Unusual, Non-Touristy Things to do in Kyoto

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[{"address":"Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.031053761132334,"longitude":135.66167285},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# Find Your Favourite Stone Person at Otagi Nenbutsu-Ji\nOkay, so, you might be disappointed that with all that preamble above the first thing I’m telling you to visit is a shrine, but honestly, this place is fabulous.\nTucked away in the hills above Arashiyama it’s inhabited by 1200 small weather-worn stone people – known as rakan – every one of which is totally different.\n\nI wasn’t expecting the amount of fun someone has had carving these.\n\nWhen you see them from a distance you think they all look the same, but close up, not only do you realise they have different faces and shapes conveying their personalities – some of them even have props.\n\nThere is one carrying a tiny cat/bear thing, two friends are drinking sake – there’s even one with a tennis racket!\nIt turned out to be the highlight of our day and my favourite of all the Kyoto shrines and temples I checked out,\n\nDon’t miss it.\n\nThe address of Otagi Nenbutsu-ji is Fukatani-Cho, Saga Toriimoto, Ukyi-ku, Kyoto.\n\nIt costs 300 yen to get in and is open from 8am to 5pm\n\nWe walked there which takes you through a really quaint residential area full of traditional old houses and beautiful gardens.\n\nIf you don’t want to walk, you can also get the 62,72,92 and 94 buses – it is quite a way up the hill so that might be a good idea if you’re already worn out.\nMind you, if we hadn’t walked, I wouldn’t have found the next thing on my list of unusual things to do in Kyoto, and that would have been a real shame."},{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/U4hdjZ4oKrR5wKCK8"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F301.jpg?alt=media&token=3b3ee4c7-52ad-45bd-b91d-77b5f84734dc"}]},{"address":"Gioji","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.023415161129186,"longitude":135.66712115},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/hEizmJiVYcFWFfkq6"},{"type":"text","content":"# Admire Some Moss\nJust when you thought I’d finished with the temples, there’s one more on my list – Giou ji, the moss temple\n\nYes, as if there weren’t already a lot of things in Kyoto temples covered in moss – this one is actually dedicated to the green fluffy stuff.\n\nIn fact, there’s a whole lawn full of it – not to mention the fact that it’s springing up on stones, roofs and pretty much anywhere else it can grab a hold with its little frilly feet.\nOkay, if you’re not into moss, you might want to skip this one, but I quite like it!\n\nHowever, if you’re REALLY into moss – there is actually about six more moss temples in Kyoto including one called Saihoji which is a Unesco-protected site and requires a reservation to visit.\n\nFamous as the setting of a renowned Japanese novel, the booking system was brought in as too many people were trying to visit and the moss was getting damaged.\n\nIdeally, book at least two months in advance of your trip and prepare to be a bit flexible as they only have set sessions each day. "},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F15.webp?alt=media&token=d0f812a5-d560-4ec8-a070-8ffde1f0fcb1"}]},{"address":"Mikami Shrine","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.0176683111268,"longitude":135.6697374},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/jKe6hqSAw6uSrpGS6"},{"type":"text","content":"# Pray for Good Hair\nAt the end of the Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, you’ll find a small shrine called Makami Jinja.\n\nIt doesn’t look much, but if need any help in the hair department this is the prayer place for you.\n\nWhether you’re starting a hairdressing business, need some guidance on a do, or trying to stop the hands of time and prevent balding the gods here will listen.\nYou can either write your wishes on an ema – one of the small wooden plaques you find at any shrine or temple – or, if the priest is around, they will actually trim off a piece of your hair as an offering to the gods – and in return, the deities will help you out with your every follicular wish.\n\nI loved all the offbeat Kyoto shrines I found, there really is a place to pray for everything."