A Quirky and Cozy Guide to Kyoto
With lots of phyotos!
Kyoto is the Japan of my imagination. Peaceful, zen, stunning and filled with even more cute stuff tempting me to part with my yen every minute of the day.
It’s also where I caught a cold . But thankfully, the Japanese over-the-counter meds kept it mostly at bay and I was able to enjoy our trip. (But it did make for a brutal return home. Oy.)
We also arrived unprepared for the bitingly cold temps and had to head to the mall for some gear. In a bit of travel magic, I’m pretty sure I found the city’s last scarf. I’m not kidding. I saw one scarf and one scarf only, you guys. And I got it. It was weird and fluffy and probably meant for a pre-teen girl but I got it.
Here I am with it, briefly considering a kimono, but opted for warmth instead. (Shout out to the two beautiful photobombers behind me. You’re my kind of people!)
Get a load of our Air BnB!
This was a traditional Japanese style townhouse (aka machiya) close to Kyoto station was just gorgeous!! It even had a little zen garden to stare wistfully at. Or do your makeup in front of. Your choice.
I highly recommend finding you a machiya or ryokan style home share or hotel for your Kyoto trip. It just adds to magic.
There’s only oooonnnne thing to be aware…
All the doorways were all about 5.5 feet tall!! My tall husband had to 🦆 a lot. I ended up running up to 7-11 to grab some scotch tape and notebook paper (and my favorite Japanese food item: the egg salad sandwich). We hung pieces of paper over every doorway to remind him to duck so he wouldn’t knock his noggin. What am I supposed to say? It worked!
McD’s and Coffee Please: Comfort For My Soul
I already mentioned the 7-11 egg salad sandwich, hands down the tastiest thing I ate in all of Japan (not even joking). I reached for them all the time. But here are some favorite restaurant/café moments outside the konbinis.
At least once on every international trip, I just get exhausted and a little weepy. You understand: the planning, the unknowns…it all gets to be too much. At one point, I felt like I couldn’t take one more adventurous meal where I wasn’t *quite* sure what I was eating. My husband could see it on my face. He looked across the table from me at dinner and sweetly said “Why don’t you just go to McDonald’s?” And I did.
Reader, this meal was a hug on a plastic tray.
Speaking of American places… while in the historic Gion district, I said “Hey, let’s get a coffee at another cool authentic Japanese place.” The next one we saw? Starbucks, of course. But we were desperate and it was actually especially cool. It was in a 125-year-old tea house with this lovely view!
Not your average Starbs! I felt vindicated when I saw it listed in several travel blogs later that night. It’s worth carving out an hour to enjoy your caffeine fix in machiya style.
Now we did enter the doors of more than a few local coffee places. One of my favorites was Sanzuian, a little spot right outside Ginkakuchi Temple. There, we befriended Taiga, the sweetest coffee slinger in Kyoto. He got so excited when I asked if we could get a picture together after our enchanting visit. Now…I know there’s nothing new about a heart in a latte, but I’m pretty sure Taiga meant it for reals. ❤️
And then there’s Snoopy Cha-Ya. Snoopy mother-fing Cha-Ya. For years, I’ve seen my Snoopy honored in Japanese food on Instagram. And now I finally FINALLY got to experience it IRL.
Not only can you get the cutest treats of all time, but Snoopy Cha-Ya also has a gift shop that is unmatched. Gird your wallet, the merch here is legit beautiful (and not too expensive!). Just look at this sensational glasses case! I still look at this thing and think “I can’t believe I get to own this!” HE’S SLEEPING GOD ITS SO CUTE.
This place is filled with landmines trying to take my money. And I let it happen!!
Temples, Shrines and Culture Time!
There are over 2000 religious sites around Kyoto. You’re not hittin’ em all. I mostly trusted the internet travel guides and went to the biggies.
The grounds of the Anrakuji temple is probably one of the prettiest places I’ve ever been to in my life.
It also could be because we walked along the Philosopher’s Path to get here. I mean, by that name alone, you already feel more at peace, right? Even with the bare pre-Sakura trees, it was so charming.
Along the Philosopher’s Path, I saw this little gathering of stones. I learned they are Jizo statues. These poignant little stones represent the souls of deceased children, most likely, helping them on their way.
Nanzen-ji has a marvelous Roman aqueduct-style bridge on the grounds. If you need an Instagrammable moment, it’s right here for you.
Sorry pretty lady, I had to sneak your picture!
With a rare sunny day in our hands, it was vital that I drag us across Kyoto to see the Golden Temple.
I briefly considered skipping Fushimi-Inari and its 10k torii gates ⛩️ because I heard the crowds are anything but zen. And then? I found out you can go any time, day or night! So at 9:30 after what we thought was a nightcap at a quiet bar, I dragged my husband again across town to check it out. Everybody: this is the move. Serene, impressive, quiet.
Even this cat, tucked in one of the famous fox statues on the grounds, knows what’s up.
Sick of It!
OH NOES. Smack in the middle of our trip, I woke up with a sore throat and frantically asking Chat GPT how to ask for cold medicine in Japan.
My wonderful husband went to a pharmacy where they sent him home with this mad libs prescription. AND LOOK AT THE NOTE AT THE BOTTOM.
God, I love this country. Sure, it’s a photocopy, but come ON. CVS, you could learn a thing or two.
I sat around the adorable Air BnB, laying on the tatami heated floor, watching TV, and eating cookies that the host brought over for me when she found out I was sick. Bless. Whatever magical concoction I took allowed me to stave off the worst of my symptoms til after I arrived back home.
Moving on to the…🥁…
OMG Animal Encounters!
Thank god them cold symptoms stayed chill because the Arashiyama Monkey Park required a killer 20-minute hike up a hill. But the joy when we got there made me forget every lost breath.
You can’t touch them or cuddle them, as my ovaries were begging me to do, but you can safely feed them peanuts from inside an enclosure.
About an hour by train from Kyoto lies Nara. Ohhhh my god you guys, you gotta go. The little town itself is filled with deer. Just…wandering. Everywhere. The best part? They will BOW TO YOU FOR CRACKERS. WHAT?!
There’s just nothing like it anywhere else in the world. My heart melted, left my body, is still probably in some puddle near the train station.
While you’re there in Nara, you must see the Buddha at the Todai-ji Temple. It’s a humbling site and the pictures don’t do it justice. I’ll show a picture anyway, but you gotta promise me you’ll imagine it way huger in your head, ok?
For maximum charm, I recommend taking the Aoniyoshi express train either to or from Kyoto. It’s not that much more yen and you get a gorgeous art deco style ride! Totally worth it!
I’ll Leave You With This…
No, not my husband posing with unnamed boyband standups at the cosmetics shop.
No, not the Don Quijote mascot Donpen, whom I grew to bond with during my time in Japan.
It’s just this: This blog post is just scratching the surface of all that charmed me about Kyoto and Japan in general. I could have written a daggone coffee table book with the amount of pictures I took. It’s a must-visit for any curious traveler. Just…don’t be like me. Make sure you read the weather report before you go.
Points n’ Stuff:
Using Roame.travel, I put in alerts for flights to and from Tokyo.
Japan Airlines business class LAX-NRT - 75k each via Alaska Airlines. I had a signup bonus for 90k miles through Alaska’s Visa card and purchased the remaining points on sale for about $800.
Singapore Airlines business class NRT- LAX - 75k each via Aeroplan. Since there was a transfer bonus from Chase, I was able to get both seats for 100k total.
Where we stayed: Our traditional machiya (townhouse) was booked through Air B&B.
