Nijo Palace moat and walls
Nijo Palace is open early, so it was a good choice for the first stop on a busy day. We had breakfast and took the bus there. I think it was a good thing to get there early so we could enjoy the palace without being crowded through, because there were several tour buses arriving as we left. Instead, we could leisurely see the buildings and the grounds.
The walls and gates were big and impressive, making us think more of castles than of a peacetime residence. The gates were ornamented with gold and carvings, showing the wealth and power of the shogun who lived there. The scale of the buildings and gardens added to the sense of awe, I just could not help but call it Nijo Castle! We took off our shoes at the entrance of the Ninomaru palace, which is the buildings the shogun would have lived in and used as offices.
The main gate to Ninomaru Palace – Nijo castle – Kyoto
There were long, dark corridors that felt cool and almost sinister. The floor squeaked, and we had to laugh because they were especially designed that way to alert the people inside if there were an intruder. Our house has squeaky floors, but we never thought of it as an asset! Maybe we should explain to guests at home that it is a “nightingale floor,” as the ones at Nijo castle are called.
The corridors connected different buildings, which were beautifully decorated. The walls had screen paintings by famous artists, and there were elegant carvings on the ventilation windows. Everything felt rich and luxurious. The displays had life-sized mannequins reenacting scenes of what life would have been like, which made it very easy to imagine what each room was for. It was an excellent display, and we lingered over several scenes, enjoying the detail in the costumes and ornaments.
Gardens of Ninomaru Palace- Kyoto
We finally retrieved our shoes and made it back, blinking, into the sunshine, and had a good time exploring the gardens. The trees, rocks and little lakes all balanced each other in pretty vistas, so it was fun to see everything from different angles. At one point a white egret landed in a pond, which made a beautiful photo which is one of our favorites from the trip.
Our next stop after touring Nijo Palace was Arashiyama. I guess technically that is the name of the mountain, but everyone seems to refer to that area of Kyoto by the name. We took the train to the Saga-Arashiyama Station and headed for the Iwatayama Monkey Park.
Togetsu-Kyo Bridge
Because our JR Pass was still valid, we opted for using that, though Saga-Arashiyama it is not the closest station. It was not a long walk from the station to the park, and we were able to see the famous Togetsukyo Bridge, which was really long and looked like it belonged in a samurai movie.
I never really thought about monkeys as a native species in Japan, but we sure learned plenty about them at Iwatayama! They said there were about 130 Japanese macaques, which are about as big as a medium-sized dog. They had bright red faces that were very expressive, especially when they wanted food! The staff explained that they would be feeding lunch at 12:30, so encouraged us go to that area so we could see.
Iwatayama Monkey Park, Kyoto
First we went for a walk and were able to spot a few monkeys along the mountain trail, but they were mostly just lounging in the trees and were not particularly interesting, though it was fun to look for them. The view from the top of the hill was quite lovely, we could see the whole Kyoto city area spread out below us. It was similar to the view from Kiyomizu-dera in reverse, since we were looking back in that direction.
The feeding time was the highlight of our visit to the monkey park. The staff threw out soybeans and vegetables, and a veritable battle occurred. The monkeys scuffled and fought for the food, and it was very clear which ones were dominant in the troop.
A monkey waiting for food @ Iwatayama Monkey Park
The girls were a bit scared to get close after that, but wanted to end the visit by getting some food to give the monkeys. There was a special hut with mesh sides, so we felt like the ones in the cage while the monkeys were free outside. We opted for a bag of sweet potato pieces, and it was interesting to watch the monkeys take the food from our hands to eat. They did not seem ravenous after the feeding time, but were interested enough to finish the bag of treats.
We were ravenous, though, so stopped for our own lunch at a little cafe. The Torokko Saga Station was close to the one we arrived on, so it was not hard to find. It is a private rail line that runs the Sagano Romantic Train. We laughed a little over the name, but thought it would be a good way to see more of the area. The train itself was charming and old-fashioned. We opened the window for a better view, and enjoyed the slow, scenic ride.
