Day 4 – Kyoto
April 6, 2024
First thing today was a visit to Nijo-jo Castle, this was the Kyoto residence of Tokugawa Ieyasu (Or Lord Toranaga if you’ve been watching Shogun). The Castle was completed in 1603 the same year Tokugawa Ieyasu was appointed Seii-Taishogun (usually shortened to Shogun)
Unfortunately you’re not allowed to take photos inside, we did however, take the audio tour which was worth it.
After a short rest with some food and water it was time for a 1.5 km walk to the Imperial palace.
Imperial Palace
The Imperial palace housed the Japanese Imperial family until 1868 when it was moved to Tokyo.
The Palace is situated in the Kyōto-gyoen, a large rectangular enclosure 1,300 metres (4,300 ft) north to south and 700 metres (2,300 ft) east to west. Which also includes the Imperial Palace Gardens.
Our trip started out auspiciously when Mandy, trying to remove a stone from her shoe touched a wall for balance and set an alarm off with warnings then spewing forth from the loudspeakers “It is Forbidden to touch the walls” – who knew?..
Another 16000 step day has worn us out.. relaxing now an about to get a beer.
Tomorrow another Shinkansen trip to Hiroshima.