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F311.jpg?alt=media&token=eb5b7326-7ec4-4567-9117-250bc1d8371f"}]},{"address":"Saga-Arashiyama Station","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.01882866112728,"longitude":135.6813012},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# Be Wowed by the Tiny Cocoon People\nSo, there we were wandering up the hill to Otagi Nenbutsu-ji when we went past the most amazing sight.\n\nAttached to a wall by a small shop was an entire Japanese street scene laid out in a glass case with the people parts played by tiny white weeble-like creatures.\n\nIt took me a minute before I realised they were made from silk cocoons.\nThe level of detail on this is amazing.\n\nNot surprisingly, it’s created by the owner of Mayumura, a shop that specialises in selling little cocoon creatures.\n\nI don’t normally buy souvenirs but I really wanted one of these – and each tiny figure only costs 200 yen making them a veritable bargain.\nInterestingly, when the family that owns the shop first told friends they were going to open in this area, known as Saga Arashiyama, they were told it could never be a success as the area was full of ghosts and no-one would ever brave the place to visit them.\n\nThankfully, now enough people wander past for it to be a success – and the only spooky thing we saw when we were up there was a guy walking his dog in these shoes! How on earth does he balance?\nThis is the shop you’re looking for – it is marked on google maps.\nIf you’re not going to Otagi Nenbutsu-ji, there’s also a second shop selling the tiny cocoon creatures on the main street in Arashiyama.\n\nThis is owned by the younger brother of the first store – and it’s also known as Mayumura."},{"type":"link","content":"https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fdifferentville.com%2Funusual-non-touristy-things-to-do-kyoto%2F&psig=AOvVaw2-yPRK5J9jrDlb57ty2BDi&ust=1668940559570000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=2ahUKEwiV5vOahrr7AhWviNgFHdLDDFkQr4kDegQIARAk"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F302.jpg?alt=media&token=55a22824-dfbc-4571-a70a-7c4bcb2f8fb3"}]},{"address":"Kimono Forest","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.015268211125836,"longitude":135.6783695},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# Check out the Kimono Forest\nWhile you sit and soak your feet at Arashiyama station, you’ll notice the outside of the station is surrounded by plastic tubes about 6ft high filled with coloured fabric.\n\nThis is the Kimono Forest an art installation by artist Yasumichi Morita.\n\nThere are over 600 pillars in all and 32 different fabrics on display, and if you’re in Arashiyama at night, the tubes light up\nI actually preferred the Kimono Forest to the real Arashiyama Bamboo Forest and which, in my opinion, does not live up to the Instagram hype around it!\n\nYes, it’s beautiful, but it’s very small and I felt a bit let down when I actually got there.\n\nI did at least manage to see it ‘deserted’ – we got there at about 8am and there were only about 10 other people there – when we came past again at 11am it was absolutely heaving.\n\nAgain, I go back to my number one Kyoto rule – go early!\n\nI did, however, get a chance to play with the watercolour setting on my phone (see first pic above). Fun things to do in Kyoto number 19 – fiddle about with your camera!"},{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/nSbixZEZXXH7Rg2F8"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F310.jpg?alt=media&token=aa7ff985-1037-4d3e-a73d-09d74e027868"}]},{"address":"Arashiyama Station","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.010457911123844,"longitude":135.6816374},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/1LVdktmJdCzqqVuL7"},{"type":"text","content":"# Soak in the Railway Onsen\nThings you normally find at railway stations – trains, bookshops, coffee places.\n\nThings you don’t normally find at railways stations – little pools of warm water in which you can soak your feet, yet, tucked away at the end of the platform at Arashiyama station, is exactly that.\nSimply go to the ticket office and pay your 200 yen fee to use the spa.\n\nYou’ll be given a little bag with a free towel and a ticket that shows you’ve paid.