3 Weeks in Japan - The Post COVID Version!

[rbjhan]

Finally arrived at Kyoto!
Quickly pop in the tourist info centre, looked like I would have some nice momiji viewing!


Booked Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Kawaramachi Jokyoji (There are several Mitsui Garden Hotels in Kyoto so I need to spell out the full name )

Room is spacious by Japanese business hotel standards
But why can't they put in a normal desk and chair or sofa?! Damn I hate that little table and stool with a passion.


Also, there is no washing machine here, nearest coin laundry is 10 min walk away...I don't recommend this one...

Okay mini rant over, dinner time!
I booked this restaurant on IKYU, same website I used for most of my Japanese hotel bookings.
It was an Omi Beef special.


Very rare you see a female head chef in Japan!


beef noodles...


Beef and taro soup






It's all beef...you get the idea

This was a fantastic meal!
And they tried their best with English, I also tried my Japanese, we managed some reasonable conversation ha ha.
One of them recommended the Light Up program in Kodai-ji, I went the next day (it was excellent!)

The restaurant is on one of the most beautiful streets of Kyoto。

 

[rbjhan]

So the next morning I decided to go to Jingo-ji 神護寺 in Takao. It's not in Kyoto city centre, probably why I've never been before!
Mt Takao is situated northwest of Kyoto city. Bus ride takes about 1 hour - so if you want to go, at least plan half a day.
Jingo-ji is quite famous for early season autumn colours, which is why I chose it. However, fair warning, the way up to the temple is physically daunting and not suitable for everyone.

The bus stop was actually on another hill, so first you need to go down to the valley.
Colours were already beautiful.


Once you are at the bottom of the valley, the stone steps leading up to Jingo-ji begins...
It's up and up and up....


And here's another mini rant. Face mask and physical activities, not a good match!
However every single Japanese I saw were masked up, so I was hesitant to take mine off
I have come across many foreigners in Kyoto city centre happily walking around sans mask though, I just don't want to be one of those...

Anyways, when you see the teahouses, it's close!


Finally got in! Oh I didn't want to think about later I would need to go back the same way...
But it is worth the effort!


Then ofc more stairs! If you want to go to the Kondo, that is.
You weren't expecting anything else right?!


Reward for all the climbing.

 

[rbjhan]

I was tired, put it mildly...
So stop at one of the teahouses for some matcha and wagashi.


And then go down and down and down!

Finally came to the bottom and saw the river again...


Now just need to go up the other hill to get back to the bus!
Oh boy, there are two other famous temples in Takao, Kosan-ji and Saimyo-ji, they were in my original plans. Suffice to say it had since been changed!

Mascot of Takao, let's bid farewell here, it was nice (and exhausting!) meeting you.

 

[RooFlyer]

Fab-o!

 

[rbjhan]

So after the unexpected cut short of Takao trip, I had another half day to kill, where to?
Arashiyama, I thought would be good...(well it wasn't!)

Took JR bus back to Kyoto, I rehearsed a few times but did manage to ask the bus driver where to get off if I want to transfer to Randen, success!

Arashiyama was not a good choice though...sooooo many people.....especially near Randen station & Tenryu-ji area!
I rented a bike and rode to Jojakko-ji, it was pretty but nowhere near its best.




If you are wondering what "best" is, please check out my 2017 trip report here.

And every single restaurant had a queue outside. I couldn't be pissed....had konbini lunch instead


Decided I couldn't handle the crowds anymore, rode away from Arashiyama central area...
Once get away from the craziness, it was very nice and tranquil.


Bike riding in Japan it's always good (just don't do it in Tokyo!).

 

[rbjhan]

You know what, dinner time again!

This was a tempura restaurant in Gion, booked via IKYU again.
Very small space, only six counter seats. And the owner/chef does everything himself (not like he can fit anyone else inside to be fair).


Soup


No menu here, he did show me everything prior to frying.


