Nara Day Trip from Kyoto: Customized Tour — Guide Toshi

Title: What Is a Private Nara Day Tour Like from Kyoto? A Licensed Guide's Report

The guests were a group from Europe. When we met at the Hotel, one of them looked somewhat displeased, which concerned me at first. When I asked about it, they explained that their Kyoto sightseeing guide had not shown up the previous day, so they had been forced to do their own sightseeing. That was part of the reason for the mood, but once the deer came to greet us along the approach to Kasuga Taisha Shrine in Nara, the guests finally began to smile, which was a relief. Everyone in the group thoroughly enjoyed feeding the deer the shika senbei crackers. While Shinto and Buddhism did not seem to interest some of the guests much, one of the guests had prepared a stamp book and requested goshuin seal stamps at both Kasuga Taisha Shrine and the Great Buddha Hall.

The weather today was clear and perfect for sightseeing, and although we walked a great deal, the guests walked cheerfully throughout. I did recommend Wakakusa-yama, but since they had climbed all the way to the summit of Mount Inari the previous day and gotten soaked in the rain, which was quite an ordeal, they said they were fine for today and did not take up the suggestion.

On the way from Nigatsu-do to the Great Buddha Hall, one of the guests became hungry and said they could not walk any further, so we had a Japanese lunch at "Azekuraya." After lunch, the guests regained their energy. They were delighted by the Great Buddha Hall, where one of the guests offered a special prayer before the Kokuzo Bosatsu statue, and another enjoyed attempting to crawl through the pillar hole.

For the finale, I had planned to have the guests enjoy making paper cranes at the visitor center by Sarusawa Pond, but unfortunately the center had closed at the end of March. As an alternative, I guided them through the shopping street hoping they would enjoy some shopping, but the guests said they wished to return to Kyoto and rest, so even though there was still guiding time remaining, they decided to head back to the Hotel.

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Tour Report by Toshi

After a rather long teaching experience at Japanese college, I converted my career about 6 years ago into working as a tour guide for the tourists visiting Japan.
As my career overseas, I’ve been in the UN and the Japanese Embassy, all in the USA, totaling more than 6 years.
And then I had made a big change in my career from a diplomat to an academic researcher. For that career to achieve, I studied abroad and won a doctorate degree in linguistics from Indiana University and landed a teaching position at college in Japan.
With all these interesting and exciting experiences I’ve made myself ready to enrich your tour and make it both enjoyable and worthwhile.