Japan - Kyoto

We were excited to get the Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo to Kyoto although a large Japanese fellow was not happy about our big rucksacks filling up the limited luggage space at the back of the carriage.

Kyoto is one of Japan's most ancient cities and used to be the capital city until Emperor Meiji moved it to Tokyo in 1868. It was quite a few degrees cooler than Tokyo and our coldest stop so far meaning we had to break out the gloves and Sarah could justify that possum scarf she purchased in New Zealand.

Our first stop was the Fushimi Inari Taisha shrine with its many red walkways of shinto arches. Outside was a food market where Sarah tried the local bean curd custard sweet. She loved it... me, not so much. We then explored the Higashiyama area on foot. Temples are plentiful in this area and in Gion, we spied a few girls dressed in full Geisha paraphernalia.

We had lunch by the river and then tried some sake in a tiny bar just off the beaten track.

The following day we walked the beautiful bamboo groves and then visited the Kinkakuji temple with its golden pavilion. All too soon it was time to return to Tokyo.