After an eventful day of activities yesterday, today was going to be just as hectic. I didn’t feel like leaving Kyoto without seeing some more attractions. And so I woke up early and set off for Arashiyama, a popular tourist town with lots to see and do.
Kyoto station was bustlingI’ll have another post on Kyoto station’s unique architectureTo get to Arashiyama, I had to board a train on the Sagano lineThat is the JR train I was going to board. Tickets cost ¥240 (₹120/$1.8/€1.7) for a one way trip to ArashiyamaThe journey from Kyoto city to Arashiyama by train takes about 20 minutesThis must be a driving schoolJust outside Saga Arashiyama station is a museum showcasing rail memorabilia and pianos from the 19th century. Yes, you read that right 🙂Renting a bicycle is a popular way to get around ArashiyamaI wanted to rent one but I knew I could only spend an afternoon in Arashiyama. So I decided to walk instead, not knowing how much I could cover by 2PMLove spotting these cute housesThe entrance to Bamboo Forest is a short 15 minute walk from Saga Arashiyama station. Just before entering, I felt like having a beef croquette which was being sold at a small stall (on the right).
It was a good thing I didn’t rent a cycle, because they are not allowed beyond this pointThe famous Bamboo forest of ArashiyamaAlso referred to in English as Bamboo GroveI couldn’t really find any history of this bamboo forest written anywhere. Like who planted all these bamboo trees, why, and who maintains them now.These bamboo trees were more than 50 feet highA cemetery?The path is fairly straight forwardI saw this gate to Tenryuji TempleI went in to check out the placeThere were three buildings inside the temple groundsThis one is the biggest, but didn’t look like the templeTenryuji temple grounds seem like a very relaxing place to be atThe requisite koi fish in a lakeIt wasn’t until I walked around to this building I realized this is the main entrance…and there is a ¥500 entry free! 😛The downside was I found myself back on the main roadI had go back to the bamboo forestA bit of time wasted, but I picked up paceChikurin no Komichi is what Bamboo Forest is called in JapaneseA panoramaI was walking towards the section which has a higher concentration of bamboo treesThis area is really the bestTook this shot on my phoneThis is the edge of the Bamboo ForestOnce I was out of the Bamboo forest, I found myself walking through some neighbourhoodAfter a while, I was trying to figure out my way back to the main road againIf you don’t wish to walk around the Bamboo Forest, then this is your next best optionFigured I had to cross this railway track to get back to the Bamboo Forest
On the way back, saw these maiko dancers enjoying the attention of the passing tourists looking at them in aweI was finally back on the main roadJapanese umbrellas are prettyI bought one of these to taste. It wasn’t very sweet.I decided to visit the Monkey Park next, which was across this bridgeKatsura riverTogetsukyo bridgeIt’s from this bridge that you can capture the colourful trees by the river…… well, colourful during Autumn seasonArashiyama is very much a tourist townHoshinoya is a riverside resort, but you can also hire boat rides from here
I finally reached the entrance to the Monkey Park, but all that and more in the next post!
Awesome Japan photo walks! Plenty of useful travel info too. Plan to go there someday! Was the Bamboo Grove that hard to navigate even with a satnav app like Google Maps?
LY
03/03/2016Awesome Japan photo walks! Plenty of useful travel info too. Plan to go there someday! Was the Bamboo Grove that hard to navigate even with a satnav app like Google Maps?
Mithun Divakaran Reply:
March 3rd, 2016 at 8:56 PM
Not that hard, as long as you have a good signal.