see one temple, they all start to look alike," so I was beginning to wonder if that was indeed true. I found out it is NOT. First of all, a temple is Buddhist, and a shrine has its background in the Shinto religion. And in Kyoto, there are hundreds of them, so you just need to choose several to see. One way to gauge which locations to visit is to see if they're designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as a "World Heritage Site."

The dazzling Kinkaku-ji Temple in Kyoto.

Our first stop was Kinkaku-ji, which was originally built by Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu more than 600 years ago as his residence. The temple is easily recognizable with its gold-colored exterior that reflects so beautifully on the water that surrounds the temple. It actually burned down in 1950, but was rebuilt in 1955.

Then we stopped at the very impressive Nijo-jo Castle, another UNESCO World Heritage Site. This was built was Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu, and served as the home to several shoguns. At this castle, I learned that samurai protected the shoguns, and that the ninja protected the samurai.

Our next stop was to old town Gion, where they do the maiko (geisha in training) and geisha outfits for women who want to walk around Kyoto. That is the one thing I really wanted to do, but didn't get around to do doing that while in Kyoto - oh well, next time. 

Following that, we stopped at the Ryoan-ji Temple, which is the famous rock garden where 15 rocks seem to float on a bed of carefully raked rocks. Our guide explained that 15 is a very auspicious number in Japan, so that's why the 15 rocks. 

The top of Kiyomizu-dera with stunning views of Kyoto.

Our next stop was to Kiyomizu-dera, which is one of the most popular temples to visit in Kyoto. It is recognized for its veranda that sticks out of a mountainside. It was simply gorgeous...and we got lucky with the weather because it was an amazing day in Kyoto on that Saturday, April 16. Look at that sky above the pagoda at Kiyomizu-dera - no filter or editing on that one. And we even saw some cherry blossoms too. What an unforgettable day, but it wasn't over just yet.

At Kiyomizu-dera.

This got us ready for the grandest one of them all: the Fushimi Inari Shrine. This is the one that is renowned for its thousands of vermillion torii lining a path up to the mountain. It is about a 2-hour hike to the top (no, we didn't have time for that). On this beautiful day, all the sightseers were out, and Fushimi Inari Shrine was so crazy busy. So, our tour guide/driver dropped us off at the front (which is directly across the JR Inari station if you're taking the train), and we made our way up.


There is also a famous scene in "Memoirs of a Geisha," where she runs up through the torii, of course Garett had to try to repeat that. :) The bottom is lined with many different food booths, souvenir shops, places where you can write out your prayers, this is the ultimate experience. I don't have enough superlatives to describe the experience at Fushimi Inari Shrine...I always wanted to come here, and I finally did. 


Before I close this entry, I must give props to our tour guide/driver, Mr. Ryutaro Nohara of MK Taxi. He is so personable, knowledgable and passionate about making sure visitors to Kyoto have a great time. Hiring a driver for the day is one of the best things we could've done...if you go to Kyoto, I highly recommend getting one from MK Taxi...they are the best, and Mr. Nohara is wonderful.