Kyoto in the Fall: Part Two

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Just two train stops south-east of Kyoto Station at Inari Station, the Fushimi-Inari Shrine was just minutes from our hotel

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Hilary points out that in Japan, even train tickets come with their own little envelopes to keep them safe.

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There was almost nothing on this shrine in our guidebook, but Hilary had read something about it and it was easy to get to, so we decided to take a look. We were totally unprepared for how amazing this place was - totally different from other shrines in Kyoto. Not only was it visually stunning, but also included a nice long hike up the mountain - with a tea shop at the top!

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The entrance is just in front of the small train station, and leads you to the base of of the mountain before you climb

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Although there are more than 30,000 Shinto Shrines dedicated to Inari - the God of Rice, Sake, and cereal crops in general, this site in Kyoto is the most important. The image of the fox guards the shrine.

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The Tori Gates up the mountain are so numerous that sometimes they form long snaking tunnels

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If you like, you can purchase an offering for the shrine in the shape of a Fox - you can even decorate it yourself!

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The large Tori-Gates are inscribed with prayers and are sponsored by people in the community - mostly those in the sake business hoping for good fortune - but if your budget is more modest, you can purchase a little one.

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Hilary disappears into the tunnel of good Sake fortune - stay out of the light!

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As you get deeper into the shine, the steps go further up the mountain. We only did about half the whole hike which was about 10 kilometers long.

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Follow the orange path!

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These little bibbed foxes were everywhere

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About half way up the mountain, we stopped to take in the view - this is Kyoto from the southeast looking northwest

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Although we could have kept climbing and done the whole circuit, we decided to stop for some refreshment at the tea house.

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As you can see, we pretty much had the place to ourselves - one of the benefits of touring on a Tuesday!

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Hilary is very pleased that very soon she will have a snack!

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A bowl of Japanese green tea - Matcha, and a small sweet - I believe this was chestnut in keeping with the Fall season

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One of my favorite images - the bright celadon color of the tea punctuated by the bubbles created by the tea whisk

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A happy hiker!

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Exiting the shrine

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Although it had nothing to do with the Inari Shrine, I couldn't resist photographing this cool vending machine at the train station.

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How cool is this? There were so many cool vending machines in Japan - next time I will remember to photograph more of them!