Japan Trip 2015: Day 4 in Kyoto (Fushimi Inari Shrine, Nishiki Market, Kamo River, Kiyomizudera Temple, Gion)

Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto

Hey guys, sorry for the late follow up. Here's my second day's journey in Kyoto with my travel mates! It begins with a trip to Fushimi Inari Shrine, an important Shinto shrine. Many make a trip here to see the thousands of vermillion torii gates, marking donations by corporations and individuals to the shrine. At the shrine's entrance stands the Romon Gate, which was donated in 1589 by the famous shogun Hideyoshi Toyotomi (who also built the Osaka Castle).

The shrine practices free entrance for all visitors, making it a spot worth visiting for everyone, regardless of status. Fushimi Inari Shrine is located just outside JR Inari Station, the second station from Kyoto Station along the JR Nara Line (5 minutes, 140 yen one way from Kyoto Station).

Fushimi Inari was simply majestic

Fushimi Inari is the most important of several thousands of shrines dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice. Foxes are thought to be Inari's messengers, therefore many fox statues can be found on the shrine's grounds. Fushimi Inari Shrine has ancient origins, dating back to 794.

Preparations at Fushimi Inari for an upcoming ceremony

At the time of my visit in early October 2015, the shrine was getting ready for an upcoming ceremony. Offerings were being placed on many different levels in what looks like a little shrine, and many locals and tourists alike gathered to see the preparations being carried out. Offerings such as rice and sake are common and are displayed for all to see.

Wishing corner in Fushimi Inari

After short walk into the grounds, I came across a little wishing corner where another tiny shrine is located.

Wishing plaques 

Here you can hang up wooden wishing plaques (purchased from souvenir counter) together with thousand others on a wall in the left corner of the shrine. If you have a moment, read the messages written in various languages from all over the globe, they will leave you in awe!

Mini shrines

There were also some mini shrines on the grounds as well, in the same vermillion theme. Everything is vermillion here!

Torii for sale

As with other Japanese shrines, souvenirs such as torii are available at Fushimi Inari. Locals and tourists alike form queues at the personalised souvinier counters here, where they write your wishes on the merchandise you have chosen.

Huge torii gate at the beginning of the uphill climb

If you are not into souvenirs, then uphill you go! There is a huge torii gate at the start of the uphill climb, so if you are not into climbing, then just climb up a short distance to get a glimpse of the torii gates and you're good to go.

Thousands of vermillion torii gates

Photo opportunities are hard to come by, especially with so many visitors milling about! If you want to have a good picture without anyone photobombing yours, make sure to hike up further. Remember, the further up you go, the lesser the crowd!

Maneki Neko for sale outside Fushimi Inari

After coming down from the torii gates forest (okay, that was a pun) it's time for some temple shopping! Being a shopaholic, temple grounds do offer some great goods for sale such as souvenirs, lucky charms and food! No matter where you find yourself in Kyoto, rest assured there will be some shopping to do! :)

JR Inari Station

Time to head to the next stop and I walked to the JR Inari Station which is a short walk opposite the Fushimi Inari Shrine. Even the theme at the station here is vermillion! That's enough vermillion to last me a lifetime!

Tokyu Hands at Shijo Karasuma Dori

We alighted at the Shijo Station as we wanted to get to Nishiki Market in the middle of town. A nice change compared to temple grounds, as far as the shopaholic in me goes, because you get Tokyu Hands in the middle of Kyoto!

Shijo Karasuma Dori

Walking along Shijo Karasuma Dori is like taking a walk in the 70s or 80s as the shops' architecture here are low and hark back to the past.

Nishiki Market

After navigating behind one of the alleys behind Shijo Karasuma, we managed to spot the Nishiki Market sign. Here we come, glorious food!

Food stuff on sale at Nishiki Market

I only managed to get a good shot of some dried food stuff on sale as I was too busy ogling at the food on sale, and not to mention the huge crowd of tourists in the area! The hawkers were busy yelling at the top of their lungs to sell their wares, and we were all busy eating and looking around. Food madness at it's best here!

Teramachi Shopping Street

Somehow we ended up walking into Teramachi Shopping Street (I swear that this is gonna happen everywhere you walk in Japan) and it was shopping madness again. Shoes, antiques, even cheap reading glasses are all for sale here. You bet the shopaholic me went around here in a daze!

Temple in Teramachi Shopping Street

Managed to get a picture of a small temple located smack in the middle of Teramachi Shopping Street. Rather surprised to see it at first, but there were many locals who came here to seek blessings. Those interested, can give it a go :P

Salt ramen for lunch at Teramachi

The highlight of Teramachi has definitely got to be my late lunch. I can't recall the name of the restaurant, but it was a small set-up, cozy with soothing background music that served the best salt ramen I've ever tasted! 

