Good Food and Views are Worth the Journey
No rolling stones here. One of the most enchanting gardens in Kyoto is that belonging to Kokedera (also known as Saiho-ji) or the Moss Temple. As its name suggests, it’s known for its moss. In my view, it’s well worth the trip to Kyoto’s western district to visit this garden.
I came here in June 2014 on a very hot day. We had a 10 am visit slot and since we didn't want to be late, we took a taxi from our hotel to Kokedera. It was only a 20 minute ride, although our hotel told us...
I took this photo of Marina Bay Sands from Gardens by the Bay at 9:08am yesterday. The thunderheads were already building up so taking photos after around 10am probably wouldn’t have yielded the blue skies in the background. Used a wide angled lens at focal length 16mm, ISO200, f13, 1/80.
It’s possible to get an overload of temples in Kyoto. And with beautiful sites easily accessible, the imperial gardens of Shugakuin and Katsura Villa may be overlooked by non-Japanese tourists. Certainly if you have a shortage of time, you may not want to allocate two hours to the imperial sites. However, I certainly think they are worth a visit - the landscaping is remarkable. These were residences after all, of Japan’s former royal families.
Between the two, Shugakuin is...
Here are some photos from my walk in Kanazawa’s Kenroku-en, known as one of Japan’s three great gardens. I was there in December when there was a light dusting of snow on the ground. It must also be beautiful now in May with the flowers in bloom.
This itinerary accompanies the narrative in the blog Kanazawa - Little Kyoto, Big Garden, Great Seafood. Read the blog for more detail.
Access: Kanazawa sits on the west coast of Central Honshu. The nearest airport is Komatsu - around 40 minutes drive from the town centre or one hour by airport bus. If you’ve flown into Tokyo, however, do try the bullet train to Kanazawa, which takes around two and a half hours. As with other cities in Japan, Kanazawa is well connected...