Visiting Kyoto Ninja House on Bike

自転車で京都二条陣屋へ

Kyoto's famed Ninja House is open to visitors after several years of renovations.

The private home is known as Nijo Jinya that has been owned by the same family, the Ogawas, for several hundred years.

The 17,600 square foot house has 24 rooms. To protect the powerful guests who stayed in the inn, security measures were intense.

The building has the following security measures:

1) hiding places between cupboards
2) low ceilings to limit swordplay
3) design features that allowed the secret and constant monitoring of visitors
4) removable floor tile
5) sliding panels that could pivot thus allowing a guard to "disappear"
6) a trap door in a that could drop an attacker into a hidden pit filled with a row of poisoned spikes.

Visitors need a reservation and the tours are conducted in Japanese only.

Thus, an interpreter may be required (i.e., you must supply your own).

Time table

Tours start at 10 am, 11 am, 2  pm, and 4 pm

Each tour lasts 50 minutes and is conducted in Japanese.

Entrance fee

Adult 1,000
High school student 800

Reservation

Tel: 075-841-0972
Reception hours
10:00~18:00

It is a short ride or walk from Nijo Castle.

© CycleKyoto.com

 CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags Japan Touring Kyoto Cycle Japanese

Cycling Kyoto Christmas 2013

メリークリスマスを自転車で京都ぶらぶら

December 25 this year falls on a Wednesday.

In Kyoto, that means it is a normal work day. Post offices are open, salarymen pack trains, and the world goes on its normal workaday end-of-year rhythm.

Many companies are closing down for the new year's holidays, and there is a bit of a buzz in the air as all prepare to eat, drink, and do nothing for several days to welcome 2014.

Here is wishing for a healthy and safe 2014 - and the wind at your back.

Bicycle Goods

Up to 50% off Cycle Accessories


© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags Japan Touring Kyoto Cycle Japanese

Kyoto Arashiyama Illumination 2013

嵐山は元気です　「花灯路」始まる印刷用画面を開く

The annual illumination in Arashiyama, Kyoto, is now underway.

Every evening from about 5 pm until 8:30, the area's famed bridge - Togetsukyo - is lit up.

Some 2500 tiny lights have been set up on the bridge supports.

The illumination takes place every night until December 23rd.

Cyclists should try to park a few blocks from the bridge and then walk.


Photo © Kyoto Shinbun

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags Japan Touring Kyoto Cycle Japanese

London Bike Festival Pier

ロンドン自転車

A friend sent along a picture of a bike shackled to a fence near Festival Pier.

The locks remind us of riding - locking up - in Philadelphia.

Here is Kyoto, aside from a lock to keep the seat from being swiped, such precautions are not generally necessary. The standard pop lock is more than enough.


© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags Japan Touring Kyoto Cycle Japanese

High School Boys Cycling in Kyoto

京都でチャリ乗っている高校生

The school day is over! Ah, the joys of youth.

A group of high school boys, clad in their "gakuran" - old style uniforms - pound their all purpose "mama chari" bikes home or to who knows where near Taishogun Shrine.

The bikes have no gears, a simple basket, and almost never break down.

They all flashed smiles at me when I took their picture.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags
 
Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Japanese High School

Kamo River Path Extension

鴨川サイクリング

The city has repaved (sanded?) the pedestrian path along the west bank of the Kamo River in central Kyoto.

The ride or walk is now smooth all the way to the Sanjo Ohashi (bride), which is where Starbucks is. (The photo is looking south towards Sanjo Ohashi, and the end of the new path.)

The City also appears to have planted grass at the front and back of the smooth sand - very hard sand so ideal for cycling. These areas are roped off.

From that point south, though, it is still bumpy and hard going, even if you are on a mountain bike with knobby tires.


© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Kamo River

Very Small Funky Kyoto Bicycle

小さくてお洒落な京都自転車

Around the corner from Kyoto Daimaru department store - and more or less at the entrance to Nishiki food market - was this tiny bicycle.

We believe it is a folding bike.

We also believe it is ridable, and not merely an ornament placed in front of the boutique.

Check out the kickstand, which must have been manufactured in Lilliput.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Funky Bike

Girl on Bike Kyoto

自転車乗る京女

A perfect montage.

