Kyoto Customized Full-Day Private Tour — Guide Kazu

What Is a Private One-Day Kyoto Tour Like? A Licensed Guide's Report

The guests were visitors from Europe, and this was their first time in Japan and Kyoto. They were both very friendly and cheerful, joking around throughout the day, so we had a wonderful and enjoyable time together. As many guests do, they were very keen to ask about the shogun and the emperor, Buddhism and Shinto, and how the coexistence of these actually works. One amusing question they had was about Japanese toilets: some have air jets and some don't, which they said would be almost unthinkable in other countries, so why is that the case here, and don't the locals ever complain? They were full of curiosity. I answered that in Japan, from the first year of elementary school, teachers check every morning at assembly whether students have brought a handkerchief and tissues and whether they have trimmed their nails, so even as adults, Japanese people always carry a handkerchief and tissues. Because of this, most people don't mind even if there is no air jet in the toilet. They were both quite impressed. They also asked why some places have warm water and others only cold water, seemingly at random. I explained that in Japan all tap water is drinkable and of the same quality, and whether or not the water is heated depends on each facility since heating costs money. They said "I see," but still seemed to want to say something more, so I just laughed it off. It was like this the whole day. It was a lot of fun.

Also, please note that at Kennin-ji Temple, guides have been charged an admission fee since last year, so I have attached a copy of the receipt.

Click here for more details: Kyoto Customized Full-Day Private Tour with Licensed Guide

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