Day 4: Kyoto – Gion Kinana (祇園きなな)
I absolutely have to hand it to Ling for having done thorough research for us to check out the more special dining places during our stay in Kyoto. We checked out the second and third (of four) of her ‘must
Category: Traveling
Day 4: Kyoto – Gion
The Gion District is just about a 7 minutes bus ride away from Mitsui Garden Hotel., and perhaps 20 minutes walk. The district is Kyoto’s best-known geisha quarter, and is filled with private inns and teahouses that for centuries have
Day 4: Kyoto – Kiyomizu Temple
The road up to Kiyomizu Temple is stone-paved and is, accordingly to our guide books, regarded as a preservation district. There are numerous pottery shops, many of them offering similar types of wares and across the price range with many
Day 4: Kyoto – Higashiyama
The Higashiyama area sits at the foot of the mountains and is at the eastern edge of Kyoto City. It’s pretty rustic and secluded in some parts, but in the lanes leading up to Kiyomizu Temple, becomes a lot more
Day 4: Kyoto – Yasaka Shrine & Maruyama Park
Post-breakfast at Holly’s Café, we took a 10 minute bus ride to Gion District to begin our sojourn that’d lead us eventually to Kiyomizu-dera temple in the late morning. We got off the bus at the intersection between Shijo and
Day 4: Kyoto – Holly’s Cafe
I was just remarking to Ling that in typical days back at home in Singapore, we’d never eat so much nor so often as what we’re doing now on vacation! I can so understand why our Missouri bud does what
Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shijo @ Kyoto
This is a good find for the price we paid. Frills aside, let’s zoom in to the hotel room. What Yang likes: complimentary internet connection in the hotel room a long business- like desk for his laptop a comfortable revolving
Day 3: Kyoto – Katsukura
Just to get some satisfaction of having eaten really good Japanese food, I did a little research on the Trip Advisor to gather some recommendations for food hounds in Kyoto. Katsukura restaurant was highly rated for its tonkatsu. And what
Day 3: Kyoto – Nijō Castle
After the fabulous lunch (Ling: “Must try, Matt!!!”) at Nishinotoin, we checked into Mitsui Garden Hotel to set down our luggage, set out toiletries, before stepping out for the rest of the day’s program. Ling had three items on the
Day 3: Kyoto – Lunch at Nishinotoin
Come to think of it, it’s actually pretty fun to travel to a relatively more expensive country like Japan but on a budget. It forces the both of us to really explore the cities a lot more thoroughly to see
Day 3: Kobe through Osaka to Kyoto
Day 3 was when we said goodbye to Kobe and made the move to Kyoto, the real highlight of our 10.5 day trip to Western Honshu. We had to time our check-ins and travel time carefully though to make sure
Chisun Hotel Kobe @ Kobe
To avoid the dreaded tourist trap shops typical of packaged tours, we decided to plan our own itinerary for the Japan trip. Choosing a hotel which fits our budget, location and list of amenities became a challenge as there is
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