The ramen was so springy and chewy, probably because it was handmade by the chef. A gruff looking guy was cooking when we entered, and it seemed that he was absorbed in his work. The broth was so fragrant here, it was probably the smell that brought us in... Hope you can find this great eatery when you are in Teramachi!

Le Plus 100 yen store

After lunch, it was shopping again at a local 100yen store, Le Plus in Teramachi. Never heard of this store before. Probably the only one I've seen in my travels in Japan. Some of the products were different from those you see in Daiso, and I got some really authentic looking sushi magnets from here. Worth checking out!

Kamo River; the blue skies and the river took my breath away

Next stop was Kiyomizudera Temple, and from Teramachi we took a bus from Shijo Dori straight to the temple. We passed by Kamo River and the scenery took my breath away! 

The blue skies and the river (so blue!) was so beautiful I quickly whipped out my phone to take a shot. Even through the bus windows, the shot came out pretty decent and the moment is captured as it is in picture above. Beautiful, isn't it?

A look downhill from the Kiyomizu Temple entrance

We alighted from the bus and saw many pretty ladies milling about in kimonos. They are all so pretty and photo ready! If you have some cash to spare, don't miss out on renting a kimono and taking a ride up to the temple on a trishaw!

After about a 10 minute walk, we reached what looked like the temple grounds as there were many stalls selling their wares (food, drinks, souvenirs, etc.) around the area. Little did we know that there was another uphill climb ahead. At this point, we were really tired from walking too much. Since Day 1, we walked for more than 15 hours daily, and it was definitely 5 times more than we'd do on a typical day back in Kuala Lumpur!

We soldiered on, admiring the sweets and souvenirs slowly on the way up. There were many people on the crowded walkway, so that pretty much slowed us down too. Reaching the top, I was really amazed me and my travel mates could walk this far up with our aching feet!

Kiyomizudera Temple entrance

At this point, I was really tired and wanted to turn back, but seeing the vermillion (too much of red in a day) pagodas made me want to finish up this itinerary and head back to Gion for dinner. Dinner is waiting!

Kiyomizudera Temple admission ticket

We paid the 400yen admission fee to enter the temple grounds. The Kiyomizudera Temple is open 6am to 6pm daily, so make a note about it. We reached around 4pm, so we had some time to look around.

Sunrays on the side of Kiyomizudera cliff view at 4pm

At first after entering the temple, I didn't see why people had it on their must-visit and must-see lists in Kyoto. It was old (as is other temples in Kyoto and throughout Japan) and creaky wooden boards made me cringe as I stepped on them. I really thought I would make a hole if I stepped on them too hard :/

But it was really amazing when I walked out to the sun, away from the shield of the huge roof. Many tourists were hanging out at the edge, and I could see why. You'd feel at the top of the forest while looking out from the ledge. It was super sunny too, although it was already 4pm!

Ancient architecture marvel, Kiyomizudera stands on wooden stilts

Following the path markers, we walked around the mountain cliff paths and came to a halt opposite the temple structure. Here, you can see the full glory of the ancient architecture. How did they managed to built it on wooden stilts, I still can't understand it fully. It's definitely an awe inspiring moment for me!

Cleansing with mountain spring water

Coming down the mountain path, I saw a long queue of people waiting to cleanse themselves with mountain spring water. Haven't got time to spare, so we decided to skip it and head straight to Gion.

 

Fancy a climb up in your kimono?

After exiting the temple grounds, I came across girls clad in kimonos climbing up a steep staircase. Not sure which exit they took, but definitely try to avoid this exit route. They were panting and puffing away, poor girls...

A canal in Gion all lighted up

We took the bus to Gion and tried to spot some geishas, but it was pretty dark at 6pm already, and there were nothing much to see but menus and tourists (like us, they were there to spot the geishas too). I told myself at this point that I really wouldn't want to be a geisha because everyone would want to take a picture of me in a kimono and painted white face... but tourists are tourists... :/

Dinner at Yakitori Torisee, Gion

Finally we settled down for dinner at Yakitori Torisee. We chose the quaint and cozy restaurant because it was recommended by TripAdvisor. Alas, the food and ambience was great but the service was terribly slow.

We waited a good half an hour before our appetizers were served and another hour before we were served with the final course. They were probably short-staffed as they were very apologetic when we paid (our waiter was the cashier too). I really hope they can improve on their service lest I should decide to return here again. 

Till then, please do look forward to my upcoming post for my travels in Tokyo. I'm going to take you on a virtual ride on the Shinkansen!

