Japan 2023 Day 2: Kyoto
DAY 2: 12 JUN 2023
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| Arashiyama Bamboo Grove |
It's arashiyama day today!
We planned to arrive Arashiyama early to avoid the crowd.
Instead of taking a train, we rode bus 28 to Arashiyama.
The ride took about an hour before we arrive at the main shopping street.
The bamboo grove was a short walk away from the bus stop.
It was a great decision to be there early as it was not crowded.
There were so many nice photo spots at the bamboo grove!
We spent a long time snapping photos here.
After walking through the bamboo grove, we headed towards a viewpoint which was located on the left upon exiting the trail.
We could see the beautiful river and mountains in the vicinity.
It will be more beautiful in autumn with fall foliage!
We slowly made our way down to Arabica coffeeshop which is a must visit at Arashiyama!
We strolled beside the pristine river with its crystal-clear waters.
There were also traditional Japanese wooden boats parked along the riverside.
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| Pretty flowers along the river |
From a distance, we spotted the signature sign for Arabica coffee.
Amanda and I joined the queue while Michelle waited for us at the riverside.
We got a matcha latte and a kyoto latte to share.
I rarely drink coffee but Arabica's lattes are really fragrant and good!
I rarely drink coffee but Arabica's lattes are really fragrant and good!
After getting our coffee fix, we explored the main shopping streets...to shop for food!
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| Kimono Forest at Arashiyama station |
We were attracted to a matcha store and bought a matcha ice cream and warabi mochi to share.
The warabi mochi was the best we had this trip.
The mochi was so soft, melty and perfectly paired with Uji matcha powder.
One ice cream was not enough and Michelle got a strawberry ice cream cone from another store!
As much as I love ice cream, I only had a little taste of this to save my belly space for lunch.
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| Entrance of Arashiyama Yoshimura |
Michelle brought us to an udon place called Arashiyama Yoshimura
located along the same stretch as Arabica.
It opened at 11am and we had to wait about 20 minutes before we got a table.
we were seated in the dining area of the tofu restaurant.
As we made our way to our table, we saw many diners ordering tofu dishes which looked good.
We tried to order both udon and tofu dishes but to our dismay, we were unable to mix orders as they were sold by different restaurants.
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| Udon with tempura |
I ordered the udon with tempura.
The tempura was not excessively greasy and had a thin but crisp golden coating.
After lunch, we crossed the river and strolled along the riverside near the monkey park.
Along the way, we found a stall selling the 10 yen coin bread.
We saw the hype on IG over this bread and we bought one to try for 500 yen.
There was barely any cheese pull though.
We bought the famous one at Dotonbori a few days later and it was way better than this one.
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| Pontocho |
We then took a train to Gion to explore the area.
Gion is full of traditional houses and shops and if you are lucky, you get a chance to spot geishas!
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| Hanamikoji Street |
Unfortunately, luck was not on our side and we did not see a geisha.
We continued in the same direction to visit Yasaka shrine.
I visited the shrine in the evening during my last visit and the lanterns were beautifully lit up.
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| Japanese desserts |
We took a break at the shrine to have some desserts.
How did we buy these desserts?
We exited the train station via the basement of a departmental store.
As you would have known, all the food stuffs are located at the basement.
A simple exit to the main street level became a shopping spree at the rice cracker counter and a Japanese dessert/mochi counter.
I thought we were only buying one or two to share.
But no, they bought three!
They tasted pretty good though.
As for the rice cracker, it is similar to Wang Wang and is so delicious!
We snacked on it throughout our trip.
Sorry for the sidetrack, let's get back to our itinerary haha.
Maruyama park was located beside Yasaka shrine.
This park is really pretty in Spring when cherry blossoms are blooming.
The park was still pretty when we went!
After spending some time at the park, we took a bus back to Kyoto station.
When in Japan, you must have sushi.
Amanda and I had dinner at Sushi no Musashi, a conveyor belt sushi,
situated at Kyoto station Hachijo entrance.
Michelle settled for something else for dinner as she is not a fan of sashimi.
The prices were affordable and the sushi was not too bad.
The guy seated next to us had a feast.
Following our dinner, we reunited with Michelle, only to discover that she has not had her dinner.
In the end, she bought cooked food from a convenience store, which smelled really good!
And that's the end of day 2 and our last night in Kyoto!
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