Autumn colours in Japan + coughtails by the pool in Fiji

[drron]

In Kyoto last December and in August 2023 we travelled around by Metro which was less crowded than busses and stops convenient to most tourist spots. Pretty cheap too.

 

[rbjhan]

As beautiful as it is, Kyoto in peak season is nightmareish.....and getting worse by the day!
Sigh....

 

[rbjhan]

In Kyoto last December and in August 2023 we travelled around by Metro which was less crowded than busses and stops convenient to most tourist spots. Pretty cheap too.

I rented a bike ha ha
Kyoto's metro is way too limited sadly...

 

[drron]

But I have no balance and can't ride a bike. I managed to get to what I wanted by Metro though some times with a 20 minute + walk. but i find the walk interesting and enjoyable.

 

[Drakecula]

But I have no balance and can't ride a bike. I managed to get to what I wanted by Metro though some times with a 20 minute + walk. but i find the walk interesting and enjoyable.

We have been doing a LOT of walking. But like you say, the walks are quite enjoyable.

 

[rbjhan]

We have been doing a LOT of walking. But like you say, the walks are quite enjoyable.

Yeah I was averaging about 30K steps per day in Kyoto.
But then my ankle said NO

It will be interesting next trip, Feb is not exactly bike friendly weather...

 

[Drakecula]

What's that? More temples and autumn leaves? Yes please! Another day in Kyoto, another day where my feet feel like they're falling off. Worth it though.

We were stopped a couple of times by students practicing their English. One asked what my favourite animal was and giggled when I said cows.

Some places visited today include Kiyomizu-dera, Ninenzaka, Kodaiji Temple, Chionin Temple, Maruyama Park, Yasaka Shrine (where we saw a wedding party getting photos), Gion (no geiko/mako spotted) and Nishiki market.

We also popped into see Shoseien garden lit up in the dark for a special exhibition which was pretty neat.

27,000 steps today... Seems like it's time for a soak in the awesome cypress bath again.

 

[rbjhan]

Damn that picture on Ninenzaka does my headache!
Did you go into that Starbucks?

 

[Drakecula]

Damn that picture on Ninenzaka does my headache!
Did you go into that Starbucks?

No we didn't. Should we have? I'm not a coffee drinker so Starbucks isn't on my radar, I just liked how they'd styled it to fit in with the street.

 

[Drakecula]

We left Kyoto this morning and have arrived back in Tokyo. The shinkansen was bumpier than I expected, but managed not to spill my bento box lunch. Took a snap of Tokyo station. Not sure we saw the outside of it on our last visit.

We're staying at the Mercure Hibiya (another deal I got through Accor Plus) which is located right next to major train lines. Thankfully not too noisy from our room which is on that side.

Cool art deco theming inside.

 

[rbjhan]

No we didn't. Should we have? I'm not a coffee drinker so Starbucks isn't on my radar, I just liked how they'd styled it to fit in with the street.

Starbucks has nothing to do with coffee

But in Japan there are many very pretty stores! I am very much a fan of the design...
This particular one has tatami rooms upstairs.
The one and only.

 

[Drakecula]

Starbucks has nothing to do with coffee

But in Japan there are many very pretty stores! I am very much a fan of the design...
This particular one has tatami rooms upstairs.
The one and only.View attachment 416903

Oh that's cool!

 

[Drakecula]

Being the Harry Potter fan I am, I couldn't go past seeing the area in Akasaka done up where The Cursed Child play is held. There's theming around the station exit, a cafe and a store. I'd never seen most of the merch at that store! But I was good and only bought two things.

Then back to a restaurant we'd been to on our 2016 visit, Tonki's, for delicious pork tonkatsu. It looked exactly the same. Highly recommend this place and it'll be on our list to visit on a future trip to Tokyo. On the way out we saw a stretch of the river all lit up with pink lights.

 

[rbjhan]

Oh that's cool!

That picture was taken Feb 2020, store was not busy. Hell the whole city of Kyoto was not busy.
I doubt anyone would be able to find the tatami room empty now....

 

[masco131]

That picture were taken Feb 2020, store was not busy. Hell the whole city of Kyoto was not busy.
I doubt anyone would be able to find the tatami room empty now....

No way you can get any seat there now. I went there twice in sept, two days in a row and people were always there.

 

[rbjhan]

No way you can get any seat there now. I went there twice in sept, two days in a row and people were always there.

No probably not.
That time was (hopefully) an once in a lifetime experience....as I named my TR "Zombie Apocalypse"...but hey at least I got to see Kyoto without people!

 

[Drakecula]

A quieter day today, but still lots of adventures! We headed to Ueno park for a walk where we found ourselves at a koi show, check out the grand champion! I'm very curious how they get the huge fish from their temporary tanks to portable ones. Huge scoopy nets? Big plastic bags? Small cranes?

I know I've been enjoying all the autumn leaves, but we saw one cherry blossom tree that's forgotten what season it is. Best of both worlds today!

After the park we then meandered down to Akihabara. This is an area known for games and there's a lot of retro stores. They block the main street off in the afternoon which was fun. Was weird walking down the middle of a main road.

 

[drron]

The flowering tree was possibly a Japanese plum. some do start flowering in January so still early.
If it had a fragrance it is a plum tree. cherry blossoms usually don't have a fragance.

 

[Drakecula]

The flowering tree was possibly a Japanese plum. some do start flowering in January so still early.
If it had a fragrance it is a plum tree. cherry blossoms usually don't have a fragance.

Ah okay, either way it was pretty

 

[rbjhan]

That's probably plum.
Sakura petals have long petioles. Also there's more than one blossom coming out of a bud.