Today is the last day of Golden Week. It’s a series of consecutive holidays in May that are known collectively as “Golden Week”.
We decided to take a two-day trip to Kyoto during Golden Week this year. So, in early morning of May 4th, we took a fast but comfortable 新幹線 (bullet train) to Kyoto. We stayed in a nice hotel that overlooked 琵琶湖 (Lake Biwa), the largest lake in Japan. And we took the bullet train back to Tokyo in the evening of May 5th.
We had a really good time and got to see many of Kyoto’s famous sites.
Here are some of the photos I took:
We took this 新幹線 (bullet train) to Kyoto from Tokyo on May 4th.
View from the bullet train window.
Even the local trains were a bit different from Tokyo’s.
The famous Fushi-Inari Temple in Kyoto.
1000 torii gates at Fushimi-Inari.
Wisteria at Byoudou-in
The famous Byoudou-in Temple in Kyoto.
This temple is shown on the backside of the Japanese ¥10 coin.
Kyoto Tower
Our hotel had a lovely view of the largest lake in Japan: 琵琶湖 (Lake Biwa).
Delicious dinner at our hotel. 近江牛 (O-mi-gyu Beef)!
The second (and final) day of our trip (2015 May 5th), the weather was much nicer!
The famous 嵐山公園 (Arashi-yama Koen) in Kyoto.
many people wear kimono in the ancient city of Kyoto.
Tenryuuji Temple
The famous 金閣寺 (Kinkaku-ji) Temple is covered in gold.
6PM on May 5th, 2015 at Kyoto Station to take the bullet train back home in Tokyo.
京都駅 (Kyoto Station)…we had a good time!
Tokyo Five 
So very cool. We had hoped to take the bullet train to Hiroshima when we were over there, and it’s a good thing we didn’t because with the train outages we would’ve been stuck there. We need to come back soooooo bad! So many more things we want to see and do.
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>the train outages
You visited Japan during the huge 2011 Earthquake, didn’t you?
Yeah…it was a hard time! Train service was one of the many daily parts of life in Japan that were disrupted then.
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Kyoto is a city with its own character, unique. I understand it was (mostly) spared bombing during the WW2 because of its heritage and historical value. It felt less hectic than other big Japanese cities I visited. I will need to come back for longer.
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Yes, Kyoto is beautiful! You should re-visit! It’s impossible to see a whole city in only one trip!
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Loved Kyoto, I wish we could go back but I don’t think we’ll have time before we have to move out of Japan.
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When will you leave Japan? Have you visited Kyoto only once?
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Yes, we spent a couple of days there last year. https://randommomentsofexistance.wordpress.com/2014/11/23/november-december-2014-adventures-part-one/
But have only gone that time. We will leave early next year, 2016.
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Yes, I remember that post of yours! Lovely photos!
You saw the autumn foliage in Kyoto…it’s very beautiful. Too bad you didn’t have a chance to see the Sakura in Kyoto in spring, as well!
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A truly beautiful city. I visited in 1950s several times during my two-year stay while serving in the U.S.Navy. I see from the photos that a lot of restoration as well as new construstion has occurred since then. Regards.
Earnest Mercer
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Japan has changed a lot in the 25 years that I’ve been here…so I’m sure much more has changed since the ’50s!
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I was able to spend a little time in Kyoto last fall, and I also went to the Fushi-Inari temple–I dragged my husband with me to the top, and then hobbled down after straining my knee. I loved it! It was so beautiful and peaceful. We also made it to the Kinkaku-ji temple, but ended up not having time for much else since we wanted to see the special exhibit of the frolicking animals & humans scrolls at the Kyoto National Museum ( http://www.kyohaku.go.jp/eng/special/koremade/exhibition20141007.html ). I definitely want to go back again and spend some more time there.
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>not having time for much else….I definitely want to go back again and spend some more time there.
Yeah, it’s not possible to see everything in a big city like Kyoto or Tokyo in just one visit! You should definitely visit again!
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