Beautiful woman on her "mama chari" bicycle in downtown Kyoto.

She is about to pass a slower moving middle aged man - foreground right - and is blithely cruising through an intersection.

Clueless. Helmetless.

Chatting away on her cell phone.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Japanese Woman

Urasenke Chado Research Center

裏千家茶道資料館

On Horikawa Dori north of Imadegawa is the Urasenke Chado Research Center.

For an uber Kyoto organization, the Urasenke building is remarkably unattractive and bland. It could just as easily house a medium size plastics firm in suburban Osaka.

The neighborhood though - particularly behind the building - is worth a visit.

There are several beautiful Urasenke held buildings done in the most refined Kyoto style. The area moreover is dotted with temples:

Honpoji, Myokenji, Hokyoji, and across Horikawa Dori Myorenji Temple

The narrow streets of the area are often well preserved, particularly Ogawa Dori.

Information

Urasenke Chado Research Center
Horikawa Teranouchi agaru
Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto 692-8688
Tel: 075 431 6474

Entrance Fee: 500 yen (which allows to see the galleries and the opportunity to drink tea prepared in front of you)

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Urasenke

Cycling Valentines Day Kyoto

バレンタインディー京都寺町カフェ

On the day before Valentine's Day, we made a quick run into town on the bike to pick up a bit of chocolate.

We parked in front of Bal on Kawaramachi, picked up a paper on the 7th floor, and then walked down to the Takashiyamaya department store.

We are normally inclined to head towards Daimaru, but the 12-year-old had other ideas.

A Parisian macaroon maker had set up shop in town - only at Takashimaya, and only until the 14th.

To continue in that vein, we stopped off at a cafe on Teramachi before riding home.


© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Valentines Day

Kyoto Pedestrian Charter

「歩くまち・京都」憲章

Kyoto has a "Pedestrian Charter," which was prepared and published by the city's Planning Division. It appears, among other places, on a plastic folder elementary school children in the city receive at school.

It voices admirable sentiments; however, the reality on the street - or, rather, sidewalks - remains starkly at odds with the goals outlined therein.

A simple translation follows the Japanese original.

「歩くまち・京都」憲章

わたちたちの京都では、市民一人ひとりは、

＊健康で、人と環境に優しい、歩いて楽しい暮らしを大切にします。

そして、市民と行政が一体となって、

＊だれもが歩いて出かけたくなる道路空間と公共交通を整え、賑わいあるまちを創ります。

＊京都を訪れるすべての人が、歩く魅力を満喫できるようにします。

"A Walking City - Kyoto": Pedestrian Charter

In Kyoto, we pledge to endeavor that all citizens will be able to enjoy walking and living in a healthy, environmentally-friendly city.

Arm in arm, the city government and its citizens:

*will create a city with public spaces, roads, and transportation that encourage walking and results in a lively city for all.

*that all who visit Kyoto will be able to fully enjoy the pleasure of walking.


© CycleKyoto.com


CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Pedestrian Charter

Kyoto BMX Bicycle

京都BMX自転車

On the walk back from a concert at Taku Taku - a funky old night club in downtown Kyoto - we came across this black BMX bike leaning against a a wall.

We were headed back to our simple cross bike, which was parked on Oike in a stationary lot the city recently installed.

The walk, along Tominokoji Dori, was cold with bright stars overhead.

From Shijo Dori north, both sides of the narrow street are lined with many restaurants and bars of all types.

The BMX would be great along the Kamo River or short trips downtown.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
BMX

Japanese Sweets Gion

和菓子祇園

Though not perhaps technically "wagashi" - Japanese sweets - these small, beautiful hard candies are incredibly Japanese.

Basically sugar, food coloring, and a lot of skill went into creating them.

While riding through Gion, we stopped at Cafe Fugetsu and had lunch.

The cafe is housed in a old tea house, which is itself worth a visit.

After lunch, the waitress brought out green tea cheesecake with tofu-cream, and a side dish of small candies.

Up close, one can see that the colorful candies are intricately carved.

Access


From Minami-za Theater, walk or ride towards Yasaka Shrine on Shijo Dori. At Hanamikoji, turn right and head into the main area of Gion. At the fourth corner on the left, turn left (east). Cafe Fugetsu is on the right side of the street.

