6th of November 2024 – Bullet Train to Kyoto

I woke in Atami to the sound of the sea.  It had been dark when we arrived in Atami so I didn't realise that only a road separated my hotel bedroom and the sea.  It was lovely just standing on the balcony for a while appreciating the sea view.

Japan's main islands of Honshu, Kyushu and Hokkaido are served by a network of high speed train lines called shinkansen that connect Tokyo with most of the country's major cities.  The trains were known to me as the bullet trains before I arrived in Japan and are known for their punctuality.  Tokyo bullet train platforms have two lanes painted on the platform in front of each door location; one lane is for passengers alighting the train and the other lane for passengers boarding the train.  The trains have a maximum speed of 200 miles per hour yet the ride is extremely comfortable and always with forward facing seats.

Mount Fuji is famous for its cap of snow which usually begins to form in early October.  Warm weather this year led to the Mount Fuji's longest ever stint with bare slopes and indeed there was no cap of snow when we visited.  On leaving Tokyo on the bullet train there was a view of Mount Fuji capped with snow.

Kyoto is nicknamed 'the city of ten thousand shrines' and on arrival we visited Kinkakuji, also known as the Golden Pavilion, a stunning temple covered with pure gold leaf.  The temple was the retirement villa of the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and, according to his will, became a Zen temple after his death in 1408.

 

The two main religious faiths of Japan are Shinto and in Buddhism.  Shinto rituals involve worshiping ancestors and spirits at domestic altars and public shrines.  Buddhism is an Indian religion and philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha.  We visited the Shinto Heian Shrine in Kyoto where we wandered round its beautiful and peaceful Japanese gardens. 

 

Our final visit of the day was to the Gion area which is Kyoto's most famous Geisha district and is filled with teahouses where Geishas entertain.  We didn't see any Geishas however there were some Japanese ladies wearing traditional kimonos.