Check out my previous posts on my travels in Osaka and Kyoto:

Day 1: Shinsaibashi, Kuromon Market, Namba Walk and Namba Parks Mall

Day 2: Osaka Castle, Shinsaibashi, Amerikamura and Dotombori 

Day 3:  Kyoto (Kyoto Station, Kinkaku-ji Temple, Tenryu-ji Temple, Seiryo-ji Temple, Arashiyama Bamboo Groove)

Osaka: Sightseeing, Shopping & Dining Attractions

To sum up my visit to Japan in October 2015, I'm going to list down the sightseeing attractions, shopping areas and dining spots of each city that I've visited.

Osaka was my first stop and if you are getting here via air travel, you will be landing in Kansai International Airport (KIX). To get into central Osaka, which is where all the main attractions are located, you can opt to take the train or taxi. Train is the best option and you should take the discounted ICOCA and HARUKA package which costs 3,030 yen one way. For more information on this package, check out the West Japan Railway Company website.

Listed below are the top attractions around Osaka, the laid-back port city which has the second largest population after Tokyo, and is widely known as the 'Nation's Kitchen'.

Sightseeing 

1) Osaka Castle

You wouldn't want to miss this! Choose to take the elevator or climb up the stairs (a note of warning!) to the 8th floor observatory to get a 360 degree view of Osaka city. It's pretty worth the 600 yen entrance fee!

2) Amerikamura

Located just adjacently towards the north of the Shinsaibashi shopping arcade, this area gives of the American vibe as soon as you walk along the streets of this little enclave. There is even a Statue of Liberty here! It was pretty hard to spot, so good luck in finding it! I was in the area around Halloween, so the decorations were pretty much in the Halloween spirit. Expect to see loads of American brands here, as well as inspired stuff. Great place for a change of scenery.

3)Ebisubashi Bridge

The greatest place to be at night is definitely the Ebisubashi Bridge. Not only do you get to catch a glimpse of the famous Glico Man signboard all lighted up, the area is lively and smells great with shoppers and diners walking about. The Shinsaibashi Shopping Arcade and Ebisubashi Shopping Arcade are located at the two ends of this bridge. Shopping madness alright! Not to mention, Dotombori is parallel to this bridge. Glorious food here we come!

Shopping

1) Shinsaibashi Shopping Arcade

Anytime of the day, the Shinsaibashi Shopping Arcade draws in a huge amount of shoppers. A good mix of Japanese and international brands are located here, and so are the range of goods, from cheap to expensive. Shops are open from around 10am to 9pm, so plan your shopping trip well. I spent a few hours here and there during the 2 whole days I was in Osaka, and even then, I found it difficult to cover the entire length of Shinsaibashi. Definitely a shopper's paradise not to be missed!

2) Namba Parks Mall

A great mall with a great architecture, you'll be in awe with the mall's design before you step in. If the prices are a bit too high for you, come here for a stroll in the mall's Sky Garden, and look out to get a view of the city. Dining here is still affordable, unless you are on a really strict budget.

3) Bic Camera

The outlet located in Namba is very accessible as it is within walking distance from Dotombori. It is great to shop in Bic Camera, you'll never get bored! Floor after after floor of gadgets, toys, and house appliances, it's a great place for shoppers of all ages.

Dining

1) Dotombori

If you're in Osaka, Dotombori is the place to be if you want to see the food culture of this city. As much as I'd like to say that all the unique delicacies to Osaka can be found here (takoyaki, okonomiyaki, giant snow crab, etc.), do make sure to try the food here and compare with those located away from Dotombori. This was an advice shared by my local host, and I'm glad that I did not limit myself to only dining at the restaurants here. The okonomiyaki I had here was pretty great though!

2)Kuromon Market

For me, some of the best food I've tasted during my visit to Osaka were located in Kuromon Market. To get here, check out the Kuromon Ichiba Market's website for directions. It is best accessed via subway. Get off at Nippombashi Station, and it is right outside Exit 10. I tasted the most authentic ramen in the market here, in a store manned by a single chef. Good luck in your foodie adventures here!

3) Yoshinoya

As much I as I did not want to include this 'fast-food' chain from my list, it still made it here because the atmosphere and food served were at par with some of the more affluent restaurants I've been to in Osaka. The food is relatively cheap (great for your tight budget) and best part is, it is delicious and nutritious! Yoshinoya never disappoints for sure!

That is all for my list of attractions in Osaka, which are not to be missed. Check out my detailed blog posts to find out more of my travel experience in Osaka in the links below:

Day 1: Shinsaibashi, Kuromon Market, Namba Walk and Namba Parks Mall

Day 2: Osaka Castle, Shinsaibashi, Amerikamura and Dotombori