[Trip Report] – Part 1

Hi all!

I’ll start this off with a disclaimer that this is my fourth trip to Japan, and I am here for **62 days**, so I have both gotten a lot of the top tourist draws out of the way already in Tokyo and Kyoto, and can afford the time to take it slow and check off specific personal goals. As such, this report won’t cover basics and will not go into great detail over the most famous sights. This may not be particularly helpful for first-time travellers, and you can refer to my notes to see if you can skip this report.

Due to the length of my trip, I’m splitting this up into multiple parts so I don’t have to rely on my goldfish memory of what I did and ate months later, can fit it into Reddit’s character limit, and you don’t have to read a wall of text.

**📖 General Itinerary 📖 p. 1**

* Apr 3: Arrive at Kansai International Airport. Transfer to Kyoto.
* Apr 4: Day trip to Himeji, Kurashiki, Ohara Museum of Art
* Apr 5: Arashiyama, Okochi Sanso, Iwateyama, wagashi workshop in Sagano
* Apr 6: Day trip to Nara
* Apr 7: Saiho-ji/Koke-dera
* Apr 8: Kyo-Odori at the Shunjuza theatre, check-in to ryokan in the afternoon
* Apr 9: Depart for Tokyo, check-in to hotel in Tokyo. Met with friend for dinner at what may be Tokyo’s only Ainu izakaya.
* Apr 10: Kimono rental, dressing, and photoshoot for my mom. Escort to airport and swap for my SO. Return to Kyoto.

**Additional Notes and Preparations**:

The duration of my stay encompasses some of the busiest seasons for Kyoto. I’ve been in the city during both New Year’s and Golden Week before, and planned to avoid the worst of the crowds, and for the most part have been successful, but I am also prepared to elbow my way through one if need be.

For this part of my trip, I am accompanied by one other person: my mother from April 3rd to April 10th, and my SO from April 10th to April 23rd, which I will cover in Part 2.

Due to the length of my stay and the fact that I have a revolving roster of guests at varying points during my trip, I opted for a short term house rental instead of an AirBnB or hotel, as it saved me significantly more money in the long run even when it was empty while I was staying in other accommodations or out of town. It also came with the benefit of a fully equipped kitchen and laundry. Renting in Japan is difficult for foreigners, and is neither necessary nor recommended under normal circumstances. More on my other accommodations below.

Save for three notable occasions, I largely stick to walking and public transit and can not drive or ride a bike. I averaged around 18000 steps per day on this leg of the trip, peaking at around 22000. Notably most of the places we went were easy to walk, numbers aside. My elderly mother did not have issue with this, but I had accounted for breaks and lots of sitting as well. I also usually try to make a visit to an onsen or bath before too long to soak those achey muscles. With the overcrowding issue on public transit, particularly on routes that go through tourist hotspots, a bike is really good for getting around Kyoto in particular.

We didn’t have a set daily budget, but I personally budgeted about $6000 CAD for April 3rd – 23rd, including accommodations and airfare. This was my mother’s belated retirement trip, so she was looking to treat herself, but she was also ill-prepared with the amount of cash she brought, despite my warnings that a lot of places in Japan still only take cash, *and* had left her JPY loaded card back home, aside from activities and restaurants we had pre-booked, we tried to keep a smaller budget than originally anticipated. In major cities, ATMs and currency exchanges are easily accessible, but please be aware that there are still many attractions, shops, and restaurants that are cash only, particularly if you are outside of urban centres and tourist hotspots.

One thing I didn’t do that I learned pretty fast would have saved me a lot of headaches with such a long stay is invest in a Japanese sim card *with a phone number*. If you’re here for a short visit, this is not at all necessary, but a lot of accounts and purchases I needed to make required one, so if you’re staying more than a month, consider purchasing one.

# Part 1- Kyoto (kind of)

**Day 1: Arrival**

We arrived at KIX airport from Hong Kong International at around 4:30 PM in the afternoon (early!).

By the time we get out of the airport, it’s 8:00 PM at night. We had been warned prior that at times of congestion, it would take 2-3 hours to get past customs, but I also want to emphasize that this is definitely on the more extreme end. There were several causes: it was still cherry blossom season, it was just ahead of Easter weekend, which is a holiday in several places dotting the Pacific rim, none of the staff at the airport we encountered were able to communicate effectively in English, my mother doesn’t know any Japanese, and she did not have the screenshot of her VJW vaccination approval or know how to connect to airport wifi, adding at least one unnecessary queue to our exit procedure. A few days later, right on the cusp of Easter weekend, there were reports that this wait time had increased to **5 hours at peak congestion.**

When we get to Kyoto, it’s pretty dead at the station. Rather than trying to navigate the city buses with our suitcases, we opted for a taxi.