\n\nThen, head down the platform, take off your shoes (giving your feet a little wash before you put them in the spa itself) and relax while you watch the cutesy trains of the Keifuku Electric Railroad go back and forth around you.\n\nIt’s completely random, absolutely bonkers and I totally loved it – as did my feet which by this point hated me as I had literally walked 200km in the last 10 days.\n\nOnce you’ve finished soaking, pop your shoes back on and you’re handily right by the train that takes you to the famous zen garden temple at Ryoanji, or Kitano Hakubaicho, the nearest station to explore Yokai Street."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F309.jpg?alt=media&token=18c710d3-66ff-481a-89ef-56fb76b34d02"}]},{"address":"Taishogun Shopping Street - Ichijo Yokai Street","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.02612631113031,"longitude":135.73397300000002},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/v6ZtwK5oBDHKRPRSA"},{"type":"text","content":"# Go Hunt Monsters\nYokai Street is part of Ichijo-Dori, a traditional old shopping street directly west of Kyoto’s Imperial Palace – but what makes it special is the monster statues dotted along it.\n\nThe legend of Yokai Street is that many years ago a load of household goods that had been thrown away turned into spirits and rampaged down Ichijo-Dori until they got calmed down by a local priest – now each of the shops has its own little protector in their honour.\nI loved Yokai Street – from the little monsters to the quaint traditional shops it was probably the favourite thing I did in Kyoto.\n\nIf you want to see more pictures and learn about the monster-themed foods you can buy on the road"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F304.jpg?alt=media&token=d2c1426d-dd08-4e85-86ba-81e1423b3f18"}]},{"address":"Usaginonedoko Kyoto","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.01085471112402,"longitude":135.73380475},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/DKizBpSriRbGwcd58"},{"type":"text","content":"# Eat Food That Looks Like Gemstones\nScience nerds, heads up.\n\nEvery dish on offbeat Kyoto cafe Usaginonedoko’s menu is designed to look like a crystal or other piece of rock.\nTheir most famous dish is their black Meteorite Curry – the prettiest is possible the Amythest Pannacotta (only available as part of a meal set)\n\nit’s called Usaginonedoko and the official address is ウサギノネドコ Kyoto-fu, Kyoto-shi, Nakagyo-ku, Nishinokyo Minami Haramachi 37.\n\nIt’s closed on a Thursday (guess which was the day I was actually nearby) – ah, well at least its something else to add to my next visit to Kyoto!\n\nThere were a few other unusual things to do in Kyoto that we didn’t manage to check out.\n\nOne of the temples has a pitch black room which aims to take you back to the womb, another has a ceiling covered in bloody footprints, but with the time we had (and blisters literally on every toe by this point) we couldn’t quite do everything.\nHopefully, even without these though, I’ve given you enough ideas though to change your image of Kyoto as a city full of wall to wall serious temples.\n\nIt really is a gorgeous place – with a totally different feel from Tokyo."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F18.webp?alt=media&token=c57b2dc7-ff74-4c73-98b9-b77d97d3dfc6"}]},{"address":"Menbaka Fire Ramen","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.01773286112686,"longitude":135.7476437},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"http://fireramen.com/"},{"type":"text","content":"# Eat Fire Ramen\nI spend months researching the trips I’m going to write about on this blog, months, so, when, about three days after I get home I find out about something seriously cool that I missed out on, the sulk is massive.\n\nThis is what happened with Fire Ramen!\n\nAfter all, If you want a moment that sums up Weird Kyoto perfectly, what better than having your dinner set alight!!!\n\nI hadn’t seen anything about it before I left – or there’d totally be a video like this one of me in Kyoto!\nFire ramen is a speciality of a restaurant called Menbakaichidai, located slightly north of Kyoto Castle.\n\nThe idea is simple – you’re served a bowl of a light chicken, pork and soy broth full of green onions, slices of pork and noodles – and a layer of oil on top.\n\nThe chef then sets light to the oil.