On the second day, we boarded a Shinkansen (bullet train) from Osaka to Kyoto. The train station was a large, busy complex with lots of shops selling food and sundry items catering to busy commuters. While waiting for our tour guide to buy the tickets, we paid a visit to a nearby shop selling all kinds of bento (set) meals. The plasticised food on display looked so real and delicious indeed!
I ventured a little further away and found a kiosk selling mochi. Unable to read Japanese, I just relied on visuals to choose what I wanted. I chose 2 sakura mochi and 2 mochi filled with a fresh strawberry inside to be eaten later on our trip.
The 80km journey from Osaka to Kyoto only took 15 minutes on the Shinkansen, which travels at a maximum speed of 240 to 300 kilometres per hour. The cabin of the train looked very much like that of an aeroplane seating 4 abreast, separated by a single aisle.
Once in Kyoto, we were whisked off to the old, narrow streets of Kyoto to the Kiyomizu temple - a UNESCO heritage site. Kiyomizu stands for 'clear/pure water' in Japanese and is named after the waterfall that flows within the area. What makes the Kiyomizu temple so special is that not a single nail was used to build its entire wooden structure.
At the foot of the complex stands the Otowa waterfall. It is believed that drinking the water grants health, longevity and success in studies, which explains the long queue of people wishing to improve a certain aspect of their lives.
The Kiyomizu complex is surrounded by a pretty garden planted with lots of sakura trees, and when a sudden gust blows, the delicate petals of the sakura float in the wind looking like snowflakes gently falling down. We found a nice shaded spot to try our mochi purchased from the train station.
The narrow street leading to the parking bay was lined with old shops selling all sorts of snacks and souvenirs. We visited a well known shop - said to be the oldest shop selling mochi. Presented neatly on the counters were all kinds of mochi for sampling. One could just walk into the shop, sample as much mochi, feel full and walk out without buying anything. The shop also sold soft serve ice cream at the entrance. Mum tried matcha and sakura twist, while I ordered sakura only. Sakura ice cream is a novelty to me as I have never before come across anything tasting of sakura. It tasted delightful, but I'm rather curious to see if a real sakura flower tasted like the ice cream. It had a smooth, fragrant, flowery taste.
Tofu is a popular dish in Japan and Kyoto is famous for its tofu because Kyoto has a constant supply of good quality water from underground springs which is perfect for making tofu. We had an opportunity to try Kyoto tofu for lunch. The tofu was served in a paper hot pot with broth containing chicken, leek, cabbage mushrooms and a slice of salmon. Accompanying this was a plate of salmon korokke (croquette), ebi katsu (deep-fried, crumb batter) and chicken karaage (deep-fried in oil).
Our next stop was to take a walk down the old streets of Gion and also to visit the Yasaka Shrine. Unfortunately for us, the streets were devoid of geisha and it started to drizzle and we left our umbrellas on the bus. The Yasaka Shrine is a Shinto shrine and proved to be extremely popular. The shrine was brimming with activity despite the dreary weather while we tried to avoid getting wet. On our walk back to the bus, we saw a hanami taking place despite the dark, wet weather.
After a rather wet experience in Kyoto, we headed to Nagoya for a special unagi (Japanese freshwater eel) set dinner. Just outside the restaurant was the Nagoya TV tower, brightly lit up for the night. As part of the feast, we were served a bowl of unadon (rice bowl with grilled eel coated with sweet sauce), BBQ chicken wings (Nagoya chicken wings are the best!), a bowl of flat udon garnished with bonito flakes, a box of ebi katsu and tonkatsu served with tartar sauce. We had more than enough to eat that night!
Our hotel for the night was at the Nagoya Tokyu Hotel. A pretty decent hotel with a very classic renaissance feel to it. The rooms had ample space for romping around and there was a huge lit-up make-up table just beside the television. Not like I used it - I was afraid I might just crack the mirror by staring at it!
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