Travel Diaries: Japan (Part 2)
- Brooke
- May 17, 2025
- 7 min read
Updated: May 19, 2025
If you need to catch up on Part 1, you can do so here.
OVERVIEW
If you're reading this in sequence after Part 1, congrats! Your brain works just like mine, in a linear fashion! ;) For Part 2 of our travel diaries to Japan from 2024, we're headed to Kyoto!
Kyoto was a sleepier part of Japan, but the beautiful shines and temples are a MUST SEE, and cannot be missed! Our hotel with the natural onsen, the local artisan hand carved chopsticks, the hole in the wall restaurants that have been family owned and operated for countless years...it was all so charming and beautiful!
KYOTO
2ND LEG OF JAPAN TRIP
DAY 4 (TRAVEL)
After Brice's morning swim, we checked out of our hotel in Tokyo, the Park Hyatt, and headed towards Shinjuku Station to catch the bullet train for Kyoto. The hotel offers a free shuttle bus service to and from Shinjuku L-Tower. From there, Shinjuku Station is a short 5-minute shuttle ride. You can also walk to Shinjuku Station in about 10 minutes.
Boarding the bullet train to Kyoto 
Trying to grasp the Japanese language
Adventures in Tokyo/Kyoto - Day 4
HOTEL (KYOTO)
Upon arriving to Kyoto, we checked into the most beautiful hotel I think I've ever seen: Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto. Situated in the historic city of Kyoto, Japan, Hotel Mitsui seamlessly combines traditional Japanese design with modern luxury. The entire hotel gives a calming meditative, peaceful vibe.
Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto 
Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto
Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto - Photos courtesy of Marriott
Checking in at Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto 
Welcome from the Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto 
Our room's onsen at Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto
Our one-of-a-kind Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto
Each guest room feels like a sanctuary, with floor-to-ceiling windows looking out at the surrounding gardens and mountains, and a few select suites (like the one we stayed in) have their own onsen.
What is an onsen, you say?
*From Google: An onsen is a traditional Japanese hot spring bath. These baths are typically located in natural settings and are filled with geothermally heated water that is often rich in minerals. Onsens are known for their therapeutic and relaxing properties, and are an integral part of Japanese culture.
(Don't worry. I didn't know what they were either until coming here!)
The attentive staff are skilled in the art of omotenashi (Japanese hospitality) and they ensured that our every need was met with grace and warmth. It was wonderful.
And it's only a short distance from iconic landmarks like the Kyoto Imperial Palace and Nishiki Market. This hotel is the perfect central starting point for exploring this cultural area. I HIGHLY recommend staying here if you can!
Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto 
Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto - Room Tour
DAY 4 (KYOTO)
We started sightseeing immediately! We had lunch at a local pizza spot, went to see the famous Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, got direction help from a local who was practicing his English, and visited the the monkeys at Arashiyama Monkey Park Iwatayama. We also visited a couple of temples as well: Adashino Nenbutsuji Temple and Tenryu-ji Temple.
Stairs to Bamboo Forest 
Directions from a local 
Headed back down from the Bamboo Forest 
Top of the Monkey Park in Kyoto 
Iwatayama Monkey Park in Kyoto 
Summit of Iwatayama Monkey Park in Kyoto
Adventures in Kyoto - Day 4
Adashino Nenbutsuji Temple in Kyoto 
Brice in his element at Tenryu-ji Temple in Kyoto
Brice was NOT happy about that hike up the mountain in his good shoes. Whoops! To end the day, we had dinner at a small hole in the wall (so small, I didn't capture the name or any photos, sorry!) Very few things were open and it had been a long day!
Highlights:
DAY 5 (KYOTO)
We started our first full day in Kyoto feeling so calm and re-energized from the previous day of travel. The hotel was so gorgeous, all we wanted to do was sit and eat and drink coffee and look out into the courtyard and just take it all in. It was the one moment in the day where we could just relax and appreciate all that we were seeing.
Zen-ing out at our hotel 
Meditation Garden at our hotel in Kyoto 
Welcome treat from the hotel 
Japanese breakfast
Breakfast at the hotel was included – Western style or Traditional Japanese, but they had also the best buffet!
Today was a busy one! We started at Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine (thousands of red torii gates), Nanzenji Temple, and Nanzenji Okunoin Temple (situated within the Nanzen-ji Temple grounds as a sub-temple or shrine).
Brice walking through a "Thousand Gates" 
What an incredible shrine!
Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine - This place was really cool and a great backdrop for photos.
Nanzenji Temple did not disappoint! 
Brice goofing off at Nanzenji Temple 
Brice goofing off at Nanzenji Temple
Brice acting up at Nanzenji Temple
Zen'd out - DND 
Japanese wooden sandals
Zoning out in the zen garden at Nanzenji Okunoin Temple.
A highlight of the day was experiencing the famous Nishiki Market. It was here that we had something we thought was donuts but it was not!! It was rice dumplings with a teriyaki sauce and it was NOT our thing (mitarashi dango)! But we also had some delicious doughnuts and Brice, of course, had another one of his favorite fruit sandwiches.
Strollin the streets of Nishiki Market 
Deceptively good looking mitarashi dango - not good 
Brice hold up the now infamous mitarashi dango 
Brice's favorite Japanese snack: fruit sandwiches! 
Actual doughnuts - and so yum!
Then we visited Gion. Gion is Kyoto’s geisha district, with hostesses in colorful kimonos being sighted or photographed in the street as a rarity.
Brice tried to take a picture with a geisha, but I wouldn’t let him as it's taboo! People were crowded around her as if it was Kim Kardashian. She had a fleet of people with her, but the crowd was in awe because it’s rare that they come out. People were saying it’s like getting to see the Queen of England!
We also headed to Ninenzaka, or Ninen-zaka (an ancient stone-paved pedestrian road) in the Higashiyama District along the lower slopes of Kyoto's eastern mountains (one of the city's best preserved historic districts). I loved watching the artisans through the windows doing the absolute most detailed crafts.
We also visited Shimohonnoujimaecho, a small neighborhood where I found some of the most beautiful art brushes.
Walking through the streets of Gion! 
Artisans doing work in Ninenzaka 
Brush shopping in Shimohonnoujimaecho
So much walking in Kyoto!
Taking it all in at Kiyomizudera Temple 
Taking it all in at Kiyomizudera Temple 
So many beautiful details at Kiyomizudera Temple
LOVED all the craftsman details of Kiyomizudera Temple
To round out our day, we had dinner at Toki, our on-site Michelin rated hotel restaurant. Needless to say, it was an absolutely delicious evening!
From Forbes.com:
Japanese cuisine has long been known for its emphasis on tradition, as well as its meticulously detailed execution. Few chefs are able to impart international influences onto their cuisines with the level of excellence as that of Michellin Chef Tetsuya Asano. Formerly of Ritz Paris—where he was the first Japanese chef to hold the coveted title of Executive Sous Chef—Asano returned to his native Japan and is now spearheading the kitchen at TOKI, a traditional Japanese restaurant known for its French-inspired fusions.
French-inspired Japanese fusion at Toki, our hotel restaurant in kyoto japan 
French-inspired Japanese fusion at Toki, our hotel restaurant in kyoto japan 
French-inspired Japanese fusion at Toki, our hotel restaurant 
French-inspired Japanese fusion at Toki, our hotel restaurant
French-inspired Japanese fusion at Toki, our hotel' in-house, on-site restaurant.
Highlights:
DAY 6 (OSAKA)
Welcome to this brief intermission for a VERY last minute field trip to Osaka, just for the day. I mean, since it was only a twenty minute train ride from Kyoto, it felt like we should do it at the time.
*From Google: Osaka is a large port city and commercial center on the Japanese island of Honshu. It's known for its modern architecture, nightlife and hearty street food.
Our first stop was Dotonburi, which is one of Osaka's principal tourist and nightlife areas. I tell people the vibe was kind of like the Japanese version of our Las Vegas here in the states. Great, if that's your thing!
Cruisin the streets of Dontonburi in Osaka! 
Cruisin the streets of Dontonburi in Osaka! 
Cruisin the streets of Dontonburi in Osaka!
Adventures in Osaka (walking the streets of Dontonburi) - Day 6
Hangin at the ferris wheel in Dontonburi Osaka! 
Hangin at the ferris wheel in Dontonburi Osaka! 
Riding the ferris wheel in Dontonburi Osaka!
Adventures in Osaka - Day 6
After brief research, Brice decided it was safe for us to ride the Don Quixote Ferris Wheel (Ebisu Tower) in Dontonburi. It was fun. At a minimum, it was a photo op. lol
*From Google: Ebisu Tower is the world's first oval Ferris wheel that rotates every 15 minutes. It is also the world's first four-seater gondola that rotates horizontally.
