Kyoto: Kiyomizu-dera & Gion

Also located in Japan's Kansai region, Kyoto is just approximately fifteen minutes from Osaka via the famous shinkansen (bullet train). Exploring the city puts you right in the heart of Japan-- or at least one of its chambers, as it was also once Japan's capital. It beats not erratically, but rather steadily. The song of coursing waters, brushing trees, and from a distance, the ringing bells, all become the soft thump, thump, thump.

Laid-back Kyoto is brimming with well-preserved Japanese culture, and is home to several UNESCO World Heritage Sites-- including the vast expanse that is Kiyomizu-dera. Kiyomizu-dera is part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto, a group of properties that had the honor of being inscribed into the list in 1994.

After spending the morning exploring Osaka Castle, we maximized the remainder of the day's hours and our unlimited 7-day Japan Railway pass and headed to Kyoto. We boarded the bullet train at the JR Shin-Osaka station, and witnessed landscapes switch as we sped by at 300+ km/h.

A little over 10 minutes, and we were already at JR Kyoto. We navigated our way to the bus terminal, but not before dropping by the Kyoto Tourist Center inside the station. In case you failed to plan which hot spots you'd like to see and how to get there, you'll find all the information you'll need here! You can also grab a couple of maps which I personally still find helpful despite being in the age where mobile apps are aplenty.

Kyoto Tower just across the station

A little over 10 minutes, and we were already at JR Kyoto. We navigated our way to the bus terminal, but not before dropping by the Kyoto Tourist Center inside the station. In case you failed to plan which hot spots you'd like to see and how to get there, you'll find all the information you'll need here! You can also grab a couple of maps which I personally still find helpful despite being in the age where mobile apps are aplenty.

Based on experience, the best way to get around Kyoto is via bus, so you might want to keep your JR train pass safely tucked in your bag first. Kyoto City Buses are very tourist-friendly, with different routes that stop at Kyoto's best places. Just remember the bus number you have to take, enter said bus from the back door, watch out for your destination on the monitor (with English translation!), prepare exact fare (usually a flat fee of around 200 yen), and pay as you exit through the front door.

Now to get to Kiyomizu-dera, take the Kyoto City Bus 100 or 206 to Gojozaka. From there, it is a 10-15 minute uphill walk to the actual entrance to the famous Buddhist temple's complex. It won't be hard to find your way because there are street signs that lead to the place; plus, there's always a crowd of co-tourists that you can follow haha!

Kiyomizu-dera Temple (as it is often referred to, as redundant as it may be as -dera means "temple") sits on top of Mount Otowa, with its most famous angle being its expansive "terrace". Admission fee is JPY300 per person. At the temple, you are welcome to engage in several Buddhist traditions, such as striking a huge bell for prosperity. You can also write in prayer blocks, or purchase a lucky charm. And since I badly wanted to pass my upcoming board licensure exams at that time, I confess that I did the latter and bought a charm for good fortune.

One of the most interesting rituals that I witnessed in Kiyomizu is the one where you drink or wash with the water from the streams. After all, kiyomizu means "pure water". While it may trigger people who are very iffy when it comes to hygiene, it may comfort you to know that the long-handled cups are slipped into UV sterilization repositories after every use. It is said that each of the three waterfalls stand for something, but it also said that drinking from any of the falls is enough to make your wish come true.

Kiyomizu-dera is actually a big place, so feel free to explore the whole area if you have the luxury of time. But since we had one more place to tick off our list for the day, we were content with a brief stay at the temple. On our way down, we checked out some stalls that sold fans, garbs, and other souvenir items. We also took advantage of free tastes of some food items, and ended up buying some matcha (green tea) pastilles called cha no ka from Malebranche and assorted nama yatsuhashi or mochi-like triangular pockets. Even though the weather was quite chilly, I bought goma (black sesame) ice cream because, well, why not?

The original plan was to take the scenic route through Sannenzaka and Ninenzaka all the way to Gion. That would have been a 20-minute walk. But since the sun was already setting, and exhaustion was starting to creep up on us, we decided to take a cab to Gion instead. It was a struggle communicating with the cabbie, but the man was gracious enough and gave us a pretty accurate estimate of the fare that we would be paying (the exact price which I have forgotten by now, sorry).

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Gion is famous for being a geisha district, making it the best place to see some maiko (apprentice geiko) and geiko (geisha in Kyoto dialect). But since we got there pretty late already-- prime time would be around 4 o'clock in the afternoon-- there wasn't much to spot. However, we were lucky enough to catch one who was probably already late for her show. They say that authentic geisha don't stop and pose for pictures, and if her scurrying was anything to go by, I'd say it's pretty legit.

Besides watching out for geisha like hungry paparazzi, one other famous tourist activity in the area is watching kabuki. Kabuki is a mix of song and dance, Japan's traditional take on performing arts. Kabuki theatre is famous for its vibrant and extravagant makeup and costume. (And yes, the famous fluffy makeup brush is named after it.)

We wallowed in the cool breeze and dim streetlights of Gion, soaking in the culture. When it was finally time to head home, we made our way to the Keihan Gion-Shijo station. Since it's an entirely different rail company, we had to buy a one-way ticket to Tofukuji station, which was both a JR and Keihan train hub (this is where having a detailed map comes handy!). From Tofukuji station, we were able to use our JR pass to head back to JR Kyoto, transfer to the shinkansen line, and ultimately go back to JR Shin-Osaka.

Amsterdam vibes

And because we were already very hungry when we got back to Osaka, we thought it was finally time to see what McDonald's had specially in store for its Japanese market. Mind you, the Ebi Filet-O is great! It's pretty much like the Filet-O-Fish we know, but has shrimp instead of fish (duh). The Teriyaki Burger is something worth trying too, I guess. Even the Hokkaido Milk Pie is a great dessert!

It's truly amazing how Japan, despite being one of the leaders in modernization has managed to preserve its rich heritage. And getting to witness wonders like that is, for me, one of the best things about traveling.