We had a little break after our tour with Kenya was over, so we went to a small local shop and bought these Daifuku treats (mochi stuffed with red bean paste). Kenya showed us this local shop earlier and said they were the best in Kyoto! I immediately dropped a pin on my Google Map, so we could find the shop again.
And yes, they were delicious!
At 6:30 PM we met up with our night time food tour group (there were seven of us). Our tour guide was an Australian woman (I forgot her name!) who moved here years ago and married a local man. She was a lot of fun!
We first went on a walk through the Gion district along the Shirakawa Canal. It was a beautiful night!
We then made our way to the Yasaka Shrine. Even though we were here earlier in the day it was nice to see the shrine at night when all the lanterns were lit.
Our guide then took us to the entrance of a Maiko House. The names of the girls that lived and trained there were written on wooden planks and hung above the entrance. I thought that was a little dangerous, but what do I know?
We then went to our first restaurant. It was a bookstore during the day that turns into a bar at night! We were brought into a backroom where we all gathered around a small table. We then ordered drinks and the bookstore/bar owners brought in a variety of appetizers. Everything was delicious and it was so fun to talk to the rest of the group!
After we left the bookstore/bar we were taken to see the outside of a Love Hotel. Our tour guide told us that cheating was kinda common and some people had "understandings" with their partners. Not everyone who uses the hotel is a cheater though. Some single men bring ladies-of-the-night here or couples will come here for a quick getaway.
[The exit - there are two paths, so you can leave together or separately]
We left the Love Hotel and made our way to the west side of the Kamo River to see the Ponto-cho, Kiyamachi, and the Kawaramachi areas. The old narrow streets along Ponto-cho embrace the traditional Kyoto style and had some hostess clubs.
[Symbol of the local Geiko]
[Pontocho Kaburenjo Theater]
We then arrived at our final restaurant. We had the entire restaurant to ourselves since it could only fit eight people total.
There was an option to add on Kobe to our dinner for a fee, so Luke and I chose that option. When in Rome, right?! I'm a little surprised the rest of the group didn't, but they definitely missed out!
We ordered drinks and engaged in delightful conversations with our fellow travelers.
Dinner started with sushi,
and then we had a mushroom dish,
and finally the Kobe! It was worth every penny!
After dinner we said goodbye to everyone and took an overly crowded bus back to the hotel.
[I was so smushed on the bus that I didn't even need to hold onto anything]
If you can't tell already, I LOVED Kyoto! I was looking forward to visiting this city the most and it did not disappoint. I loved the culture and heritage and the beautiful temples and shrines. This city was the capital of Japan for over 1000 years and the sites here are old! May cities in Japan have been destroyed by fires and war, but Kyoto has been very lucky on that front. Thanks to our awesome tour guides (Yuka and Kenya) for showing us around and thanks to Luke for letting me drag him on these LONG and history intensive tours. I know he had a great time! 😁
I know there is so much more to see and experience, but it's time for us to move on. Stay tuned for knives and bowing deer in Nara!
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