Torii Gates, Teppei, Tall Trees and Typhoons

Sep 4, 2025

We started the day strong by getting on the wrong train.

We were heading to Fushimi Inari Shrine and somehow managed to board the incorrect line, but luckily, we had built in enough buffer time (thanks to Evan!) to reroute and still arrive with time to spare.

We met our guide, Teppei, in front of the shrine and immediately knew we were in for a morning.

Teppei was a character. So energetic, so enthusiastic, so... sweaty. This man wore a full dress shirt, slacks, and loafers to hike up a mountain of stairs. By the end, his white shirt was completely soaked through. He definitely gave Evan a run for his money in the sweating department.

The real funny part though was that he was heading to his day job AFTER hiking up the mountain with us. Oh no!

We began our climb through the iconic torii gates which became those bright orange-red arches that seemed to go on forever. (And really they did because before 9am we had over 10,000 steps!) Teppei explained that each gate is actually a donation—individuals or businesses pay to have their names inscribed as a way of honoring the deity Inari, associated with prosperity, business success, and agriculture. And not only do they sponsor the gates, they’re also responsible for maintaining them.

There are thousands of them.

The vivid orange color of the gates is believed to ward off evil spirits. And now it all makes sense why I slept well at night and Candace had recurring nightmares (I chose to paint my room bright orange in high school) ...maybe mom should try sleeping in there. 

Early on, we stopped to do a traditional fortune ritual involving a stone that's referred to as the “Omokaru Stone.” You make a wish, then lift the stone. If it feels lighter than expected, your wish is said to come true. If it feels heavier… not looking great.

(Results will remain undisclosed.)

As we climbed higher, we passed smaller shrines scattered along the path and each one was dedicated to something different. One for prosperity, one for relationships (you know we stopped there), and others tied to more niche blessings. 

At one point, Teppei pointed out a sacred tree with exposed roots and said they were symbols of grounding and connection. He said people often pause here for reflection. I think he just needed a break from all his sweating.

Also: apparently in Japan, seeing a spider first thing in the morning is considered good luck.

We saw a lot of spiders.

This did not make Evan feel lucky.

Cats are also considered lucky—especially in connection with prosperity—and we saw quite a few of them lounging near one of the shrines. Evan had no problem soaking up the good luck from the felines. 

We kept climbing. And climbing. And climbing.

At a certain point, we reached a viewpoint. It was not the summit, but honestly, it was the best view of the entire hike. 

Teppei, meanwhile, was documenting everything. He insisted on taking photos of us every few minutes. At first, we played along. Then we ran out of normal poses. Then we started posing strangely.

Big mistake.

He loved it.

We now have more photos from this hike than from the rest of the trip combined.

On the way back down, Teppei bought us postcards and introduced us to inari sushi—sweet tofu skin filled with rice, named after the shrine itself. We sat nearby to eat and ended up next to a group of middle school girls on a field trip who were absolutely fascinated by us. Teppei translated back and forth while they asked questions and giggled. 

^^yep apparently we even needed a photo of us eating...

After our climb, we attempted to go to Vermillion Cafe, only to discover there are multiple locations and both are underwhelming.

So we pivoted and took the train to a soba noodle spot that was recommended by Marie. It was so good. Kyoto continues to deliver on food.

Next up: Arashiyama Bamboo Forest.

We took two trains and even hopped on a little trolley/cable car to get there. The bamboo forest itself was cool to see but if you’re tight on time in Japan this might be a skip.

That said, the surrounding area was beautiful. We wandered to a bridge over the river, found a bench, and just sat for a while watching everything go by.

We also spent a solid amount of time watching the rickshaw drivers and questioning how they are physically capable of pulling full-grown adults around all day. Truly impressive.

Afterward, we headed back to the area we were staying in and made a stop at our now-favorite spot, Sights Kyoto, to grab a drink and catch up with Marie. We told her about our day including how much we loved her lunch recommendation, and she told us another group had also been in earlier marveling at the sponge. HA!

For dinner, we went to an obanzai restaurant (another Marie recommendation, obviously). Obanzai is a traditional Kyoto-style meal made up of many small, seasonal dishes. It felt like a never-ending parade of plates. Some were incredible and some were not my personal favorite. Evan gladly handled anything I didn’t finish.

After dinner, we found a hidden speakeasy tucked behind a bookshelf of liquor bottles. We had to stop in. I ordered a caramel popcorn cocktail that tasted exactly like popcorn (mindf*ck?!) but was very sweet, while Evan had a yuzu martini that he really enjoyed.

We got to chatting with the bartender after spotting a bottle of gin from Koval, a distillery that's local to Chicago. Of all the places to see something from home... a hidden bottle bookshelf bar in Kyoto.

We also noticed they had mezcal, which was confusing because earlier in the trip someone told us it wasn’t allowed in Japan. The verdict is still out on that one.

We walked home in the rain which turned out to be the beginning of a typhoon.

