Our Sunday began with a light drizzle and 44 degrees Fahrenheit. It stopped raining and warmed up a few degrees as we left our lodging to begin the first adventure of the day.
Kyoto sits in a bowl with protective hills, each of which is considered a “natural guardian” of the city. Yesterday we visited the famous Kiyomizu Buddhist temple in the foothills to the east of city center. Today, we traveled to the foothills on the west side of the city to see a bamboo forest, zen gardens, and some Japanese macaques.
The 5 Adventurers like to take local public transportation whenever practical and we found the Kyoto city subway and surface train network to be highly navigable and convenient. We had heard stories of white-gloved Japanese subway workers who pushed commuters onto trains to pack riders as closely as possible.
Today was not a day for commuters and we had no problem finding comfortable seats for the trip to Arashiyama.
The trip took us on the subway for most of the trip, and then we transferred to a street tram for the remainder. The all-day pass purchased for 800 yen (~$5) became less of a deal after discovering that the above ground system has a different rate structure than the below ground network. So…the all day pass was a little less valuable for us. Adventuring = learning!
Once we arrived at Arashiyama to explore the bamboo forest, we discovered the crowds of tourists.
There were a number of storefronts in the area which sold and rented kimonos. Apparently, this is a common tradition in Japan. There were a lot of organized photos being taken of Japanese couples and individuals wearing the traditional dress. These photos are typically set against the backdrop of a famous temple.
The Tenryu-ji temple complex is adjacent to the Sogenchi Gardens which were the first stop on our morning tour. This zen garden is among the oldest in Japan and was named a World Cultural Heritage site in 1994.
Japan had some warmer weather this summer, so Autumn has been slightly delayed. In spite of this, the changing colors of the leaves continues to delight us. The ginko trees and the Japanese maples were especially vibrant.
We captured a number of lovely images of the trees and gardens but are certain that these won’t translate as well for the blog. Here’s a selection of some of them anyway.
The kids’ tolerance for nature walks exceeds their tolerance for temples…but only marginally. We got them excited for the day by promoting the Ayashima Monkey Park which was also on the day’s itinerary. We put it last to keep them going and started by letting them vend their first dose of Japanese Fanta – a staple treat at home and abroad.
The guidance for visitors to the Monkey Park was clear and repeated in images and signs along the 20 minute uphill hike to the reserve.
Don’t worry, we took plenty of pictures. In fact, these were all taken by Suaram who tried to maintain 6 foot “social distancing” but these little guys kept moving in and out of our personal bubbles.
The kids took turns feeding them peanuts from inside a protective hut in a twist on the old “animals in the cage, humans outside”. The monkeys didn’t swarm the humans after they left the protection of the feeding hut, so it must be a good strategy.
Speaking of feeding, the parents gave the kids the night off from touring and went for an adult dinner of Wagyu steak and Okonomiyaki.
We logged about 17k steps today, so it’s probably a good time to get to bed. Tomorrow, we depart for Tokyo!
Bonus Game: While reviewing the photos taken today, B&T realized they inadvertently recreated an oldie but a goodie. Let’s see if you can guess which photo was taken today and which was taken 17 years ago this week.
My how time flies!
5 Adventures Together 