Thanksgiving In Kyoto

So I know this trip happened around five months ago, but its better late than never right?! I was lucky enough to have some time off over Thanksgiving last year, so I took full advantage and booked a trip to Kyoto! I made sure to bring my buddy Tim along as my tour guide (he has lived in Tokyo for 3 years now and has been to Kyoto several times). I was very thankful that he wanted to come on this adventure with me because he knew what was worth checking out, and the best ways to get around town. Tim = MVP! Anyways, Kyoto is a large city to the south of Tokyo and it is best reached by bullet train! This was very exciting for me because these trains go around 200 mph! They use magnets to levitate and propel themselves across the country. It was about an hour and a half bullet train ride from Tokyo to Kyoto and it basically felt like we were floating the entire way there. The trains have refreshments, wifi, bathrooms, smoking rooms, and honestly pretty comfy seats. It was overall a pretty fast and fun way to travel. Another first for me on this trip was staying at a hostel. I had never done this before, but it was actually a pretty sweet set up. We were in a 4 person bunk room, and got to meet some cool people from all over the world! The hostel was very affordable and it sits above a bar so that was a nice added perk. Since Kyoto has so much to offer I am going to split this post up into two parts. First the sights, and second the food!

SIGHTS

First up is the beautiful fall colors! The leaves were in full color change mode while we were in Kyoto and it was spectacular. Check these pictures out!

Outside of the fantastic fall colors Kyoto is know as the temple capitol of Japan, and I soon found out why. It seemed as if there was a temple or shrine on every street corner. They were everywhere! There are two main religions in Japan. Shintoism and Buddhism. Shintoism originated in Japan and is a polytheistic religion meaning that they believe in many gods. Buddhism originated in India, and was brought to Japan. Buddhism worships a single god, Buddha. Both religions are widespread throughout Japan and many people believe in parts of each one. Kyoto is no exception. There are Buddhist Temples and Shinto Shrines intermixed all over the city.

The first shrine that we ventured to was called the Heian Shrine. We ended up hitting the shrine right at golden hour so we were able to get some pretty good pictures. Inside the shrines there are normally giant open courtyards with elegant walls surrounding them. Then, in the very back of the courtyard is the actual shrine itself. The Japanese people will go to the back part of the shrine, toss a coin in a box say a quick prayer, clap, ring a bell, bow, and be on their merry way. Most of the shrines and temples also sell small wooden decorated prayer tablets that you can write a prayer on and hang up on display.

The next day we decided to head to the golden temple called Kinkaku-Ji. This is one of the most famous Buddhist temples in all of Japan. The outside of the temple is coated with thin gold, and it sits on the bank of a scenic lake. This was a very popular tourist destination, and although my pictures show no people, I was surrounded by people when I was taking them. Luckily, the crowds do not deter from this temple, and it is definitely a must see in Kyoto! There were even some huge fish swimming around the temple in the lake which added a nice touch.

Later that day we ventured to my favorite temple in all of Japan. It is called the Kiyomizudera Temple and it sits on top of a hill overlooking the city of Kyoto. We once again timed it just right to reach the temple at the golden hour and were able to get some great pictures as the sun was setting. In order to get to the temple, you have to walk uphill through a bustling street with lots of vendors and shops.

I ended up grabbing a vanilla ice cream cone on my way up to the temple which ended up being a great decision. After you traverse the busy street, it opens up to the temple at the top of the hill. Kiyomizudera is a rather large temple with one prominent red tower, and a large brown building behind it. Unfortunately the brown building was under repair and had scaffolding all around it. The red tower was very iconic and provided for some great pictures.

If you keep exploring past the tower and the brown building, there is a path to get to the other side of the mountain where you can get a great vantage point of the temple, with the city of Kyoto below. This view was probably my favorite of the whole trip. It has fall colors, mountains, cities, and intricate Japanese temples. Beautiful.