Tel: 075 561 5937



© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Gion

Kyoto City Hall by Bike

自転車で京都市役所へ

Kyoto City Hall is a looming presence on Oike Dori, just north of downtown.

The building is not especially attractive. It was designed by Goiichi Murata and completed in 1927.

Other than location - a subway runs under it, the Kamo River is close, and shops and bars are nearby - what draws crowds are flea markets held in the plaza in front of the main building.

On the day we rode by, a large crowd was enjoying a sunny December day and perusing the used goods.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
City Hall

Cycling Tenryuji Temple Kyoto

自転車で天龍寺へ

Cycling in Arashiyama offers so many sites and places to see - and some serious obstacles - that choosing a route is key.

Above all, stay off the main drag as much as possible. The street that runs from roughly the JR tracks down to the Katsura River at Togetsukyo Bridge is packed, year round, with tourists and those catering to their whims.

Except when crossing the bridge, it is best to stay off.

Once away, though, the fun starts. Even Tenryuji Temple, a World Heritage site located on the main drag that is very popular, can be approached from side streets which are pedestrian and cyclist friendly.

If you are coming from the Hankyu Railways side, cross the Togetsukyo Bridge, turn left at the first street. After you pass Kitcho - a three-star Michelin restaurant - and a few other fabulous buildings head north into the neighborhood that borders the temple.

Get lost. Find the statuary in front of a temple wall. Keep pedaling. Go into an old antique shop. Find the temple.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Arashiyama
Kyoto
Cycle
Tenryuji

Bicycle Child Seat Kyoto

自転車用チャイルドシート

Just south of the Imperial Palace at a children's center, we saw a practical bike seat for children.

The seat was attached to the handlebars, and is for small children. Unlike the the traditional bike seat, which is set on top of the rear wheel - which this bike also had - the smaller seat allows a child to see the world as it passes by. The view from the back is, well, of mom (dad)'s lower back and butt.

It also lets the rider see and talk to the child.

This seat has straps, a small child-friendly bell, and water-proof padding.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Child Seat

Woman on Foldable Bike Kyoto

折り畳み自転車に乗り携帯でしゃべた京女

On a corner not far from Nijo Castle - and the side route up to Enmachi - a young woman straddled her foldable bike.

These bikes are especially popular with the college set.

More and more one sees cyclists lugging them up subway exits and 1-2-3 putting them back together - and then zipping off.

Amazing.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags


Japan
Woman
Kyoto
Cycle
Foldable Bike

Cycling to Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art

自転車で京都市美術館へ

One of Kyoto's great attractions is the city's Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art.

It is a big old musty brick pile built in the 1930s that once a year or so gets one of the big ticket exhibits.

Located in Okazaki, it is close to the zoo, Heian Shrine, the Museum of Modern Art, and only a short ride from Philosopher's Walk or Chionin Temple.

The area has wide streets and is just 10 minutes from downtown.

Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art
Okazaki Park, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8344
075 771 4107

9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. (admission until 4:30 p.m.); closed Mondays

Entrance Fee depends upon the exhibit

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art

Northeast Kyoto Shugakuin Villa

自転車で修学院周辺へ

In northeast Kyoto not far from the Silver Pavilion are a handful of small and not so small temples and sites to be seen.

The hills are never too bad, and if you hug the small roads along the foothills of Mt. Hiei, you will enjoy a pleasant ride.

Among places worth a visit are:

Shisendo, Manshuin, and of course Shugakuin Imperial Villa

Many other temples dot the area, but these are perhaps the most major.

The road pictured above right is between Shugakuin and Manshuin. The residential area to the right (west) is filled with older homes; the area to the left is either wooded or farmland.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Shugakuin

Buddhist Symbols Kumogahata Kyoto

京都仏教の石碑

In the hills of northern Kyoto near a small town called Kumogahata, there are many pleasures to be had.

The area is a rural mountain enclave not far from downtown that is a step back in time.

Temples dot the area, and the several villages retain a Japanese look.

Near Itsukushima Shrine, we found this Buddhist marker and the foot of stone steps leading up to another temple.

The four characters are, clockwise from top: high, zen, cloud, temple.

© CycleKyoto.com

CycleKyoto Home Page

Tags

Japan
Touring
Kyoto
Cycle
Buddhist Symbol