\n\nThis cooks the onions and pork giving everything a seriously smokey taste.\n\nIt costs 1350 a bowl and other sets are available – including one for 2260 yen which includes, as the restaurant puts it ‘a cool badge’.\n\nOh, how I want that badge.\nI want that badge so badly I could cry."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F303.jpg?alt=media&token=c30f1290-afad-4d2e-b3d1-d84c1e643287"}]},{"address":"327 Nishidaikokuchō","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.013572811125115,"longitude":135.75400469999997},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/dgHPUc2HbgP3ids39"},{"type":"text","content":"# Have a Cloud Coffee\nOh if ever there was a drink made for Instagram this is it.\n\nThere’s a cloud of candy floss suspended as if by magic over your hot drink of choice – as the steam hits the floss, the sugar melts into the drink as if it’s raining.\nYes, it’s as fabulous as it looks!\n\nFind it at Alpha Food and Drink, 327 Nishidaikokucho, Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture 604-0063, This is fairly near Kyoto Castle.\n\n2022 Update: Unfortunately, as I check the links in this post in May 2022 it looks like Alpha Food and Drink has closed down. I’m keeping it on here though in the hope that they’ll remerge once tourism in Japan picks up again."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F305.jpg?alt=media&token=598f27f2-2052-42a7-b1ca-5874ba907c54"}]},{"address":"Bozu Bar","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.00539271112173,"longitude":135.75367614999996},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://proapk.org/kalrxug/article.php?tag=unusual-day-trips-from-kyoto"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F307.jpg?alt=media&token=15809cf9-2cc7-443d-be87-63086ed738e7"},{"type":"text","content":"# Go Drink with a Monk\nThe salon & bar SAMGHA is run by Takahide Haneda, who also happens to be the head priest at the nearby Kounji Temple.\n\nNot surprisingly, considering the owner’s day job, this place is seriously calming.\n\nIt’s dimly lit, you summon Haneda san by ringing a little bell on the table (usually used to summon monks to prayer) and conversation is more, quiet chatting than raucous drinking games.\n\nThe bar serves mostly Japanese wines, whiskeys and beers.\nMonastic he may be, but he’s definitely not a charity – this was the most expensive night out I had in my whole trip to Japan – costing about £40 for one glass of wine and some nibbles!\n\nBut, hey I got to drink Japanese wine, I ate cheese made from grapes and I went home with a monk’s business card so all was right with the world.\n\nYou’ll find salon & Bar SAMGHA at 526 Yamada cho, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto City.\n\nNormal opening hours are from 6pm to midnight\n\nIt’s closed on Sunday and on the odd special day."}]},{"address":"Nishiki Market","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.00498691112155,"longitude":135.76490339999998},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# Eat an Octopus with an Egg in its Head\nOkay, so this is a touristy thing to do in Kyoto, but that’s why this post is called Unusual and Non-Touristy Things to do in Kyoto. I like to keep my options open – and this one is definitely an unusual, offbeat Kyoto thing to do.\n\nYou’ll find these in the super busy – but absolutely enthralling – Nishiki Market.\n\nI love markets so, Nishiki was my personal Kyoto must-see and it also turned out to be the perfect thing to do on a rainy day in Kyoto as it’s under cover.\n\nThe little octopi are served on sticks – and if eating an entire tiny octopus wasn’t odd enough, they come with a tiny quails egg stuffed into their head.\n\nThat was the worst bit for me as I intensely dislike boiled eggs!\nThe octopus itself isn’t actually that bad. It’s got a similar texture to squid and they are coated with some kind of sticky sweet glaze which gives the flavour a lift.\n\nThere’s heaps of places in Nishiki that serve the little critters – and some of them will give you a sticker if you manage to eat one!\n\nIt didn’t make up for the fact that I don’t have a fire ramen badge but its a start!"