The capital of Japan for more than a
thousand years,
KYOTO is
endowed with an almost overwhelming
legacy of ancient Buddhist temples,
majestic palaces and gardens of
every size and description, not to
mention some of the country's most
important works of art, its richest
culture and its most refined
cuisine. For many people the very
name Kyoto conjures up the classic
image of Japan: streets of
traditional wooden houses, the
click-clack of
geta on the
paving stones,
geisha in a
flourish of brightly coloured silks,
and the inevitable weeping cherry.
While you can still find all these
things, and much more, first
impressions of Kyoto are invariably
disappointing. For the most part
it's a sprawling, overcrowded city
with a population of 1.5 million and
a thriving industrial sector. The
die-straight streets certainly
simplify navigation, but they also
give the city an oppressive
uniformity which you won't find
among the tortuous lanes of Tokyo.
And, perhaps not surprisingly, Kyoto
is a notoriously exclusive place,
where it's difficult for outsiders
to peek through the centuries-thick
layer of cultural refinement into
the city's secretive soul.
However, there's plenty for the
short-term visitor to enjoy in
Kyoto. In fact, the array of
top-class sights is quite
mind-boggling: more than 1600
Buddhist temples, hundreds of Shinto
shrines, two hundred classified
gardens, a clutch of imperial villas
and several first-rate museums. With
so much choice, the biggest problem
is where to start, but it's
perfectly possible to get a good
feel for Kyoto even in a couple of
days. Top priority should go to the
eastern, Higashiyama district, where
you can walk from the famous Kiyomizu-dera
to Ginkaku-ji , the Silver
Pavilion, taking in a whole raft of
interesting temples, gardens and
museums on the way. Or you could
head for the northeastern hills to
contemplate the superb Zen gardens
of Daitoku-ji and Ryoan-ji
, and then gorge on the wildly
extravagant Golden Pavilion, Kinkaku-ji
. With more time, you can visit some
of the central sights, of which the
highlight is Nijo-jo , a
lavishly decorated
seventeenth-century palace, while
nearby Nijo-jin'ya is an
intriguing place riddled with secret
passages and hidey-holes. Try also
to visit at least one of the
imperial villas, such as Shugaku-in
Rikyu or Katsura Rikyu ,
or the sensuous moss gardens of Saiho-ji
, all located in the outer
districts. And it's well worth
making time to wander off the beaten
track into Kyoto's old merchant
quarters. The best of these,
surprisingly, are to be found in the
central district north of Shijo-dori
and across the river in Gion
. Here you'll find the traditional crafts
shops and beautiful old ryokan
for which the city is justly famous.
Kyoto's festivals tend to
be more stately than rumbustious.
The most famous feature grand
costume parades, esoteric ritual and
elegant geisha dances, and
take place in spring and autumn.
These two seasons are undoubtedly
the best time to visit Kyoto,
though also the busiest; after a
chill winter, the cherry trees put
on their finery in early April,
while the hot, oppressive summer
months (June-Aug) are followed in
October by a delightful period of
clear, dry weather, when the maples
erupt into fiery reds.