Just a few pictures, coz let's be honest, tempura is not the most photogenic cuisine!






Delicious and only 7000 Yen!

Oh, the owner did not speak English. In fact the first thing he asked when I arrived was, do you speak Japanese? I was like, a little?
Anyways, I tried very hard, and we avoided staring blank at each other for the whole meal (the other diners finished and left shortly after my arrival). He even praised my Japanese ha ha 日本語は上手ですね!

 

[rbjhan]

This day was not finished yet!
Remember I was tipped to go to Kodai-ji? Sure enough I went!

They had a light show in the main hall & garden going. It was excellent, watched 3 times!
Please bear with me...quality was not good I don't normally record videos...but I really wanted to record this one!!

A still of the show


Other parts of Kodai-ji






I can see why the Japanese love these light up programs so much now...

 

[rbjhan]

I had a VERY full day planned for Friday, so decided to take it a bit easy Thursday...

Breakfast at Sukiya.


Maybe my memory is playing tricks...but I remember the days when hotel breakfast buffet cost 500 or 800...nowadays it's rare to see anything below 1500！
And why would I pay that when I can have the above at Sukiya for 520?!

Haven't been to Kiyomizudera since 2014, maybe it's time...


Wow, it was even more breathtakingly beautiful than I remembered!


I came just at the right time for the autumn colours.






Got a very pretty Shuin here too! (it's the one on the left)

 

[rbjhan]

Tsujiri Tea House is one of my favourites, had one of their seasonal specials.


Travler's Factory Kyoto shop.


Their Kyoto special edition products! Unfortunately the cover is sold out


Really love their display


Yayoiken, my favourite Japanese fast food chain! This set was 820 iirc.


Also bought Matcha Daifuku

 

[rbjhan]

Afternoon I was mostly in LOFT and Tokyu Hands, so let's fast forward to dinner.

Mouriya Gion
Mouriya is a famous Kobe beef restaurant, booked the Gion branch via Pocket Concierge (AMEX dining credit available).

This is what 150g of Kobe beef looks like


Cooking in progress!


Onto my plate.


Their dessert was very good - I don't say that a lot in Japanese restaurants...odd considering I love 喫茶店!
*喫茶店, Kissaten, roughly translated to be a teahouse I guess? More or less like a cafe here...

 

[rbjhan]

Friday rolled around. Like I said I had a very busy schedule already planned. No leisurely breakfast, quick ate what I bought previous night from Konbini and off I went.
Took Keihan line from Gion Shijo to Demachiyanagi, then changed to Eizan Railways to Yase Hieizanguchi.

Pro tip: Kyoto buses are great, but during peak season there can be significant delays. Get on the metro or private railways if you can.


First stop is Ruriko-in.
This little temple has been getting more and more popular solely due to their 2nd floor view reflected on its big, polished table - I am not kidding! You'll see why.

Sometime during COVID they started an online reservation system, and it booked out in no time at all! I kept refreshing hoping to catch somebody's cancellation, finally it came through about 2 weeks before departure.

My allocated timeslot was 9:20 to 9:40, I wasn't sure what it meant, surely they can't boot you out after 20 mins?!

I arrived at about 9:05, two queues were already in place. One for the 9 to 9:20 crowds, the other for us!


That's when I realised the time is your entrance time. Coz they checked the reservations one by one carefully, crossing it off their printed list, then you go up to the booth to hand over 2000 Yen for the ticket. It does take 20 mins or so to process 100 people!

And yes, it's 2000 Yen! The most I've paid for any temple (Shinto Shrines are free to enter afaik).

So what are we actually paying? This.

Of course I took about 20 more or less the same pictures but no one needs to see them, really.

And this is how it was done!


Is it worth it?
Hmm, difficult question. Probably not for most. Ruriko-in is not in an easy location, only opens twice a year during Spring(Sakura) and Autumn(Momiji). Together with the price tag, only go if you are in Kyoto in the right time and REALLY want that picture, or like me have been to almost everywhere else..