Shinto shrine by the Hozu River, in the mist
It ran along a river valley, so we saw forests and trees and lots of bamboo. It was interesting seeing such a rural area, since so far our travels had taken us mostly into cities or carefully landscaped gardens. The ride lasted about 25 minutes, and then we got off and headed to the dock for the Hozugawa River Cruise. Getting on the boat, we joked about all the different kinds of transportation we had taken that day, from the bus to the trains to a boat.
The boats themselves were interesting, traditional wooden flat-bottomed boats that the pilots steered with oars or big bamboo poles. They said that the boats used to be used for transportation of things like lumber before there were roads and trucks. We had to take off our shoes and sat directly on the floor, which Andrew found a bit uncomfortable, but the girls were right at home.
Hozugawa River Cruises
The cruise was a pleasant ride that lasted about 2 hours, and we saw basically the same scenery as from the train, but the perspective was totally different. So it was fun to point out familiar landmarks along the way. There were a few sections of white water, nothing at all scary, but enough to add a bit of interest to the trip. There were about 25 passengers, and at first no one spoke to each other, but by the end everyone was pointing out things of interest and laughing together. It lent a sense of companionship to the trip, and I was able to try out some of my simple Japanese phrases and have them understood, which was rewarding for me.
Hozugawa River boat man
It was getting later in the day, so we decided not to explore the temples in the area, but head straight back to Kyoto because we had reservations for dinner. Someday I would like to come back again, because it looks like there is a lot to see and do in the area.
We returned to the Ryokan Shimizu and changed into more formal clothes because we were going to a very fancy restaurant in Gion, the Karyo. Earlier in the week, the hotel concierge had made reservations for us, and explained that everything would be conducted in Japanese, but not to worry. The meal itself, called kaiseki, was a traditional Kyoto course meal, and the chef would decide what to serve that day.
Gion
We took a taxi to the restaurant because we were warned it might be hard to find, and we did not want to arrive hot and sweaty. We were dropped off at a small door opening onto an entrance garden and path, and from there entered the restaurant itself. The hostess at the door greeted us like she had been waiting for us, and seated us in an elegant room with simple lines of black lacquer and blonde woods. We weren’t sure exactly what to do, but in a moment she was back with warm towels to wipe our hands, and then the first course arrived.
Karyo Restaurant Gion Kyoto
It is hard to describe all the courses, which appeared one by one as if by magic when we had finished the previous one. There was a plate of sashimi arranged like a butterfly, a dumpling in a clear but spicy sauce with a sprig of onion draped across it, a small piece of beef with sauteed orange, a persimmon carved out an filled with seaweed and shell fish. It was all delicate and pretty, we hardly wanted to eat it and ruin the presentation. The girls were very excited about the persimmon, and the hostess smiled and gave thumbs-up signs, encouraging communication despite the lack of language.
Karyo Restaurant Gion Kyoto beautiful presentation (photo: karyo-kyoto.jp)
The meal was an incredible experience. Before we went, we had serious concerns about trying such expensive, unusual food with our young daughters, but they enjoyed it. Though they said some was weird, they gamely tasted it all, and readily ate most of it. The restaurant and its staff was like nothing we had seen at home, and it was clearly not a place designed for tourists, which made it extra special for us.
When we were leaving, I tried in my best, broken Japanese to thank the hostess for the experience. The hostess indicated that we should wait, and presently she returned with an older gentleman dressed in white, obviously the chef who had prepared our meal. We thanked him, too, and he beamed proudly and gestured broadly that he was happy we had enjoyed it. Some things do not require words to understand.
River in Gion at night, Kyoto
Though the courses were small, they added up to a large meal. We decided to stroll home to Ryokan Shimizu and enjoy the night time streets of Kyoto. It was hard to believe that it would be our last night here, at least for this trip. We promised each other that we would come back again some day.
photos by:
Gwydion M. Williams &
Gavin Anderson,
Gwydion M. Williams,
Hyougushi,
MagicOlf,
MarkDoliner,
unertlkm,
MarianneKyoto,
Raelene G,
john weiss,
mrhayata
