Kyoto in One Day: Sightseeing: Nijo Castle & Guide ends — Guide Nori

Title: What Is a Private One-Day Kyoto Tour Like in the Rainy Season? A Licensed Guide's Report

The guests on this tour were visitors from North America. As it was their first visit to Japan, they thought very carefully about selecting the places to visit in advance. Initially, they had wished to see Nijo Castle, the Kyoto Imperial Palace, Kinkaku-ji, and Gion. However, upon checking, I found that the Kyoto Imperial Palace was closed and could not be visited, so I suggested Arashiyama (the Bamboo Grove, Togetsukyo Bridge, and lunch) as an alternative to the Imperial Palace. Later, they expressed a wish to explore the Higashiyama area, so I proposed a course of Nijo Castle, Nanzen-ji, Eikan-do, the Philosopher's Path, and Ginkaku-ji (all on foot from Nanzen-ji onward). There was no reply to this proposal for some time, and I finally received a response only the day before. The result was that, after taking their time to consider it together, they had decided in the end to go with the original plan that included Arashiyama. It was a little nerve-wracking that the itinerary was not settled until the last minute, but it showed me how much the guests were looking forward to their trip to Kyoto.

On the day (July), unfortunately it rained all day, sometimes heavily and sometimes lightly, so conditions were not very good for sightseeing. Even so, I helped them understand the meaning of Japan's rainy season (hot and humid and rather dreary, but a blessing for agriculture, especially rice cultivation), and emphasized that experiencing the rainy season is itself valuable. They commented that thanks to the rain, it was not so crowded and easy to walk around. Both of the guests also had a deep interest in Japanese history and culture, and at Nijo Castle and Kinkaku-ji they deepened their understanding of the relationship between the emperor and the warrior class during the age of samurai rule, and seemed to take great interest in the architectural styles as well. At Arashiyama, despite the poor conditions of the rain, they thoroughly enjoyed the deepened green of the Bamboo Grove and other sights, and at lunch they were both satisfied with udon, which they loved. Finally, at Gion, Pontocho, and Teramachi Street, as they strolled through the Gion area they learned about the meaning and culture of high-end traditional restaurants, and they were delighted to occasionally encounter maiko. What surprised me was that one of the guests loved Japanese cuisine and even cooked favorite Japanese dishes (such as rice bowls and ramen) at home. Because of this, they said they wanted an easy-to-use kitchen knife, so I introduced a metalware shop on Teramachi Street, where they seemed to find one they liked.

Although this tour took place in bad weather, the guests moved quickly and, overall, we proceeded according to the planned itinerary. It was a pleasant tour, and I was glad the guests were satisfied.

Click here for more details: Kyoto Customized Private Tour in 1 Day with Licensed Guide

Tour Report by Nori

Hi, everyone! I’m Norifumi Kamon, a government registered guide interpreter. Please call me “Nori”, or “Kamon-san”.
Let me introdece myself. I was born on April 17th in 1952 in Miyazaki prefecture in Kyushu island. I used to be an English teacher of Osaka Prefectural high school. When I retired from a teacher ten years ago, I decided to get a professional guide license. I wanted to play a role of the bridge between Japanese people and the people from all over the world as a second life of mine. After two years efforts, I finally got the guide license. Since then, I have guided several handreds of foreign people mainly in Kyoto and Nara for about five years except Corona Pandemic period. Almost all the tourists were deeply impressed by the beauty of nature, traditoin, culture, and art of Japan. I can surely help you enjoy and be satisfied with the sightseeing in Japan. And I’m looking forward to seeing you soon.