Nothing particularly notable about this other than this being **count 1** of a Kyoto taxi driver struggling with the address I gave them.

**Day 2: Himeji, Kurashiki**

So, typical first day after we had already been travelling for prior to arriving in Japan, and me only having taken the Shinkansen twice before, we missed our train. Rebooked at the JR ticket office, and missed it again while looking for the entrance to the Shinkansen tracks. The JR Kyoto ticket office is busy every single time I’ve passed by it, so if you’re able to get your tickets sorted out at a smaller or quieter station elsewhere, or purchase online, that may be for the best.

By the time we get to Himeji, it’s already 11 AM, a full hour and a half later than we had planned, so we decided to only stop for brunch at the nearby **Hamamoto Coffee** for the almond toast and almond coffee and settle for admiring the castle from a distance. I do manage to revisit later on during the trip, which I will cover then.

We get to Kurashiki in the early afternoon and stop by Yuurin-an for lunch and a break from the afternoon heat, but they’re already sold out of all their lunch sets at around 1:30 PM. Other travellers stop by attracted by the promise of these sets as well and are all turned away. Okayama is famed for fruit, particularly white peaches, and while they weren’t in season, the guesthouse did have juice on the menu, which was delicious.

We spend the rest of the day exploring the historical Bikan quarter, which, was not at all crowded, and beautiful, despite it being the tail-end of cherry blossom season. There were many people taking wedding photos, but we are able to leisurely spend an afternoon simply exploring on foot. We didn’t ride the boats ourselves, but the ones we saw passing through the canal weren’t full, and looked to have only one or two parties on board at a time. Tourists were scarce enough at certain points we were the only people on the block.

Of note is the **Ohara Museum of Art**, which has a surprisingly excellent collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artwork, as well as The Annunciation by El Greco. They also host a collection of Japanese art, but we didn’t have time to fully explore this. If you’re visiting from Europe, this might not sound particularly impressive, but the fact that this is a modestly sized city in Japan marks it as a point of interest for me.

**Day 3: Sagano-Arashiyama**

Day 3 went along smooth as silk in terms of adhering to our plans. We hit up Arashiyama in the morning, before the shops had opened, hoping to avoid the crowds but was met with limited success. I had full expectations of this and had prepared my mother beforehand, so this came as no surprise to either of us, and we were only here as she had never been.

We took a side trip into Okochi Sanso, which was not planned, but I did have as a target if we had time for it. When we entered we were the only people inside. Absolutely stunning garden, and worth the entry price; throughout our explorations, we encountered very few other people, and it was a tranquil haven from the gathering crowds outside in the bamboo forest. By the time we exited, there was a sea of people outside. We made our way over to Tenryuu-ji, which I had also warned my mother would be very crowded, and had multiple tour buses unloading by the time we entered. Though the temple grounds are beautiful, our goal was for lunch at the on-site shojin-ryori restaurant, **Shigetsu**. To date, among the best vegetarian meals I’ve had. Service is quick and efficient, no frills, and the dining hall filled up fast. It is for the most part floor seating, and you’ll be in a hall with 20 other strangers, many of whom are tourists, and some for whom this was clearly uncomfortable (you can request chairs if sitting on the floor is uncomfortable). My mother and I strike up a conversation with our seat neighbours, a family of Indian-American tourists who are extremely impressed with the quality of the food. We leave feeling very full, and very satisfied.

And fuelled for the trek to Iwateyama to visit the famed Japanese macaques. This had long been on my bucket list, but my family had no interest in seeing monkeys. Fortunately today, I had the excuse that we needed to stay in the area since we had an afternoon workshop in Sagano. For those who are unused to legwork, it is an uphill climb. It’s not a particularly long or difficult path, but there were many tourists I encountered along the way who definitely needed to make use of the frequent benches and rest stops placed along the trail. That said, it is pleasant, and if you’ve hiked up the trail deeper into the bamboo forest or at Fushimi Inari, you will have no trouble with this.

We also happened to make it to the top viewing area right as it was feeding time for the monkeys. Admission includes feed for the monkeys if you want to try your hand at it, but as we got to see the action with the handlers, we didn’t feel the need to do this.

Following this, we make our way over to **Kanshundo** \[Saganomise\]. I’d previously taken the workshop at their main store and was aware that the instructors did not speak English, and had informed my mother. She had opted for Kanshundo of the options I had given her when she requested making Wagashi as it was by far the cheapest (around 2700 JPY). Although the workshop was set-up for a large number of people, it was only us two, and a group of 4 Japanese women there. As expected, the instructor didn’t speak any English, but had a camera focused on his workspace overhead so we could see what he was doing, and also took the time to check on each of us individually and fix any mistakes along the way. We made a total of 6 wagashi each, 2 pieces higashi, and 4 pieces seasonal namagashi, with the instructor gifting everyone an additional piece they had made for their demonstrations. For anyone familiar with the price of namagashi, you’ll know for 2700 JPY, this is absolutely bang for buck. Matcha was also served after the lesson for us to sample our work. Containers and bags were prepared for us to take home the remainder.

