Kyoto Customized Half-Day Tour — Guide Kazu

Title: What Can You See on a Private Kyoto Tour of Fushimi Inari and Zen Gardens? A Licensed Guide's Report

The guests were a group visiting from North America, experiencing Japan for the first time. In the taxi they spoke among themselves in a language I could not understand at all. Their requests were clear from the start: they wanted to see a dry landscape (karesansui) garden and hear an explanation of its underlying philosophy, visit a shrine and learn about Shinto, and cover the basics of Japanese history. Because of these clear requests, the destinations for the day were decided right away.

One of the guests was extraordinarily enthusiastic, with an incredible level of energy. I was a little taken aback by such intensity, but as a guide it made the day truly rewarding. No matter how much I explained, there was never any sign of losing interest; instead, questions came one after another, as if every point I made prompted an immediate response. Another of the guests was very quiet throughout, which required some attention on my part. Another was somewhere in between — reserved in manner, but with rather sharp questions.

For example, one of the guests pointed out that while I said red is an important color in both Shinto and Buddhism in Japan, the color of the torii gates here at Fushimi Inari looked more like orange than red, and asked why. Rather than simply saying it was the color of the wood preservative, which would not have been very interesting, I gave my own explanation.

They mentioned they had become fond of Japanese-style curry rice, and asked whether there was a good place to eat curry that was more like rice-and-curry rather than authentic Indian-style curry. I told them there was a delicious spot — a chain restaurant — and introduced them to a curry chain restaurant right near Sanjo Ohashi Bridge. I imagine that kind of flavor is exactly what they enjoy. After we said our goodbyes at Sanjo Ohashi Bridge, the group headed off together right away.

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Tour Report by Kazu

Hello, this is Kazu Akiyama, your tour guide. Nice to meet you and welcome to Japan. Thank you for joining me on the tour. Now I am a retired salaried worker, living in Osaka. I have been very much interested in not only learning Japanese history, culture, religion myself, but also talking about them (sometimes going off topics) in English with tourists from all over the world as well. I am so excited being with you as your guide on coming day! I am very much looking forward to you enjoying with me visiting the must-see places and some of the hidden gems. See you soon. Thank you – Kazu Akiyama