Luckily, Marie had warned us earlier in the day. She mentioned that as foreigners, we likely wouldn’t receive emergency alerts, (which we didn't) and reassured us that we didn’t need to evacuate. She told us just to expect heavy rain and strong winds and that our best bet was to stay inside.

The bartender at the speakeasy had a slightly different recommendation: go to your favorite bar and ride it out.

We’ll see what tomorrow brings.

Feeling Like a Local: From Trainstation Bento Boxes, to Sake, to Garlic Gyoza, to Geikos

 Sep 3, 2025

We kicked off the morning by taking the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Kyoto. The distance between the two cities is about 280 miles, and we covered it in just about 2 hours. Japan is all about efficiency and we are here for it!

Before boarding, we did what all the locals do: grabbed bento boxes for the train. This took… a while. There were so many options. This was a problem for me because I only wanted one thing and this was a problem for Evan because he wanted one of everything. Eventually we made our selections and boarded the train.

Once we arrived in Kyoto, we took two local trains to get to our hotel, and one of them looked like it belonged in a completely different era- green velvet seats, wooden paneling- very not Tokyo.

From there, it was about a 10-minute walk to our hotel through narrow cobblestone streets that felt straight out of a movie. Kyoto is so much quieter and more traditional than Tokyo. There’s also a beautiful river running through the city, the Kamo River, which locals use as a gathering spot, especially in the evenings.

Our room wasn’t ready yet, so we dropped our bags and headed to a coworking spot down the street: Sights Kyoto.

10/10 recommend.

Marie, the bartender/barista, was incredible. SO knowledgeable, super friendly, and honestly just fun to talk to. 

The beer? Fine. 

The sake?

A newfound favorite.

I do not typically like sake, but here it was a completely different experience. Sights Kyoto had a huge selection, and Marie walked us through the differences between dry and sweet varieties. Evan found one he absolutely loved—a sake called “2 Rabbits”—and we spent the rest of the trip unsuccessfully trying to find it again. A true “the one that got away” situation. If you ever happen to find a bottle, please pick it up for Evan. He would be eternally grateful.

Also, side note: Marie was using the most genius sponge tool we’ve ever seen. It looked like tongs with sponges on both sides, so you could clean the inside and outside of a glass at the same time. Evan and I were fascinated. She laughed and said people comment on it all the time and that it’s super common in Japan. Again, efficiency for the win!

While we were there, we met a local developing a travel app who offered to buy us a round of drinks in exchange for taking his survey. Naturally, we said yes. His idea was actually really cool, so if it becomes a thing one day, we will absolutely be early adopters.

Marie also gave us a list of restaurant recommendations and let me just say she did not disappoint.

That night, we went to one of her picks—a small, local spot where we sat at the counter and watched the chefs cook right in front of us. We ordered garlic gyoza, pork chashu with egg, shumai, and black fried rice.

Everything was so good that we ordered a second round of garlic gyoza.

We were actively preventing vampire attacks (and friend making!) at that point.

After dinner, we joined a walking tour through Kyoto’s geisha district in Gion which ended up being one of the more fascinating experiences of the trip.

First, terminology: in Kyoto, geisha are called geiko—highly trained entertainers skilled in traditional arts like music, dance, and conversation. Apprentices are called maiko, and they typically start training in their mid-teens (around 15–20 years old).

And let me be very clear, because this was emphasized heavily on the tour: they are not sex workers. That’s a major misconception, largely influenced by things like Memoirs of a Geisha, which, according to our guide, is not an accurate portrayal and caused a lot of frustration within the community.

Geiko and maiko train for years, learning multiple art forms to entertain guests in exclusive tea houses. These tea houses are members-only, and that rule had to be explicitly enforced after tourists kept wandering in uninvited.

We learned how to tell the difference between maiko and geiko:

• Hairstyles
• Obi (belt) styles
• Makeup

Maiko tend to have more elaborate, youthful styling, while geiko have a more refined, understated look.

We also learned:

• They don’t use cell phones, instead their schedules are posted on chalkboards in the district
• Their names are displayed on wooden plaques outside their schools
• The lanterns outside tea houses subtly indicate which district you’re in
• Their kimonos are incredibly expensive—covered by the “mother” (or mama-san) during training, but paid for independently once they become full geiko

And here’s the wild part: there are currently only around 12 maiko and 77 geiko in Kyoto. It’s a shrinking tradition.

We were incredibly lucky!! We actually saw not just a geiko, but a mama-san, the woman who runs the tea house and oversees the geiko and maiko. It’s rare to see any of them at all, so this felt like a big moment.

Important etiquette note: it’s considered rude to photograph their faces. If you do take a photo, it should be from behind.

Also, random but memorable: many buildings place small Torii gate sculptures near the ground to discourage men from peeing there. Apparently it works?

We wrapped up the night full, slightly buzzed, and completely immersed in Kyoto’s culture.

From bullet trains to centuries-old traditions, Day 1 in Kyoto was already delivering.