Arcade time. 
Japanese street food favorite: takoyaki (baby octopus) - not for us. 
Japanese street food favorite: takoyaki (baby octopus) - not for us.
Adventures in Osaka - Day 6
After an arcade game or two (a thing here), we tried takoyaki (baby octopus), which is a very popular street dish here in Osaka. As you can imagine, I was not a fan. Brice wouldn't even try it.
*From Eater.com: Takoyaki, fried octopus balls, are ubiquitous in Osaka, from the neon-lit restaurants of Dotonbori to family gatherings, transcending a common street food to become a cultural icon of the city.
Then we went and played with hedgehogs, which ended up being one of my favorite memories from the Osaka trip! You can make a reservation to do this here.
Time to play with hedgehogs! 
Time to play with hedgehogs! 
Time to play with hedgehogs!
Playing with hedgehogs in Osaka
Photobooth memento? Yes! 
Photo opp at Osaka Castle 
Photo opp at Osaka Castle 
Photo opp at Osaka Castle
Adventures in Osaka - Day 6
We even took photos in a photo booth. We were real tourists this day! And a keepsake momento too? Oh yeh. We finished the tour with another photo opp at Osaka Castle.
We rode the twenty minute train back to Kyoto and tried to go to dinner at Anzukko but it was booked, so we went to Chao Chao Gyoza Sanjo Kiyamachi (Izakaya) and it was so good we forgot to take any content of it at all. It made the chef/owner so happy. Then we had dessert right around the corner at Arrow Tree Kyoto Sanjyo (which I went back to again because it was great). They had these strawberry yogurt popsicles that were out of this world!
Delicious gyoza in Kyoto 
Brooke's favorite popsicle from Arrow Tree 
Brooke's favorite popsicle from Arrow Tree
Dinner + Dessert back in Kyoto - Day 6
Highlights:
DAY 7 (KYOTO)
For our first full day in Kyoto (and my favorite day of visiting Japan), we got up at 4am to get to Gion before anyone woke up. It’s literally the only time to get pictures without thousands of people in them. It was SUCH a cool experience, and we basically had our own photoshoot, lol. Even though we were tired the rest of the day, it was a great day! And the photos we captured were just iconic. They turned out so good.
TYPICALLY what Gion looks like during the day 
What Gion looks like at 5am
Adventures in Gion (Kyoto) - Day 7
TYPICALLY what Ninenzaka looks like during the day 
What Ninenzaka looks like at 5am
Adventures in Ninenzaka (Kyoto) - Day 7
Our Photoshoot in Gion 
Our Photoshoot in Gion 
Our Photoshoot in Gion 
Our Photoshoot in Gion 
Our Photoshoot in Gion 
Our Photoshoot in Gion 
Our Photoshoot in Ninenzaka 
Our Photoshoot in Ninenzaka 
From Gion with love!
Our "photoshoot" in Gion and Ninenzaka
Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion) is a Zen temple in northern Kyoto whose top two floors are completely covered in gold leaf!
*From Google: Kinkaku-ji, officially named Rokuon-ji, is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan and a tourist attraction. It is designated as a World Heritage Site, a National Special Historic Site, a National Special Landscape, and one of the 17 Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto.
Dinner at Kikyo Sushi for our last night in Kyoto 
Dinner at Kikyo Sushi for our last night in Kyoto
Dinner at Kikyo Sushi for our last night in Kyoto
We had dinner at Kikyo Sushi (10/10) and went back to the Senbon Torii (Thousand Torii Gates) to get a couple more photos at night time. It was a photoshoot kind of day!
Senbon Torii (Thousand Torii Gates) 
Senbon Torii (Thousand Torii Gates)
Senbon Torii (Thousand Torii Gates) at night
Highlights:
Experiencing Gion to ourselves
DAY 8 (TRAVEL)
We got up and had one final amazing breakfast at the most beautiful hotel and then went to ride the Bullet Train back to Tokyo.
Beautiful hotel breakfast for our last morning in Kyoto 
Matcha everything please!
Beautiful hotel breakfast for our last morning in Kyoto.
Kyoto was so good to us! So many photos taken, memories made, and the absolute time was had.
If you've made it this far, and need to catch up on Part 1, you can do so here.
Now, back to Tokyo for the last four days of this whirlwind trip to Japan!
With love from Kyoto,
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