I was lucky enough to visit Japan this year, after talking about going with my best friend, on and off, for the past 5 years! This trip, following a terrible 2023, was absolutely magical! Day 6 was our only full day in Kyoto and we got to tick off a couple of must do’s while we were there. Firstly we took part in a traditional tea ceremony where we got to brew our own Matcha tea and make white bean sweets to eat with it. That night we got to walk around Nijō Castle which was decorated with lights and animations for it’s Naked Sakura Festival. A little shopping and some great food throughout the day too, plus some much needed rest time. 🙂
Just for fun, I’ve decided to pop my step count stats for each day at the end of each vlog’s description.
27/3/2024
12,229 steps
9 Floors
Website
https://www.samanthaedge.com
Social handles
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/samanthaedgemusician
Twitter https://www.twitter.com/samantha_edge
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/samanthaedgemusician
1 Comment
Tea ceremony is a great treat to experience. The scale of Nijo Castle is so impressive. I went in July 95F+ each day (ugh). Our days in Kyoto were during the Gion Matsuri festival with the huge tower floats and the city was electric. My favorite place there was the snow monkey habitat by the Katsura river. Also visited the Sanjusangendo (1,001 Golden Buddhas), Fushimi Inari Taisha Sembon Torii, Kinakuji (epic!), and Nishiki Market and Geisha district. I'd love to go back and explore Hokkaido and the cooler climate there. July was too much. Have been to Okinawa as well in June – again – super hot and humid. The only place that felt cool during my trip to the mainland was on Mt. Fuji and at Lake Ashi. For Okinawa, down in the limestone caves was a relief from the heat too.