To continue from the theme of Hanami from my last post, I took my second holiday day on Friday of that last week in March/first week of April to go to Kyoto! I’m not sure if I have talked about it much here, but if you know me personally you probably already know this. Kyoto is pretty much my favorite place ever. From one mountain temple to another, from shrine to palaces, and now in spring from one flower location to another. The city is beautiful, traditional, homey, and has a sense of community whether or not you are part of that community. At least, that is how I personally feel there.
Because I am staying in Japan long-term and have a non-travelers visa for the country I can’t get that fancy rail pass most foreigners utilize when in Japan. So for those of you in my boat and looking for an adventure, let me share something with you! Each spring and summer, typically coinciding with school holidays, Japan Railways sells what they call the Seishun18 Ticket (seishun-juuhachi-kippu).
Please check their website for specific dates and details but the gist of the program is you pay about ¥12,000 (in 2015) for a ticket that gets you 5 days of free travel on ANY local JR train or bus in Japan. The downside is that it doesn’t include Shinkansen or Limited Express capabilities so be careful when planning your routes.
The 5 days of free travel have to be used during a certain period of time, but do not have to be consecutive. You can also use the pass for 5 people on the same day, two people for two days and an extra day for either of you or another friend to use, etc. The possibilities are endless, but there is only one ticket so if you and a friend use it together you must be travelling to the same place.
This is probably the most cost-effective way to travel in Japan, so if money is tight go for it and have fun! I am just cheap and wanted to try it out. There are the downsides of always being on local trains not having as much freedom for sleep and I didn’t want to carry around a lot of baggage, but now I can say that I’ve seen a lot more places between Tokyo and Kyoto than I had before. This ticket would be really cool to use while actually having 5 days to just ride the trains and get off wherever I liked!
Please check their website for specific dates and details but the gist of the program is you pay about ¥12,000 (in 2015) for a ticket that gets you 5 days of free travel on ANY local JR train or bus in Japan. The downside is that it doesn’t include Shinkansen or Limited Express capabilities so be careful when planning your routes.
The 5 days of free travel have to be used during a certain period of time, but do not have to be consecutive. You can also use the pass for 5 people on the same day, two people for two days and an extra day for either of you or another friend to use, etc. The possibilities are endless, but there is only one ticket so if you and a friend use it together you must be travelling to the same place.
This is probably the most cost-effective way to travel in Japan, so if money is tight go for it and have fun! I am just cheap and wanted to try it out. There are the downsides of always being on local trains not having as much freedom for sleep and I didn’t want to carry around a lot of baggage, but now I can say that I’ve seen a lot more places between Tokyo and Kyoto than I had before. This ticket would be really cool to use while actually having 5 days to just ride the trains and get off wherever I liked!
I stayed in Shizuoka on Thursday night at a quaint little hostel that included an individual room which I am not used to! It was really small, but I had a door so I was happy!! I got there in time to go for a nice walk in town to see Sakura blossoms on the walls above a moat that was slightly lit with festival lights and a very brightly lit castle that I glimpsed from a street corner and promptly went to check out.
Then I was up and at ‘em quite early the next morning to arrive in Kyoto by noon! It was raining and overcast in Kyoto that day which at first made me sad, but then I realized how pretty it was and decided it was okay. My pictures might not be a high of quality, but the temple we went to I snapped some great pictures of last summer and my iPhone didn’t do too terrible of a job capturing the beautiful 哲学の道(tetsugaku-no-michi; the Philosopher’s Path) in its glory of cherry blossoms and spring.
The coolest part of this was seeing the difference in this area between when I visited in the heat of August and in the cool of April. It is still a really awesome place I think.
The coolest part of this was seeing the difference in this area between when I visited in the heat of August and in the cool of April. It is still a really awesome place I think.
Then on the second day, in an attempt to go to Fushimi Inari Jinja to actually climb to the top of the mountain where the shrine really is, but I messed up the bus number and ended up heading to Ryoanji and Ginkakuji instead. I have been wanting to visit Ryoanji for a while, so I went there instead of Fushimi Inari. It was just breath-taking. It even took my breath away again a month later when I edited my photos.
After the two temples, a trip to the Kyoto Botanical Gardens was suggested to me by a friend, so of course I headed there! I was pleasantly surprised by a dance competition of sorts when I got there and got to see lots of beautiful flowers!
After that was ¥100/plate 回転寿司(kaiten-zushi; conveyor-belt sushi) restaurant, a dip in one of the most popular ‘onsens’ in Kyoto (in quotations because it is actually a sento, or bathhouse), and stumbling upon a festival at a shrine in Gion where I bought myself a cheap kimono!
After the two temples, a trip to the Kyoto Botanical Gardens was suggested to me by a friend, so of course I headed there! I was pleasantly surprised by a dance competition of sorts when I got there and got to see lots of beautiful flowers!
After that was ¥100/plate 回転寿司(kaiten-zushi; conveyor-belt sushi) restaurant, a dip in one of the most popular ‘onsens’ in Kyoto (in quotations because it is actually a sento, or bathhouse), and stumbling upon a festival at a shrine in Gion where I bought myself a cheap kimono!