Kyoto Shopping Haul-part 2

 Back to the rest of our Japan trip number 2.

Above: notepad, stickers and mobile phone sticker, all from Kyoto station.

Nail varnish, purfume and cute chirimen rabbit, all from Kyoto station again.

Paper tray made from washi.

 

 Laquered box

 Very scary ninja doll

This adorable doll comes from the Kyoto Handicraft Centre. I met the lady who makes all the dolls there. Imagine being a doll maker for a living! I would love it.  How sweet is her face?  And those paper cranes are teeny tiny.

and here is my biggest purchase of the trip - a divine bride doll. She is quite big; 42 cm tall. I purchased her from Kyoto Station.

the detail in her clothing is amazing

I love everything about her. This is one doll I have always wanted and I'm so happy I was lucky enough to find one.

To summarise my thought on Kyoto:

Accommodation- Although I did enjoy the hospitality of the backpackers inn, I feel I am too old to stay in one, mainly as we slept on the hard floor and I was very sick at the time. If you want to save money for other things, then backpackers is a good option. I however, would prefer to pay extra and stay in a hotel, especially with four people sharing one room. Also, it is much more convenient to stay close to Kyoto station for ease of using public transport.  Our backpackers was just a bit to far away from the action and carrying all our luggage to and from the train station was also another issue. (We should have used a taxi)

Souvenir shopping - You can find almost everything you wish to buy at the shops leading to all the temples and shrines. Kyoto station is also a fantastic place to buy your souvenirs, and so convenient too. Downtown Kyoto has many large department stores and the Teramachi area has some interesting indie shops.

Transport - The train system is not as extensive as Tokyo's of course. My tip is to catch the train as far as you can go and then use taxis. We ended up using alot of taxis as it was more economical than paying for four train and bus tickets. I estimate that taxi fares are about the same as in Australia.

Eating - Food and drinks are easy to find wherever you go in Kyoto, and very good too. Kyoto is reknown for it's haute cuisine, but we didn't have time to seek out these eateries. There are plenty of konbini too if you want a quick snack.

Two days in Kyoto is not nearly enough time to see everything, when you consider the sheer amount of historical landmarks.  Do some research and prioritise the places you reaaly want to see. I had so many places on my itinerary that we didn't visit due to time constraints. They were: bead shops, Morita Washi, Nishijin Textile Centre, Idola, Cocon Karasuma, Le Passage, Tanaka, Linnet, Keibunsha, Daimaru, Shin-Puh-Kan... the list goes on and on. Until my next trip to Kyoto...

I love Kyoto !

Kyoto Shopping Haul-Part 1

 Kyoto is a shoppers paradise if you love traditional crafts like me. As I mentioned previously, the best places for souvenir shopping are Kyoto Station and the areas leading to temples and shrines.

 Delicious green tea cake.  There are many green tea products on offer all over Kyoto.  They love the stuff!

I love this little tote bag from Kyoto Station.

Cute rabbit display from the Chirimen Craft Museum.

These are from a lovely little shop situated on the Path of Philosophy.

Usagi shop near Ginkaku-ji.

 From the Kyoto Handicraft Centre.

Hello Kitty at Ginkaku-ji.

Notepaper and trinkets from Kyoto Station.

Cosmetics from "Porta" at Kyoto Station.
More purchases next post......

KINKAKU-JI THE GOLDEN PAVILLION- KYOTO

We had just enough time for one last tourist stop; the famed Kinkaku-ji.

I am totally fascinated by ancient architecture. I love the intricate designs.

It is certainly a spectacular sight. The gold coating reflects in the water to make it appear as if the temple is floating .

We then made the mad dash back to Kyoto station to catch the Shinkansen back to Tokyo, but not before making some substantial purchases at the souvenirs stores there.  I'll show you what I bought in my next post.

FUSHIMI-INARI TAISHA Kyoto

I awoke this day after sleeping on the floor feeling even sicker than the day before. But as we had our last half day in Kyoto, I had no choice than to muster all my energy and go sightseeing. I still had a fever and chills accompanied by swollen glands and a very painful throat.  I dreamed of being at home in my comfy king size bed dosed up on painkillers.

After checking out of our ryokan, we went to Kyoto station to put our luggage in lockers for the day.  Unfortunately, many others had the same idea, so we had to hire four little lockers to fit all our junk in as all the large lockers were taken.

After breakfast at Lotteria, we caught the JR Nara line to Inari station in search of the famous Inari shrine, Upon exiting the station, the shrine is directly across the road.

This shrine is a popular place for tourists, but it is also a working shrine.

The shrine is dedicated to the gods of rice and sake.  There are many fox statues which are considered the messenger of Inari.

The above area was used to perform a Shinto ceremony for a family with young children, similar to a baptism I guess.  Photos were not allowed of the actual ceremony which involved 3 priest (2 were women) alot of singing and chanting and music played on traditional Japanese instruments (not sure what they are called)

There are actually five shrine erected up a mountain which covers 4 kms.

As I felt so ill, we only walked a short way along, but it basically looks the same the whole way.

A grave stone perhaps?

A very awsome sight which makes for some fantastic photo opportunities.

I highly recommend this shrine.  The sheer volume of tori gates will astound you.