Kyoto

• Kyoto is huge. Plan ahead on what are the top sites you want to visit. Top three in my list were Kiyomizu-dera, Kinkaku-ji & Fushimi Inari-Taisha.
• Expect a lot of walk. Even if you reach the gates of one of the attractions, the walk inside will be tiring but worth it.
• Take Kyoto Day Pass which includes transport and entry to some of the main shrines. For food, the restaurants near the river are best.

Kyoto is beautiful. At the heart of Japan, nestled with temples, spotted with shrines and bifurcated by a river, the city is duly called the spiritual capital of Japan. We reached Kyoto through a super fast train from Osaka early morning and immediately started moving towards the Kinkaku-ji Temple. It is one of the showstoppers among the famous temples of Kyoto. Known for the gold-leaf structure and located at the centre of a placid lake, the temple was indeed teeming with selfie lovers as we arrived.

Kinkaku-ji Temple

I left my wallet at the ticket window and had to rush back for it. As it is with Japan, you can drop a bundle of cash and anyone will only touch it to deposit it with local authorities. I found my wallet intact and moved further. Our next stop was Kyoto Imperial Palace. The place is one of the few free places of entries we enjoyed in Japan. The other one I remember is visit to the top of Tokyo Metropolitan Building.

The area of Gion, Kyoto

Kyoto Imperial Palace is huge and amazingly preserved for an old palace. There are guided tours available but we decided to take a free tour. Mostly divided into large structures within a palatial complex, the first to grab our attention was a massive one called Carriage Porch. Although all structures were built with natural materials, this one was more decorated, built for a special event. The Hall of Rites & Rituals was the most captivating structure with huge thatched slanted roof and a grand foreground. 

Hall of Rites & Rituals, Kyoto Imperial Palace

We moved out and towards the river. The area of Gion was charming in the old Japanese architecture. The coffee chain called Duotor was our saviour in Japan as it sells american style bread and coffee which co-incidentally is what Indians like. We settled for a light lunch and then crossed the river for a journey uphill. There are two famous buddhist temples at the upper reaches of Kyoto down south across the river - Fushimi Inari Taisha & Kiyomizu Dera.

Building material for almost everything in ancient Japan

First comes Kiyomizu Dera right at the top of a sloping road that may well be a pleasant walk. The kind of crowd we found here, was comparable with Miyajima only. The temple complex itself is massive and elaborate. We took some pictures and then moved to Fushimi ward. By the time we came on the road that lead to Fushimi, it was getting dark and hence we decided to skip it and leave for Osaka. It was a right decision, and as we realized Kyoto is not possible to cover in a day.

Kiyomizu Dera, Kyoto

Osaka was as bustling as we had left it earlier today. Our hotel at the edge of the city overlooking the Universal Studios was among the best things that happened to us and we simply sat at the edge of our room to see the amusement park and made our dinner with ready-to-make food we had brought from India.