Kyoto in One Day: Nanzen-ji & Fushimi Inari Taisha — Guide Satoko

What's a Full-Day Private Walking Tour of Kyoto Like? A Licensed Guide's Report on Nanzen-ji, Yasaka Shrine, Kiyomizu-dera, and Fushimi Inari

The guests were a group who walked with me all the way to Nanzen-ji Temple. At Nanzen-ji, they first climbed the Sanmon gate. In the Hatto (Dharma Hall), the guests were happy to offer incense. At the Hojo, the guests especially enjoyed taking photographs of the garden. We then moved on toward Shirakawa, passing along the Lake Biwa Canal. On the way, seeing the statue of the canal workers, one of the guests happily took photographs. They were also delighted to photograph the great torii gate of Heian Shrine, moved by the beautiful flow of Shirakawa, and happily took photographs on the Ippon-bashi bridge. We then entered Yasaka Shrine through its West Gate and enjoyed touring the auxiliary shrines of Yasaka Shrine. Since one of the guests runs a business, they especially enjoyed taking photographs with the stone statue of Ebisu at the Ebisu Shrine. At Yasaka Shrine, by chance a dance was being dedicated at the Buden (dance hall), which the guests were happy to watch. At Yasaka Koshin-do they enjoyed taking photographs with the monkey ornaments, and at the five-story pagoda of Hokan-ji they happily took photographs from various angles. When I asked about their preferred destinations, they said "somewhere within walking distance," so I included Kiyomizu-dera, thinking it would be less crowded than during peak times, but even in the late afternoon, climbing Kiyomizu-zaka was still difficult. After much effort we finally reached Kiyomizu-dera. They listened carefully to my explanations of the various sights. Some people hesitate to enter the main hall, but both guests entered with interest and listened attentively to my explanation of the Buddhist statues in the inner sanctuary. Usually many people line up at the keisu bowl, but since it was relatively empty, one of the guests tried it, producing a very calm and pleasant sound. In front of the Koyasu Pagoda, at a guest's request, I was included in a photograph, and Kiyomizu-dera finished earlier than scheduled. When I asked whether they would like to go to Fushimi Inari Taisha by taxi or walk to the Keihan station and take the train, they chose the train, so they experienced their first train ride in Kyoto. At Fushimi Inari Taisha, we happened to see the priests cleaning the dance hall and practicing their prayers, which was a rather rare sight. Perhaps because of the time of day, there were few people, so they were able to try the Omokaru-ishi stone. Although the plan had been to see the Senbon Torii and return, since we had a little time, I also showed them the "Neagari no Matsu" pine tree, where one of the guests again happily took a commemorative photograph. After that, since the plan was to guide them to a spot where a taxi could easily be caught and then part ways, I guided them to Shidan-kaido, helped them into a taxi, and said goodbye. The guests were polite and friendly, and it was a very pleasant experience to guide them.

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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!