},{"type":"link","content":"https://www.kyoto-nishiki.or.jp/"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F312.jpg?alt=media&token=9357ab50-f93d-4c50-a8ab-b3a79d4266c0"}]},{"address":"Issen Yoshoku","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.00397856112113,"longitude":135.7731312},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/qzAYekTXXHfT4rxB6"},{"type":"text","content":"# Go to the Doll Restaurant\nSo you’ve always wanted to eat an omelette while being stared at my large plastic dolls – my friend, I have just made your day as I know exactly where you need to go!\n\nIssen Yoshoku is a restaurant that serves only one dish. A kind of omelette/pancakey thing made from eggs, spring onions, dried shrimp, beef and a few other bits and bobs (there’s a sign in the restaurant explaining all the details.\n\nBut if it’s singular menu wasn’t enough to set it apart from everywhere else, some of the tables inside the restaurant come with their own life-size kimono-clad dolls to keep you company.\nIt’s weird Kyoto at it’s best, a completely mad place – but actually, a welcome relief to see as it’s tucked between the super pricey and a bit intimidating Gion district and the cheap, but a bit sleazy area on the other.\n\nI admit, when I read about this place I thought it was going to be on the sleazy side – I was expecting a place full of sad lonely old men that would go silent as we entered, so I was a bit surprised to find it wide open, brightly lit and right on the main street.\n\nCheck it out if you need a fairly cheap protein fix – and a heap of intriguing photographs.\n\nYou’ll find it at 238 Giommachi Kitagawa, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture 605-0073, Japan.\n\nOfficially the opening hours are supposed to be 11-3.00 weekdays and only open at night at weekends, but we went past on a weekday evening and it was open, so maybe check locally if you want to go in the evening."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F14.webp?alt=media&token=c6ffa857-d266-409f-a416-eb32cd03b76e"}]},{"address":"Yasui Kompira-gu Shrine","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.00011001111954,"longitude":135.77600214999998},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# Bless Your Relationship in the Magic Stone\nThe job of the paper-clad enkiri or enmusubi stone at Kyoto’s Yasui Kompira Gu temple in Gion is to bind or break relationships – enkiri means to cut while the word enmusubi covers all kinds of connections, ties and relationships – be that with other people or with things or habits.\n\nYou buy a piece of the paper from the stall by the shrine and write your name on it. Then clutching your bit of paper you climb through the hole in the shrine – just make sure you go the right way round.\n\nIf you want to cement a good relationship you need to go through the hole back to front. If you want to break off a bad one, then go the other way.\n\nThankfully we read this before I sent my friend Kendall the wrong way through the hole and doomed her and her boyfriend!\nPersonally, I was more worried that my curvier than the average Japanese butt might get stuck in the stone than about my love life so The Boyfriend and I will just have to take our chances!\nYou’ll find the stone at the Yasui Konpari-Gu Shrine in Gion – it’s open 24 hours but go early evening and you have the place virtually to yourself – this is generally the case if you want to make any popular attraction in Kyoto less touristy..\n\nWe met someone else there who had already visited twice during the day but given up climbing through because there were too many people.\n\nShe was very pleased to just find only us there in the early evening."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F306.jpg?alt=media&token=751bbc8a-323e-414c-a646-e59b8b2b5519"},{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/a2hWRZXPfcpXAYQu8"}]},{"address":"Yasaka-dori","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":34.99888091111906,"longitude":135.77426640000002},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/4tMRfnUvjrDycqZs7"},{"type":"text","content":"# Check Out Ukiyoe Small Museum\nWe noticed this place only because the sign made us laugh – and thankfully it was open as we went past.\n\nThe museum shows off the work of its owner who is a master of the traditional art of woodblock painting – and apparently, there are only a handful of people left in Japan who can do this.\n\nPersonally, I just want to adopt his work ethic!