Japan // Day 3 - Nijo Castle + Arashiyama

So…. We didn’t manage to wake up “bright and early” again today and I’m not even surprised. We felt like we haven’t been able to settle down properly because we’ve constantly been on the move, sigh.

Anyway, today was as tiring as every other day, or maybe even more. We got up, checked out, starved and were on our way to Kyoto. Waking up late resulted in us having to cancel a few attractions but it beats rushing through all of ‘em.

Kyoto Station

We left our luggage at Kyoto station’s baggage storage that costs 420yen per bag because our apartment is pretty far from Kyoto station and the other attractions that we intended on visiting today.

Nijo Castle was our first stop and thanks to a bad decision made, we wasted more than 30 minutes walking the circumference of the castle when we could have taken less than 10 minutes to get there sobsobs. Nevertheless, it was a 1.2km walk that was filled with craziness and laughter thanks to the beautiful cherry blossoms we kept seeing on the way.

After paying an entrance fee of 600 yen, we ventured inside the castle. It wasn’t much because they routed our entire journey and no photography is allowed. We couldn’t even walk freely on our own because we’d just get carried away by the crowd! The outskirts of the castle, on the other hand, was filled with brightly lit sakura flowers.

After accidentally spending way too much time there, we had to give the Golden Temple a miss and headed straight for the railway experience on the Romantic Train. Our train was scheduled to leave at 5PM so we headed for lunch (yes, a super late lunch!) nearby.

While exploring, we found the kimono forest. Such a pity I didn’t have the time or money to rent a kimono. The picture would’ve been perfect!

Sorry not sorry for taking photos of strangers without permission heh.

The railway ride lasted for about 20 minutes and takes you to another part of Kyoto. You’d have to buy a return ticket if you wish to take the same railway train back to Arashiyama but it was a lot more expensive so we chose the cheaper 200yen local alternative.

The sky was almost dark by the time we got back to Arashiyama and when we finally got to the bamboo forest, everything was black. I’m really disappointed that we didn’t manage to see the bamboo forest in all it's beauty. It was one of the highlights of my trip to Kyoto L

With hearts so heavy, we headed back to Kyoto station to retrieve our baggage. Some souvenir shopping was done nearby and gosh the nuts are SO TASTY! Dinner was also at Kyoto Station because we didn’t want to lug out luggage everywhere with us. It's just so tiring. 

We took a bus to our apartment and did something we felt horrible about – taking the priority seats. The bus was small and packed so we couldn’t stand/sit anywhere else without blocking the way. The worst part was that an elderly AND a pregnant lady appeared but we really had no space to move. We all felt so guilty about it…. What an experience.

I’m finally in my AirBNB apartment after a long taxing day but this lodging has bikes! I love the Japanese culture where riding bikes are such a norm and would really wish for Singapore to adopt it. It’s so fun I didn’t mind riding in circles just to get the feel of it.

Tomorrow is another “wake up at 6:45AM” day so we’ll see what really happens. Hopefully, we’ll make some slight improvements? Ttfn! Xx.