It had been amazing 5 days in Tokyo. It was time to move on to Kyoto. In early morning, we got up to catch morning Shinkansen. We had already bought the tickets on the first day we arrived in Tokyo at the airport. Based on our experience these past few days, we decided to take a taxi to Tokyo station from the apartment to avoid crowded morning metro since we were bringing big luggages. We didn't worry too much about being late because the train comes every 10 minutes and we could go anytime on that day, wow!
When I checked the weather forecast, it would be snowing in Kyoto. I prepared myself by wearing extra layer of clothes. During the shinkansen trip, I felt the speed wasn't as fast as I thought it should be. Approaching the city, I passed this area that was completely white covered with snow. It was a different yet interesting view for me.
Getting out from the train, somehow, I had this different vibe coming from my surroundings. Surely, Kyoto is different from Tokyo. It is known as the more traditional city of Japan.
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| Known as the traditional city, but Kyoto has a very modern main station |
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Our first destination is Kinkaku-ji, the Golden Temple. From Shijo station, the nearest station from our apartment, we went to Kitaoji station and the journey is continued by bus. Oh my Lord, I think I was having the most pleasant bus trip in my entire life. The bus was small and there were only some passengers. I chose an empty seat three rows from the back and sat on my own. I didn't expect any great view at first. There wasn't any tall buildings, only small houses and shops, very laid back. What makes it more beautiful is the snow were falling. I feel like I was in a music video or in one of Asian drama scenes, I smiled during the whole bus trip.
Kinkaku-ji itself had its own charm. I just really loved the snow today. It made everything seems lovely. The good thing is even though it was snowing, it wasn't too cold. Walking around the area was very enjoyable, it feels like a dream.
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| The tickets |
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| Golden Temple with the snow falling |
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| Haagen Dazs vending machine instantly attracted me |
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| Decided to try this Matcha Crispy Sandwich. Taste incredibly good! It was like frozen Green Tea Kit Kat |
Earlier, we had already seen this small food shop near the front gate. After visiting the temple, we had our lunch there. We were starving. Looking at the menu made us drool. When we enter the shop, the smell coming from the kitchen was too good. The food taste as decent as the shop looks like. There is nothing that is not good. We were very happy and even order more food.
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| Pork bun, ball soup, karage, and I think the last one is crab stick. Sorry I forgot. |
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| Don't you want to try these all? |
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| Super yummy red bean teriyaki (must try!) and pork sausage |
We moved to Fushimi Inari which is famous for its thousands of gates. There's much to see and do here. We could put our prayers and wishes. Prepare yourselves for long hikes and walks.
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| A good match prayer |
Come here with an empty stomach. I didn't expect there would be many food stalls around Fushimi Inari area. Everything looked so good and we almost tried them all!
We spent our late afternoon in Gion. It was almost dark, but that's what makes a good view. Bright lights are coming from the shops. The street wasn't too crowded at that time.
By the time the sky was completely dark, we had walked further to Shijo Kawaramachi area. This shopping area is very lively. From snack shops, fashion boutiques, and even malls could be found here. But I wasn't looking for those. What actually makes me happy was that I finally found this neighborhood. I had seen many pictures of this area when I browse but had no luck to find the name of the area. It was much prettier seeing it with my own eyes for real.
And that's how we ended our day here. We went to the bus stop and there were so many official staffs wearing orange outfit that will help you, especially about bus route guide. But you can ask them about any other travel information. The staffs are mostly old people, but I was impressed with their English skill which is very good. At the end, I didn't realise our apartment was that close from Shijo Kawaramachi, it was only two stops away!
Too bad I only had one day to spend in Kyoto. I believe there is still much to see and explore. I recommend to travel around the city by bus since you can do sightseeing as well. Traveling by bus here is actually quite easy and you could always ask people or even the driver. I was having a lovely day for sure and will definitely come back to Kyoto.
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