**Day 4: Nara**

Nara was another request from my mother, as she wanted to see Tang-dynasty architecture, and Nara is one of the places where that has managed to survive the ages, funnily enough. So of course, we had to see Todai-ji and Kasuga-taisha. Disclaimer: Todai-ji, like so many other monuments, has been rebuilt through the ages, and while its original incarnation was created during a period contemporary with the Tang Dynasty, and taking heavy influence from the Tang (as with the ancient capital of Nara), I would not personally call it Tang Dynasty architecture as it was built in Japan, by Japanese, and a wholly Japanese creation.

The train in the morning was packed, but most folks stepped off at Fushimi Inari, long before our stop, so we were able to get seats after passing said stop.

Even though it was still early in the day when we arrived at Todai-ji, it was already filled with tourists. I will note the interior of the temple is impressive, and if you have time for only one temple in Nara, I would suggest Todai-ji. As Todai-ji has been covered in detail in many guides already, I won’t say too much about it.

We stopped by Tengyokudo for lunch. I’m a fan of kuzu, but if you don’t like slimy, gelatinous textures, you will likely not enjoy the food here. As it wasn’t immediately next to the major roads along the Todai-ji, there was plenty of space when we got there, and we were seated immediately and food served quickly.

We walked off our kuzumochi loaded lunch at Kasuga-taisha, which was much more comfortable in terms of crowding than Todai-ji. Of note is the easily missable lantern storage hall, if you’re visiting outside of Summer, which, while small, is a beautiful way to capture some of the atmosphere of when they are displayed and lit in evenings.

*But what about the famous deer?* You may ask. Well. I come from a place where the reputation of deer are that they absolutely will fuck you up, and in deer vs car, the deer will probably win. The shika deer are cute, yes, but I can’t shake that deeply ingrained fear. And another tourist at Tengyokudo over shared similar sentiments when their friends were trying to coax them back towards more temple viewing, and they agreed on the condition there would be no more deer.

Doubly unfortunate for us, the deer at this time were decidedly *not* cute, as they were at the height of molting season, meaning they were all rather patchy, haggard, and missing antlers.

That said, they are quite literally everywhere on the parks and pathways leading up to both Todai-ji and Kasuga-Taisha, so you can easily have your fill of them without needing to go out of your way to see them.

I did also manage to get my hands on fresh yomogi-mochi from Nakatanido, which is located in the covered shopping arcade on the way to and from JR Nara station. At the time I went, it was already late afternoon and there was no demonstration going on, meaning the crowd had thinned out considerably and there was no queue. Crowding does clearly get significant at times in front of the store, as there were staff directing visitors on where to queue, where to eat, and to make sure they didn’t get in the way of traffic.

**Day 5: Koke-dera**

Originally, we had planned to try for the nearby Katsura Imperial Villa early in the morning as well, but the sky had other plans. It was pouring rain, and being cold and wet, the idea of waiting around outdoors quickly lost its appeal.

Making a reservation for Koke-dera was a bit of a pain in itself, and has long been a temple I wanted to visit for its famed moss garden, but in previous visits to Kyoto, my family was not particularly enthused with the cost of entry, time limit, unusual reservation requirements, and the general idea of spending hours staring at moss. This time I finally managed to convince my mother to visit (no regrets reported), and she actually found the sutra copying rather amusing.

The rain actually made the temple and garden even more atmospheric. It was fully booked for the day, but because the temple limits both the number of visitors and the amount of time they can spend there, it didn’t feel busy. All were quiet and mindful of other guests, so the serene atmosphere remained unspoilt. The garden was beautiful, and particularly soothing after several days of walking and back-to-back activities.

**Day 6: Kyo-Odori**

For any readers unfamiliar with this, Kyoto’s geiko districts each perform an annual dance recital. Kyo-Odori is Miyagawacho’s performance, and usually runs until early or mid-April, so we were able to catch it just in time. The venue it was held in, the Shunjuza, is a small, intimate space inside Kyoto Art University, thereby offering a good view of the dancing from virtually any seat.

As we had spent the morning doing some much-needed laundry (reminder I am staying in Japan for a long time), we actually missed the bus we needed to take to the venue. We grabbed a taxi, and encountered **Count 2** of a Kyoto Taxi driver not recognizing the address or name of the venue. We did eventually get it across that we needed to go to Kyoto Art University and got dropped off at a less than convenient entrance.

