I've been to Las Vegas many times in the past 15 years with friends and family but most of the time I've gone by myself. As an avid global solo traveler, it's become one of my favorite places to visit.
21.07.2023 - 08:37 / roughguides.com
Kyoto hardly needs an introduction. In a country often associated with logic-defying bullet trains and kaleidoscopic mega cities, Japan’s former imperial capital holds an eternal appeal. It’s traditional Japan distilled – history-steeped tea houses, cherry-blossom-cloaked streets, elaborately sculpted temples – and yet, it’s also a city with a burgeoning modern spirit.
Last year Japan recorded its highest level of international visitors, and with the upcoming Rugby World Cup and 2020 Olympics, Japan – and undoubtedly Kyoto along with it – will be attracting even more attention. Here’s everything you need to know before your trip:
The word Kyoto translates as ‘Capital City’, a name that provides a definite clue to the city’s appeal. Although Kyoto’s time at the helm of Japan is long gone, the city is still cluttered with hallmarks of its time as the country’s ruler.
History and culture are inescapable here: Kyoto is home to one of the world’s largest collections of UNESCO Heritage sites, the cuisine is renowned as the most refined in Japan, and geishas still conduct intricate tea ceremonies in the city’s wood-clad houses.
Yet bubbling beneath all this tradition, there’s a modern undercurrent. Wander a little off the beaten track and you’ll see that Kyoto’s contemporary edge unfurls itself in a clutch of edgy designer shops, quirky cafés – and, most notably, with the Kyoto International Manga Museum.
There’s no denying that Kyoto is a hard city to contain. Surrounded on three sides by low, mist-slung mountains, the city sprawls, crawling its way up the slopes that were meant to limit it. Its sheer scale may initially intimidate, but with an efficient transport network, Kyoto is a manageable – and endlessly enjoyable – city to work your way around.
Bamboo forest in Kyoto © Olivia Rawes
Let’s face it, there are far more temples, palaces and ornately sculpted gardens here than you can realistically squeeze into one trip. So the best strategy is to hone in on the city’s highlights.
The first stop for many is the temple-choked eastern district of Higashiyama. Here the unmissable Philosopher's Path links up a whole raft of temples, museums and gardens. Hugging a carp-filled stream and dotted with little cafés and shops, you could easily spend hours meandering along this lovely pathway. Come in spring and you’ll find the cobbled path draped with cherry trees smothered with puffs of dusky-pink blossom.
In the south of the city another walking route, situated in the district of Fushimi, is an equally popular draw. This is Fushimi Inari Taisha, a Shinto shrine dedicated to the god of rice and sake. Here a network of paths – lined with thousands of flame-red torii (shrine gates) – meander up a forested mountain slope.
I've been to Las Vegas many times in the past 15 years with friends and family but most of the time I've gone by myself. As an avid global solo traveler, it's become one of my favorite places to visit.
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