\nYou’ll this Kyoto quirky sight on Yasaka Dori just past the junction with Yamata Oji Dori\n\nOct 22 Update: As you’ll see in the comments below, the Ukiyoe Museum was closed when someone recently visited. Again, I’ll update this post when I get back to Kyoto next year but I’ll keep it here for now in case it reopens.\n\nAnd while you’re here, don’t miss the store Maiko Antiques that’s on the same corner.\n\nIt’s full of quirky finds – and they have a collection of secondhand kimono and yukata for sale outside.\nIf you’d prefer just to rent a kimono for the day, that’s doable as well – as you can see by the heaps of pics of people wearing them, it’s super common in Kyoto."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F16.webp?alt=media&token=b3489e6a-cd2d-4741-af04-d1597bbc0d46"}]},{"address":"Kongoji (Yasaka Kōshindō) Temple","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":34.99844556111887,"longitude":135.77875425},"media":[{"type":"text","content":"# Find the Pom Pom Temple\nProbably the busiest and most touristy parts of Kyoto are the winding streets around the Higashiyama district.\n\nYou definitely won’t be alone up here – every road is thronged by people shopping, wandering about in kimono, temple hopping and eating some of the super cute foods (like gold leaf ice cream) you can find nearby.\n\nI wasn’t expecting to be surprised by much up here – but then we wandered into Yasaka Koshindo – and found an entire temple decorated with coloured balls!\nMind blown.\nApparently, if you write your wishes on one of the coloured balls and then hang them up – one of the three monkeys that guard the temple will grant your wish.\n\nIt’s a stunning place to see, but as with all Kyoto temples, if you want to get the place to yourself go as early in the day as you possibly can – it opens at 9am."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F313.1.jpg?alt=media&token=aee47a98-45b6-4405-a54e-c9188008d549"},{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/bkEnvB1kbnfdcYw76"}]},{"address":"Nara Kaido","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":34.72003831100428,"longitude":135.82517359999997},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/adaUj2uWucMBFbKw6"},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F308.jpg?alt=media&token=52142e9d-703d-45b1-a399-8aba95b68d7d"},{"type":"text","content":"# Make a Deer Bow\nAbout a 70-minute easy train ride south from Kyoto is the city of Nara – and, in the park at Nara are rather a lot of deer just wandering about.\n\nTo say they are used to people is an understatement. They’ll happily wander up to you looking for a treat of the deer cookies they sell in the park – and, if you bow at them, they bow back.\nCue hours of fun.\nIt was absolutely hosing it down the day we went to Nara but the bowing deer made the drenching worthwhile!\n\nWatch out though, while they are fairly calm most of the time, they can get a bit aggressive when you are carrying deer cookies, and they do nip."}]},{"address":"Yayoi Kusama Museum","location":{"longitudeDelta":0.14321712068773834,"latitudeDelta":0.09219986310369421,"latitude":35.7032044614125,"longitude":139.72658515},"media":[{"type":"link","content":"https://goo.gl/maps/rGHa3LS84zBTfYvg7"},{"type":"text","content":"# See the Giant Pumpkin\nWhile we were in Kyoto we took an overnight trip to visit the island of Naoshima that’s famous for it’s art – and the best-known pieces on this latter island are the bright coloured pumpkins of artist Yayoi Kusama.\n\nSo, imagine our surprise when one evening we were exploring the Gion district and we came across one of Kusama’s pumpkins – in a car park about 20-minutes walk from our hotel!\n\nSeems Yayoi Kusama is having an exhibition in Kyoto until February 2019 at the Forever Museum of Contemporary Art!\nIt costs 1500 yen to get in – and the gift shop is even selling special pumpkin cakes in her honour!\n\nThis pumpkin though is free to view outside.\n\nIf it’s gone when you visit Kyoto, you can take a long day trip to Naoshima and see Kusama’s red pumpkin (the yellow one got damaged and it’s stil unknown if it will come back to the island)."},{"type":"img","content":"https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/freeguides-prod.appspot.com/o/assets%2Ftours%2FldN1cOAW4ssY4TgYVo6p%2F17.webp?alt=media&token=521cc0bd-623d-4993-ad0d-5e08d2f6ca4d"}]}]