Kyoto in One Day: Kyoto Imperial Palace & Shinsen-en — Guide Satoko

Title: What Is a Private Kyoto Day Tour Like? A Licensed Guide's Report on the Imperial Palace, Kinkaku-ji, and Nijo Castle

The guests were two groups from Oceania, all around the same age. It seemed that some of the guests were friends with each other. One of them had a strong accent, and at first there were moments when I had difficulty understanding what was being said. When we first boarded the subway, one of the guests praised me for having "good core strength" because I was standing without holding onto a strap. It was the first time anyone had said such a thing to me, so I was quite surprised.

Then we headed to the Kyoto Imperial Palace. The guests were overwhelmed by its vast size, and once inside, they were captivated by the beautiful architecture and gardens. One of the guests, who seemed to have a passion for photography, carried a serious camera and took photos freely. At the rest area, when I introduced a list of annual court events, they were very surprised by how many there were. Also, upon exiting the Gishumon Gate, we spotted two retro-style fire engines (one red and one white) marked "Imperial Palace Police." I had never seen them before myself, so when I told everyone how rare they were, the guests happily took photos.

At Kinkaku-ji, everyone was overwhelmed by the crowds. In advance, since there is nowhere to eat around our next destination near Nijo Castle, I had suggested having lunch near Kinkaku-ji. We tried to enter a ramen shop on Nishioji Street, but they only accepted cash, and the guests did not have much cash on hand. The ramen shop two doors down had customers waiting outside, so we decided to head straight to Nijo Castle.

After arriving in front of Nijo Castle, I reconfirmed whether they wanted to eat around the area, and since they did not, we decided to tour the castle. The guests were especially impressed by the intricate carvings of the Karamon Gate. Then I guided them through the Ninomaru Palace. They seemed very satisfied with the Ninomaru Palace, and upon exiting, I received the kind words, "You taught us so much, it was really helpful." We then continued through the Ninomaru Garden and the Honmaru Palace, making a full loop of the castle grounds.

We were then supposed to move to Shinsen-en, but since some of the guests had skipped lunch and wanted something to eat, I suggested buying something from a stall within the grounds or eating at a food court, but nothing seemed to appeal to them, so we left Nijo Castle promptly. One of the groups decided not to stop at Shinsen-en and to return to their hotel by subway on their own, so we said goodbye.

I went to Shinsen-en with the remaining group, and although it is small, they enjoyed the beautiful, picturesque scenery. When I showed them a photo I had taken the previous week next to a small statue of Benten, one of the guests wanted to take a photo in the same spot, and did so with the large camera they had brought. I too am fond of the red Hojo Bridge, and the guests liked it as well, requesting a photo of two of them standing there together. Then we walked to Nijo Station, and since I was heading toward the Saga-Arashiyama area, I explained that they should take the train on the opposite side, and we said goodbye. The photo was taken in front of a rare variety of cherry blossom that was in bloom at the Kyoto Imperial Palace.

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Tour Report by Satoko

I am a 53-year-old woman, living in Kyoto for nearly 40 years. I got the license in 2001. Since then, I worked as an interpreter or a translator in several companies, secretary at universities, and now work for a company on weekdays at the international dept.I do guiding job only weekend now. I started full swing guiding career after COVID-19 pandemic. I have gotten good review from many of my guests. I love my hometown, Kyoto which has a lot of interesting and historical sites to see. Particularly, I am native to Arashiyama which is famous for bamboo forest. So, I know a lot of places where you can relax yourself around this area. Other than that, Kyoto has many attractive sites which surely interest you.Also, I like meeting many people from different cultural background. I am very happy if I learn about your culture as well. Let’s enjoy exploring around Kyoto!