Kyoto Day 18

Biggest walking day yet. Over 31,000 steps according to Zach's pedometer. We went to see Fushimi Inari Tashi, Bamboo Grove, and Monkey mountain. Each one of those places required hiking up a mountain to get to the destination. I hope to add some more photos to this entry when I get home because the views were fantastic!

We woke up early in the morning to try to get to Fushimi before all the tourists showed up in the busses. Boy, am I glad we did. When we finished there were tons of people there. We got off of the beaten path a bit and that made the experience just that much better. No one on the path so you could take in the awesome of the torri gates stretching on for, literally, kilometers.

We grabbed some lunch at a cafe and headed over to the bamboo grove, which was less than impressive. The temple we toured next made up for it with a spectacular view of Kyoto once you reached the top. The Japanese style garden that guided you the whole way up made the hike up worth it.

Since the waitress at the cafe mentioned a place where you can see monkeys living out in the open, we decided to go check it out. This was our third ascent of the day and was tiring. But once we reached the top there were 10-20 monkeys out walking around amongst people.

Wanting to rest a bit we got some ice cream and rented a row boat. The thing was small and awkward to sit in. Imagine 3 Americans in a little row boat... we drew some attention. We also got wet from the oars splashing water in to the boat. The water smelled awful. Pair that to the workout we had done all day and you can probably imagine that the train ride back to the hostel was pretty unpleasant for those who had to be within 20ft of us.

Beer is expensive in Japan. Craft beer even more so. The definition will also change. Craft could meaning something like Heineken or some standard Belgian beers. You will be paying at least $8 for a beer. If it's a try craft beer... $12. When in Japan...