Arashimaya (嵐山) is a popular tourist district located in the western outskirts of
Kyoto, about a half an hour train ride or drive away from the center of
Kyoto. It is filled with temples and shrines, and attractions such as the
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove,
Togetsu-kyo Bridge, and
Kameyama-koen Park where you can interact with adorable monkeys. It is particularly popular during the cherry blossom and fall color seasons.
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| The sight that greeted us as we walked along the streets of Arashimaya to get to the Bamboo Grove/Forest |
The main objective of the day was to explore
Arashimaya, visit the
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove and catch the
Sangano Scenic Train back to
Kyoto Station. So the first thing we did
after breakfast was to catch a (JR) train to (JR)
Saga Arashiyama Station. It was a relatively easy ride and when we arrived, we took the English map that has all the local attractions mapped out. Most of the maps and guides were in Japanese, but thankfully the helpful train station staff could speak English. Once we got our bearings, we headed out to the
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove.
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| The more crowded part of town |
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| Arashimaya Curry, anyone? ^^ |
Along the way, we passed by many shops selling a variety of things, from food, snacks, clothes, souvenirs to selling/renting of colorful kimonos. I believe we passed by the
Saga-Toriimoto Preserved Street, where all of the buildings are traditional machiya ("town houses") that served as private residences but have since been converted into shops and restaurants.
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| Everyone queuing up for some soft serve on a hot hot afternoon! |
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| Colorful and pretty cotton candy for only 100¥ |
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| Cute little baby clothes and acessories |
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| ... more food! |
It was certainly a sight to behold: people wearing colorful kimonos, rickshaws being pulled by muscular men along the streets, cars driving past the traditional machiya and temples, and food being sold. To me, it is the Japanese version of
Bukchon Hanok Village, where tourism and culture meet exuding a uniquely Japanese experience.
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| The building looks like it has some history to it |
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| When in Arashimaya (or Japan), it is not hard to spot pretty kimonos of all colors being worn by both guys and gals |
After walking for a bit in an attempt to get to the
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, we got side tracked by the temptation of macha (green tea) and soy beans “yuba” soft ice cream. Seeing the long (but fast moving) queue, we decided to cool ourselves with a cone each at
300¥.
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| Macha (green tea) and soy beans “yuba” soft ice cream at at 300¥ |
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| The pretty girls in bright colorful kimonos in front of us |
So with ice-cream cone in hand, we continued our walk to
Arashiyama Bamboo Grove while taking in the sights and sounds along the way. But not before stumbling across the
Tenryu-ji Temple.
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| With ice-cream in hand, we braved the hot sun (and fast melting ice-cream) we walked towards our destination |
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| ... and we came across the Tenryu-ji Temple. We didn't go in but.... |
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| ... we did take a photo or two just to say that we have been there :p |
When travel collides with a byte, a unit of information made up of bits, TravelBytez is formed: snippets of ramblings on travel, food, shopping, living and anything else that comes to mind.
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