Kyoto - Overwhelming amount of history, culinary delights and culture

On Saturday, we took part in a Free Walking Tour. This gave us an excellent first insight into the history of Kyoto and the various attractions. On these guided tours, (mostly) locals tell us about the history of the respective city, the sights, and their own experiences and favorite places.

The Free Walking Tour in Kyoto led through the neighborhoods of Gion and Higashiyama. These two districts are among the oldest in the city and are characterized by numerous temples, pagodas, and shrines, as well as traditional theaters, restaurants, and tea houses. Our guide was an exchange student in Japanology from Ukraine who told us a lot about Japanese society, culture and religion, as well as geikos and geishas.

There is really a lot to see in Kyoto. The 1600 Buddhist temples, 400 Shintō shrines, palaces and gardens are spread over an area of 827 km2. You really need to plan well if you want to visit many sights in one day. In comparison, Vienna with 414 km2 seems rather small.