After meeting up at the McDonalds, it wasn't long before we were at a tranquil temple, the starting point of the tour. We hit the road and weaved through some local streets towards the temples and gardens of the East Side

We visited the impressive Ginkakuji temple, sometimes better known as the "silver" pavilion. Not only is the building over 500 years old, it also has an incredible strolling garden with beautiful views everywhere you look.

And what beautiful gardens they are. With a mixture of dry landscape, moss, trees and ponds this is a real gem of a temple. After climbing to the top to see the view, we came down the stairs and got some great photos along the way. Then it was time to venture out to the next place. We grabbed ourselves something to eat and then we were back on the bikes and following the Path of Philosophy.

This nature filled path is one of the most beautiful bike rides in town. We enjoy a nice ride along here before heading downhill and on to the next stop, the Nanzen-ji zen temple. This is also one of the nicest temples in Kyoto and it has a special added feature. An aqueduct running through the grounds which was built in the 19th century. I hope you got some great photos here as it is a really special place.

After two temples, it was time to get our shinto shrine box checked, and the Heian Shrine is one that does not disappoint. This replica of the former Imperial Palace is huge, so it's hard to believe that it's actually a 4/5ths scale replica. We may have you a bit about the fact that this was built as a way to revive the local economy after Kyoto lost it's role of capital city during the Meji Period, and we even saw an old streetcar in the garden showing the connection between the canals, streetcars and the shrine. We enjoyed wandering through the beautiful gardens and got some amazing pics of the ponds too. We may have even had time to feed some of the fish and turtles in the pond.

​Then it was a quick ride back across town to the starting point! We hope you had as nice a day as we did discovering Kyoto!

We went North along the riverside and along the way I pointed out some of the geographical features of the city including the famous bridges along the way, we passed Gojo (5th Ave) Shijo (4th Ave) Sanjo (3rd Ave) and Nijo (2nd Ave) before popping back up to street level and heading East towards the mountains. Before too long we were at the Ginkakuji temple and ready to explore the gardens.

And what beautiful gardens they were. With a mixture of dry landscape, moss, trees and ponds this is a real beautiful gem of a temple. We saw the light filtering through the trees and I told you how there is a specific word for it in Japanese (komorebi). After climbing to the top to see the view, we came down the stairs and got some great photos along the way. Then it was time to venture out to the next place. We grabbed ourselves something to eat and then we were back on the bikes and following the Path of Philosophy.

This nature filled path is one of the most beautiful bike rides in town. We enjoy a nice ride along here before heading downhill and on to the next stop, the Nanzen-ji zen temple. This is also one of the nicest temples in Kyoto and it has a special added feature. An aqueduct running through the grounds which was built in the 19th century. I hope you got some great photos here as it is a really special place.

After two temples, it was time to get our shinto shrine box checked, and the Heian Shirine is one that does not disappoint. This replica of the former Imperial Palace is huge, so it's hard to believe that it's actually a 4/5ths scale replica. I told you a bit about the fact that this was built as a way to revive the local economy after Kyoto lost it's role of capital city during the Meji Period, and we even saw an old streetcar in the garden showing the connection between the canals, streetcars and the shrine. We enjoyed wandering through the beautiful gardens and got some amazing pics of the ponds too. We may have even had time to feed some of the fish and turtles in the pond.

Back on the bikes, and we were rolling towards the Gion and Miyagawacho geisha quarters. This is really one of the nicest areas of Kyoto and definitely worth a visit at night too. Depending on pace, we may have even had time to chat about the geisha and their unique lives while visiting their neighbourhood. Then it was a quick ride back across town to the rental shop! We hope you had as nice a day as we did discovering Kyoto!