Getting lost aside, the atmosphere and show itself were spectacular, and notably, have marketing of the participating Maiko with their geimei in romaji. The maiko themselves and the head of their dance school were also present between shows to greet and thank visitors.

Following this, we moved from my lodgings to a ryokan for the night to prepare for our move to Tokyo the next day.

**Day 7: Tokyo**

After some large meals and much-needed soaking in tubs, we left the ryokan and departed for Tokyo. We didn’t have any solid plans for our day here as the only reason I had to leave Kyoto was because my mother and SO were flying out of/into Narita airport. We stayed at a low-cost business hotel in Asakusa, which isn’t my recommended neighbourhood to stay in Tokyo, but for reasons covered in the next section, this was the best spot for this occasion.

Only spot of note this day was dinner at **HaruKor**, an Ainu izakaya in Shin-Okubo. Last I checked this was the only Ainu eatery in Tokyo currently open, but my Japanese googling skills are limited, so correct me if I’m wrong. Staff don’t speak English, and reservations are phone-only on weekends, but can be made online on weekdays. Aside from classic izakaya fare you can also expect uniquely Ainu dishes like Ohaw, and Kitopiro, as well as some more rarely seen dishes like salmon liver and allegedly bear meat when the stars align. Shin-Okubo is also notable for having a large Korean and foreign population, and has plenty of fascinating izakaya and eateries around if you’re looking to explore.

**Day 8: Kimono Shoot**

The main reason we had to opt for a stay in Asakusa is because one of my mother’s goals for the trip was to get dressed up in kimono and take nice photos. It just so happened that one of my bucket list photographers/stylists, Stasia of InKimono, had an opening on the day my mother was leaving, and their studio is in Asakusa, so we needed a hotel that was both near convenient transportation and walking distance to the studio.

For anyone that is thinking about renting kimono during your trip, know that while InKimono was amazing and comes with a glowing recommendation from my mother and myself, this is **completely different from your average tourist kimono rental experience**, and is normally a 4-6 hour time investment (it was sped up for us as we needed to wrap by 1 so my mother could get to the airport on time). If you’re looking for a rental service and photographer package in Tokyo with someone fluent in English and familiar with working with LGBTQA and plus-size folks, or you have a very specific vision, absolutely look into her work. For folks looking to get a quick, easy, and cheap rental to wander the city in, this is not the right service for you.

With that done, we rushed off to Narita for me to drop her off, and pick up my SO. More on that leg of the trip in Part 2.

**🎌 Notable Hotels, Restaurants, Attractions 🎌**

* [**Ryokan Izuyasu**](https://izuyasu.com/) \- A surprisingly reasonably priced traditional ryokan located near Kyoto station. Notably the owner is also the chef here, so you get to watch the chef at work plating and serving right at the bar, and who is more than happy to chat with guests about the history of the inn or the food being served. Several foreign staff are employed here so services are provided in multiple languages. Note that bathing facilities are shared, but rooms have private toilets. We had largely chosen this ryokan for its location, and my experience here, while pleasant, was blown out of the water the following week with a stay at a different establishment.
* [**Hamamoto Coffee**](https://www.hamamoto-coffee.com/) \- A kissaten located in the shopping arcade between Himeji station and the castle. Almond toast is what they’re known for, but the coffee is also solid. They have a morning set before 11 AM that’s excellent value, and also sell coffee beans and paraphernalia, but not their almond butter, so the only way to try their toast is dining in. Cash-only.
* [**Shigetsu**](https://www.tenryuji.com/en/shigetsu/) \- Delicious, traditional shojin-ryori. Reservations required.
* [**HaruKor**](https://harukoro.owst.jp/) \- Ainu Izakaya.
* [**InKimono**](https://inkimono.com/) \- While I was not the one being dressed and photographed, I cannot recommend Stasia and the whole experience with her enough. If you are looking for a special kimono photoshoot experience, please do consider working with her.

Stay tuned for Part 2! As this is my first ever trip report, please feel free to ask questions, or let me know what you want to read more about, or less of in the comments.

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**||Edit||** Goldfish memory already struck. Forgot to mention we also stopped by the Chiso gallery on Day 5. Chiso is a kimono brand established during the 16th century in Kyoto, catering to nobility, and so has established a reputation for luxury and impeccable taste. Their main store has a small upstairs gallery that’s free to enter and open to the public, featuring rotating exhibits of artwork and treasures. Their store itself is also laid out much like a gallery, showcasing the range of skill of Chiso’s artisans and designers. For anyone that has an interest in kimono, and are in the area, I’d definitely recommend popping in to take a look.