Kyoto Customized Private Tour in 1 Day — Guide Kazu

Title: What Is a Private Kyoto Walking Tour Like During the Jidai Matsuri? A Licensed Guide's Report

The guests were a group visiting Japan for the first time from North America. They were a bright and cheerful group, but somewhat scattered, with each member tending to follow their own interests. Some of the guests kept the overall plan in mind, but others were the type to wander off toward anything interesting that caught their eye, so I had to limit my explanations at the sights to just the main points. Meeting up at Kyoto Station was a bit tricky because of the difficult meeting point, and when I finally managed to meet part of the group, some of the guests had gone off to buy drinks, so it took some more time to find them.

Everyone loved taking photos, and they captured almost everything at the three destinations we visited. I did my best to find the most photogenic spots. At Nanzen-ji Temple, instead of the Hojo Garden, I guided them to the garden of Tenju-an. They also seemed interested in animals and spent a long time photographing the carp in the pond. After a short break at Ginkaku-ji Temple, at the request of one of the guests we headed toward the Kamo River, but some of the guests got off along the way and went shopping elsewhere. Today was the day of the Jidai Matsuri, so I guided the rest of the group to the festival parade on Kawaramachi Street, where the tour concluded.

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Tour Report by KAZU

I was born and grew up in Kyoto and now live near Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto. I used to be a schoolteacher of English and welcome a lot of students from foreign countries. I really enjoyed showing them around Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, Himeji, and Hiroshima. I have been a professional tour guide for about 8 years. I always try to let my guests learn Japanese traditional and modern culture. Since I was born in Kyoto, I know a lot about its culture and people. I myself enjoyed several sports, such as soccer, judo, and marathon when I was young. I’m much interested in baseball and sumo. My motto as a tour guide is to let my guests learn about our tradition and culture precisely and really enjoy themselves. I strongly hope you will enjoy the tour in Japan with me.