Kyoto

As soon as we landed in Japan I knew I was going to like the place – the loos were amazing! The seats were heated, you could play a flush sound if you wanted to disguise any noises and even have your derriere squirted with water too, so much fun from one toilet! These wonder loos were labeled 'Western toilet' a Japanese toilet is in fact just a hole in the ground!

We were also amazed by the size of the vending machines and the ATMs, everything at the airport was big but when we got off the train at Narita and walked to the hotel all the shops and restaurants seemed just a little shorter and smaller than they should be. Even our hotel room felt like it had been shrunk a little.

After spending the night in Narita we collected our Japan Rail Pass, navigated the train station and boarded for Kyoto. Trains in Japan are bliss – quiet, clean and efficient. ‘Leaves on the track’ will never be an issue here.

With minimal fuss and hassle we arrived in Kyoto and quickly checked out a 7, 11 convenience store, gulped at the prices (a banana was 70p and apple £1) and then brought some sushi for lunch which in comparison was relatively cheap at £2. We looked at some of the restaurants and quickly realized that our budget would pretty much only stretch to meals from 7, 11. We checked into our hostel which was very cute and clean and there were little labels everywhere to tell us what things were and what we could do, or not do. Life in Japan is very orderly!

We set off on foot to visit the Imperial Palace and quickly encountered the cherry blossom spectacular. It really is pretty so you can see why the Japanese go mad for it. We spent the rest of the afternoon visiting temples and walking around among the cherry blossom. Kyoto is an amazing place, there’s so much to see and at this time of year it’s quite magical.

After walking for hours we stopped for some dinner and entered a tiny restaurant recommended in the LP. We were greeted with loud calls in Japanese from the kitchen , I presume they were saying 'welcome', and then promptly served up two steaming bowls of Ramen. It was delicious, and we could help ourselves to a number of different sides, like pickles and tofu for different tastes. Everyone around us was slurping their Ramen so we joined in; apparently it's totally acceptable in Japan. Our huge bowls of noodles were about £6 which wasn’t too bad considering the amount we ate!

After dinner we took a stroll through the Geisha district, it was like entering a film set. There were narrow streets lit by lanterns and lined with tiny hidden bars and restaurants packed full of people eating and drinking. You could peek through the tiny windows and watch the activity inside. We didn't see any proper Geishas but did see quite a few ladies dressed in the gear, which was good enough for me!

We went to bed completely knackered!

Day two in Kyoto was a tour of more temples, the market

Picking up our Japan Rail Passes

The super efficient Shinkansen or Bullet train

Lovely blossom at the Imperial Palace gardens

River bank scattered with people enjoying the sunshine

We're a bit lost at this point but we eventually found the temple we were looking for!

Ginkaku ji temple and the Ginshaden sand garden

The zen gardens were beautiful and relaxing, depsite the hordes of tourists

Enterance to the temple

The temple from a different angle!

This little area full of shops and cafes just down from the zen temple was beautiful

Sweet potato covered in sesame seeds, yum!

Street life

More cherry blossom

Quite a few Japanese women dress up in traditional kimono dress when the blossom is out so we saw loads of them. These girls were giggling when we asked them for a photo, they asked for one too, so Tim might be up on a mantel piece in some Japanese home!

Nanzenji is an important Rinzai Zen temple on the Path of Philosophy, Nanzenji has a fine Zen garden and extensive grounds.

Pretty fountain, Kyoto is a very romantic city especially when the blossom is out

The entrance to the temples were marked by these huge red gates

Kyoto at night

Ramen restaurant

Restaurant in the Geisha district

Geisha district

Strawberries and cream sandwich, yuck!

Our room in Kyoto. It was really comfy sleeping on these mats

Inside a shrine

Entrance to shrine

On the 2nd day we went on the walking tour which took us to many temples and shrines

I dont actually know the name of this one but the different coloured 'flags' warranted a picture!

This poor guy has to literally run tourists about all day

Tim trying on a Yukata (dressing gown)

Entrance gate of Kiyomizudera, or Kiyomizu-dera, "Pure Water Templeis one of Japan's most popular temples. Founded in 780 AD it still functions as a temple associated with the Hosso sect of Japanese Buddhism

More pretty kimonos

Visitors drinking the sacred water of Kiyomizudera, which is believed to bring health and good fortune

Bridge with more blossom

Sanjusangendo houses 1,001 statues of Kannon in Japan's longest wooden building.

Crazy statues!

The food market in Kyoto

Vending machine inside a restaurant, you order your food here by looking at the pictures (and reading the descriptions if you can read Japanese). I ordered what I thought was beef noodles but when I tasted it I realised it was liver!!!!

We stumbled across this photo shoot happening in a back alley