Kyoto

Once the Imperial capital of Japan, Kyoto is still considered the country’s cultural center and one of its best preserved cities after World War II. With 1600 Buddhist temples, 400 Shinto shrines, palaces, and other architectural structures, the city is still heavily steeped in tradition and heritage.

Kyoto is amazingly beautiful, less industrialized than other big cities like Tokyo, and still in possession of many of its historic structures. Take a stroll through Kyoto Imperial Palace Park, a spacious park supplanted with flowering trees and open fields. Many of the city’s 1.5 million residents enjoy walking about the grounds, having picnics, and playing sports here. There’s a carp pond in the southern portion of the park and it is sublime during its plum and cherry blossom seasons in March and April.

Somewhat controversial, Kyoto Station is, nevertheless, an interesting structure dotting Kyoto’s landscape as a towering 16-storey glass transportation hub with a main concourse 88 feet wide, 200 feet high, and 1540 feet long. In addition to being Japan’s second largest train station after Nagoya Station, Kyoto Station also contains a shopping mall, hotel, movie theater, an Isetan department store, Kyoto City Air Terminal, and many local government facilities.

For a pleasant day outdoors, make sure to visit Mount Hiei-zan and its Enryaku-ji Temple, a key site in Japanese history. Founded in 788 by the Japanese priest Dengyo-daishi, the temple possessed some 3000 buildings and thousands of warrior monks at its height of power. While only three pagodas and 120 minor temples remain, it’s still an impressive complex to walk around in.

Another popular temple is the Nanzen-ji Temple with expansive grounds and a myriad of sub-temples. A massive 1628 San-mon Gate stands at the temple’s entrance, decorated with Tosa and Kano school murals while steps lead up to the second storey that contains a breathtaking view of the city.

A small shrine hidden in the forest behind the main hollow is an overlooked treat where visitors can find pilgrims standing underneath a waterfall praying, even in winter. Hiking trails lead off from this point in several directions, often dotted with several other tucked away temples.

For a small jaunt out of Kyoto, head on over to the Mie Prefecture, formerly known as Ise province, and see some of the most well-known ancient and more recent Shinto shrines in the country with over 100 individual shrines dedicated to several Shinto goddesses.

Another province worth a visit is Hyogo for its grand Himeiji-Jo Castle, or “White Heron Castle,” one of the largest and most well-known remaining 17th-century styled Samurai castles in Japan. It contains 83 buildings well-crafted for defense and designed for both practicality and aesthetics.