The roads are lined with little shops selling souvenirs, pottery, stationary, and food, of course. Hopping in and out of the shops, you forget that you're walking uphill, all the while buying trinkets and indulging in treats. Such as a custard filled pastries.
The Yasaka Pagoda is a short stroll off the main drag.
At the top, Kiyomizu-dera juts out from the side of the hill and provides great views of Kyoto among the cherry blossoms.
Kyoto is packed with UNESCO World Heritage sights, but I think between the architecture, the views, and the unique shopping experience, Kiyomizu-dera is a must-see.
A couple more pretty shots from the Kiyomizu-dera grounds:
On the way back down the hill, we had a sesame-honey ice cream cone.
Seriously, might have been the best ice cream I've ever had. Never thought the best ice cream in the world would be in Asia. However, I still have a few more continents to hit.
Also on the way back down, we saw Samurai Dog.
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| This Pekingese comes fully equipped with a Samurai sword. |
So cute. A co-worker went to Kyoto last year and showed me a picture of Samurai Dog, so I was especially happy to see that he continues to battle on, bringing a smile to tourist faces.
We ate lunch at a little hole-in-the-wall place, the sign on the door merely said, "grill." The man that ran the restaurant was an excellent photographer and he was kind enough to let us browse his impressive photo books as we waited for our food. He told us which temples' cherry blossoms were in bloom, helping us to choose possible itineraries for our days to come.
And, fortunately for us, he was also talented at his day job, running the restaurant.
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| I had a crab croquette, fried sole filet, and egg-coated shrimp. I love variety. |
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| I don't remember what Hubs had, something inspired by the "grill" sign on the door. |
2 meals = 2000 Y.
After lunch we relaxed and napped at the guest house and slept for longer than we intended. It was dark by the time we went back outside. We walked to the Kodai-ji temple, which is lit up at night.
The grounds are lovely, and perhaps night isn't the best time to see them, but there are strategically placed lights, which make it unique. There was a small pond that was stunning.
Yes, that is a reflection. For some reason it felt like Christmas to me. Adding to the Christmas feel was a bamboo garden, which was truly magical at night.
A little eerie and surreal.
If you go to Kodai-ji at night, be sure to take a stroll down nearby Ishibe-Koji, a cobblestone alley that leads to a quiet, traditional neighborhood. If you like that romantic nonsense. I love it.
No tourists. It reminded me of Venice in the winter, after midnight (the way it felt, not the way it looked).
And then it was time for dinner. We didn't know what we were in the mood for, so we relied on our fail safe, okonomiyaki. We walked into a small basement restaurant that was filled with locals.
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| Customers were watching a game show. |
We sat at a table with the flat top grill in the middle. This okonomiyaki was extra saucy with pork.
And potatoes with lots of ooey-gooey cheese.
We also had 2 Kirin drafts. I loved the vibe of the place. It felt like a townie bar.
On our way back to Tanaka-ya, we saw another geisha on the street that we dubbed Geisha Row. It was the street one block east of the Kamo River on Miyakawa-cho Dori, north of Matsubara Dori until the road ends.
We saw a geisha almost every time we walked down Miyakawa-cho Dori at night. They usually caught us off guard and we wanted to go unnoticed as we photographed them. We didn't want to be disrespectful and chase them around.
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| Ghost Geisha |
Thus, our geisha photos aren't going to win any Pulitzer's. I'm just thankful for all the geisha sightings we had. Even without photography mishaps, there's something otherworldly about them.
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