Japan: Kyoto Station, and arriving at Himeji by shinkansen

Date: 24th March, 2015

After half a day spent at charming Arashiyama, I took the train back to Kyoto Station. Instead of rushing back to Shiori-an Guesthouse to collect my bags, I decided to explore the station.

Inside Kyoto station terminal Japan — Because Kyoto Station looks pretty cool

Kyoto station interior design Japan — Built at a cost of $1.25 billion, the station building complex houses a shopping mall, hotel, movie theater, Isetan department store, and several local government facilities

Inside Kyoto station design Japan — Kyoto Station is a tourist attraction by itself

Kyoto train station Skywalk Japan — This is the Skywalk

Kyoto tower from station rain Japan — Kyoto tower, right opposite Kyoto station

Kyoto train station tracks Japan — The train tracks below

Kyoto rail station Skywalk Japan — The Skywalk is simply one long path taking people from one end of Kyoto station to another

Restaurants Kyoto station Japan — You have restaurants and other stores on this side

Rooftop garden Kyoto station Japan — There is a rooftop garden and viewing deck at this end as well

Helipad Kyoto station Japan — And a helipad

Outdoor Kyoto station Japan — It was time to go back down

Kyoto station roof design Japan — I wouldn’t call Kyoto Station’s architecture beautiful or anything

Interior design Kyoto station Japan — But it is definitely unique

Bus stop Kyoto station Japan — The bus station outside. You can board buses going straight to Kiyomizu Dera from here.

I went back to Shiori-an Guesthouse, collected my bags and checked out. It was time to say goodbye to Kyoto and head to Himeji. I really wished I could spend at least a day or two more in Kyoto, or use it as my base and go to Nara and Osaka, which aren’t too far away. But I had to stick to my schedule.

JR ticket office Kyoto station — I bought my shinkansen ticket to Himeji (Cost ¥8600)

Kyoto station shinkansen arrival — This time, I was going to be travelling in the slower Hikari train. And by slower, I meant its top speed is only 220km/hr.

Inside Hikari shinkansen Japan — These trains are older compared to the faster Nozomi, but not by a whole lot

Japanese city train window — The train was just as fast but not 300kms+ fast

Japanese city river bridge — There weren’t many stops along the way and I don’t remember which cities I passed

Seaside Japanese city — I could see Osaka bay in the distance

Here is a short video I took of the train arriving at Kyoto station, a brief clip of the speed at which the world outside was passing by, and the train departing from Himeji station.

Himeji city evening Japan — I arrived in Himeji city before sunset

Himeji shopping arcade Japan — I used the Google Maps app to chart a route to the hostel. I found myself walking through many shopping arcades.

Honmachi street Himeji Japan — My hostel was located by this street. A street with a roof 🙂

Himeji 588 Guesthouse hostel Japan — This is where I would be staying for one night, **Himeji 588 Guesthouse**

588 Guesthouse Honmachi street Himeji — The hostel is to the left

Himeji 588 Guesthouse reception — There aren’t many hostels in Himeji and 588 Guesthouse was quite close to Himeji Castle, so that’s why I chose it

Himeji 588 guesthouse dorm hostel Japan — The dorm beds were upstairs

Himeji 588 Guesthouse dorm bed Japan — My bed. It felt like I was in a wooden capsule. Cost ¥2700 a night.

Himeji 588 Guesthouse lobby Japan — Downstairs is where you can hang out, have meals and watch TV

Inside Himeji 588 Guesthouse dorm hostel — Not very big hostel, but I guess it’s enough given how many guests they get on a daily basis

Himeji 588 guesthouse wash area Japan — The toilets and wash area

Road to Himeji castle Japan — I went back out to see my surroundings. That’s Himeji Castle in the distance.

Himeji city Japan — Himeji city didn’t feel crowded at all

Himeji city footpath Japan — Wide footpaths. Such a rare luxury back in India.

Himeji supermarket Japan — I went to a nearby supermarket… just because

Indian curry packets in Japan — Indian curry packets seem quite popular in Japan

Beef cuts supermarket Himeji Japan — Seeing all these beef cuts got me wishing I had access to a nice kitchen so I could cook

Fish supermarket Himeji Japan — Fish prices were quite high, and most of the prawns I saw were of the farmed variety

Sushi bento supermarket Himeji Japan — I was so tempted to try these Sushi bento boxes but I restrained myself as I wanted to eat them freshly made

Shopping arcade Himeji Japan — Shops were closing by 7PM

Closed shops Himeji Japan — Himeji isn’t exactly a bustling city

Himeji castle evening Japan — Anyway, I was only here primarily to see Himeji Castle

Himeji city pavement Japan — I walked around a bit more

Himeji underpass Japan — I noticed cyclists coming out of the underpass

Cycle underpass conveyor belt Japan — To the left is a conveyor belt you can roll your cycle on, to assist in bringing it up 🙂

Himeji city at night Japan — After shopping at a nearby Daiso, I walked upto Himeji station, and then walked back to the hostel

Lotteria Himeji city Japan — On the way back, I thought of trying Lotteria. It’s the fast food chain by South Korea’s Lotte Group.

Drinking at Himeji hostel Japan — I had my dinner back at the hostel with fellow guests

I didn’t feel like leaving the table. Underneath it was a heater and I was just too cozy! I sat there for at least two hours munching on snacks I bought at 7-11 and watching TV. I went to my capsule bed at around 10pm to transfer all of today’s photos onto my hard drive. I was freezing! I checked my phone for the temperature and it was 2 degrees celsius tonight — the coldest I have ever experienced! I put on an extra sweater and went to bed. I couldn’t wait for a warm morning.

Next posts in this series:

Japan 2015: Himeji Castle, and the unexpected air show

Japan 2015: Nadagiku Shuzo Sake Brewery, leaving Himeji for Tokyo — and my last bullet train ride

Japan 2015: Nakamise street, Senso-ji temple, and Ueno Park sakura at half-bloom

Japan 2015: Ueno Zoo – pandas, a lonely polar bear, and more

Japan 2015: Shibuya – the busiest crossing in the world, and home to a loyal dog

Japan 2015: Nishi-Shinjuku — views from Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building sky deck

Japan 2015: Shopping in Shinjuku, and Kabukicho

Japan 2015: Denboin garden, near Sensoji Temple

Japan 2015: Cherry blossom celebrations by Sumida River

Japan 2015: Boat ride to Odaiba; giant Gundam statue at DiverCity Mall

Japan 2015: Cherry blossoms at Tokyo Imperial Palace east garden