 

[rbjhan]

Back to Eizan Railways and got off at Ichijoji.
Second stop was Enko-ji 圓光寺.

There's also an online reservation system, but here you can actually still walk up and buy a ticket to get in - just need to go behind those who have reservations.

Compared to the very organised operations at Ruriko-in, I was not impressed by Enko-ji
No one was directing foot traffic (and trust me, for that many people you need it!),
Their famous Jugyu-no-niwa was total chaos.

Not only people were sitting everywhere, but there were also others walking right in front...


FYI, this is the one on their website!


Bah, I'm gonna say they took it before opening.

There's a small hill behind the garden, views on top are much better - and not many people climb up there!


Yep this is a NO.

 

[rbjhan]

Ichijoji is a famous ramen battleground in Kyoto...Naturally I had to try some!


After the ramen, back onto Eizan railways and this time all the way to Kurama鞍馬.
Last time I was here (also 2014), I was a little too late and didn't go up to the main temple hall.
Obviously I was not going to make the same mistake again!

Took the cable car (200 one way cash only) to save some energy. It wouldbe 30 to 40 mins climb if you do it the hard way...


Still some stairs left though.


Main hall.


Behind the building there's a hiking trail through the forest all the way to Kibune. I wanted to try but the knee was not cooperating at the time...sigh

 

[rbjhan]

So back down the mountain and onto Eizan railways to Kibuneguchi, from there you can walk or take a bus to Kibune貴船.

Kifune Shrine is dedicated to the god of water. Here you can have a special omikuji that reveals itself when drop into water...no I didn't try it...

This is the entrance from Kibune side to that hiking trail I talked about before....maybe next time!


Got hungry on the way, bought a hot corn soup from vending machine. I love the vending machines in Japan!


Kifune Shrine


The famous stone lanterns!


Eizan Kibuneguchi station.


Shuin of the day, left Kifune Shrine, right Kurama-dera.

 

[rbjhan]

Not sure when I would get back from the mountains so didn't book dinner. This quickly became a problem as every restaurant had a queue...

I decided to have Ichiran ramen first


Then at 10pm went out again for Yakitori!

 

[rbjhan]

Last day in Kyoto!

Went to Issey Miyake


I really like their bags...


There was also an exhibition going on...


Kaisendon for lunch.


Later I had Chestnut Mont Blanc!! Unbelievably good.


Captured the sunset at Kyoto Station.


The famous stairs in Kyoto Station...

 

[rbjhan]

Off to Okayama.


Booked Dormy Inn Okayama which opened in Aug this year.
Overall a very good hotel with reasonable prices, slightly further away from Okayama station but still within walking distance. Plus I love Dormy Inns, ha ha.



Tonkatsu for dinner!

'
But I'll never say no to their free ramen


There are also free drinks in the lobby, tea, coffee and soft drinks.


And washing machines! Remember I had all my laundry to do from Kyoto...

 

[rbjhan]

The next morning I went to Kibitsu Shrine 吉備津神社.
Honestly, I didn't know much about it before this trip! But saw a picture of its long corridor and decided to go!
You can see the corridor from their map


No such thing as to visit a Shrine without stairs I guess?


This is the main hall with its unique double gable roof.
I caught the end of some ceremony and there were a bunch of kids in traditional costumes and their parents...


And the corridor!


Caught this on my way back...


Overall I really like this shrine.
Those in Kyoto are nice, but damn they can be so crowded!

 

[rbjhan]

Went back to Okayama Station for lunch (not much around Kibitsu, this is real Japanese countryside!)
This was very good although it didn't look like much...


Then went to Kurashiki 倉敷.
Kurashiki is famous for its preserved Edo period canal area.

It is indeed very pretty.




Can even take a boat ride...

Ohara museum


This is a ryokan I think...


Achi Shrine

 

[rbjhan]

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