The next temple I am going to cover is called Ryoanji temple. This temple however is most famous for the large zen rock garden that it has inside of it. The rock garden contains 15 large rocks on display around a sea of raked white pebbles. This garden attracts many visitors who enjoy sitting in peace and relaxing at this very calming spot. Everyone was very quiet and it seemed to be a place to sit and meditate. To get to the rock garden, one must traverse a scenic pathway that winds through a beautiful forest of changing leaves and singing birds. There is also a famous lake tucked away in the forest that provided some great views.

Moving on now. The next location of interest is called the Fushimi Inari Shrine. This is located in southern Kyoto and it is quite unique. This shrine has thousands of Torii Gates lined up along a path to the top of the mountain. Torii Gates are always found at Japanese shinto shrines and once you pass through them it is supposed to be a transformation from mundane to sacred. Usually there is one maybe two Torii gates at a shrine, but the Fushimi Inari has thousands of them. There is a beautiful trail that takes about 2-3 hours to complete that winds its way up a mountain to the top of the shrine. The entire path is covered with Torii Gates and creates a really cool visual. The farther along the path you get, the less crowded it becomes as people give up and don’t make it to the top. All along the way up there are great views of the city below, but the true sight is the endless Torii Gates.

The gates come in all sizes, but they generally all have the same look. There are also some monkeys that can be found on this trail, but watch out! The monkeys we saw were very aggressive and would actually attack people who would get to close. I decided to have a small photo shoot near the top and I am hoping that these pictures will help jump start my modeling career.

Alright, I know you guys are just waiting to get to the food section, but I have one more location to share first. The last location is called the Zenrin-ji Temple. This temple is one that is best visited at night. During the fall, the Japanese have filled the temple and surrounding area with lights to show off the beautiful fall colors at night. This was the go to spot for young Japanese couples on date night, and Tim and I felt quite uncomfortable walking around as two white dudes in the midst of hundreds of Japanese couples. At least we both know of a cool place to bring a date next time we are in Kyoto! Non the less the views made up for it. There is a lake in the middle of the park and the lights reflect off of the water and glisten off of the leaves to create cool visual effects. The pictures do not do it justice, I guess you guys will just have to go there in person to experience it yourself.

FOOD

Now its time to go over the most important part of any adventure. The food! Kyoto has all kinds of delicious Japanese food and drink to satisfy any pallet. The first meal I had once we arrived was a sushi feast! The chef prepared all of our sushi right in front of us from scratch. We each ordered the sampler package which included around 10 different rounds of various sushi. We ate crab, shrimp, scallops, eel, tuna, salmon, and other raw fishes. It was really cool to get such a wide variety.

My favorite meal however was steak. But not just any steak, it was a premium Japanese Wagyu beef steak. This steak was breaded and fried and served with several delicious sauces and rice. This beef was unlike anything I had ever tasted before. It melted in your mouth, was super tender, and exploding with flavor. It was hands down the best steak I have ever had.

Also, I can’t talk about Japanese food without mentioning ramen. We went to a modern style ramen joint that specialized in chicken ramen as opposed to the much more common pork style ramen. Their main choices were white or black ramen which corresponded to salt or soy sauce based broth. We got one of each and tried them both. They did not disappoint. There was a line out the door for this place and it was well worth the wait!

The last food I want to highlight is okonomiyaki, or a savory style Japanese pancake filled with choice of meat and veggies. Okonomiyaki is normally cooked right in front of you on a hot griddle. The chefs will pour a batter on the griddle and then add meat, usually seafood of some kind, veggies, and various sauces. Once the pancake thingy is cooked they cut it up into square pieces and you eat it right off of the griddle. They can be a little fishy for my liking but the overall experience is definitely worth it!

Last but not least I want to highlight a really cool bar we found in Kyoto. The entrance was hidden, and you had to open a door that looked like a shelf of booze to get inside. Once inside there was a high end bar with fancy cocktails. My favorite drink was a coffee espresso martini that was made with dry ice, and produced a ton of smoke as the bartender mixed it up and served it. It was really cool, and each of their signature drinks had a special twist.

That about does it for my Kyoto post. It was a great trip and I plan on going back to visit again before I leave Japan. There are still some sights that I want to check out, and more places to explore. Thanks for reading, and here is one more picture to finish this post off.