We arrived at Arashiyama at a somewhat ungodly hour, and were thankful to catch the oft-busy bamboo forest at a tranquil time.
A lot of people had warned us about the 'tourist trap' of the bamboo forest, and I hadn't been super keen on going myself. However, since we heeded the warnings and avoided the busy hours, we ended up enjoying it a lot more than we expected.
There are also several trails leading to some beautiful lookout points. Standing there, fantasizing about living in the lone house on the mountain, left me with some Killing Commendatore vibes.
As we walked back through the forest, a mere half hour since we had left, we noticed it was now teeming with people. It was no longer possible to get a shot without others in the frame, and we quickly vacated the area.
We waited around until the Tenryū Shiseizen-ji opened its gates.
Cicadas are one of the most fascinating insects; I had long heard about them before I ever heard them - and oh, when I did... I despised the sound. I can understand the annoyance, when they cries suddenly break the peace of the outdoors. I saw this guy resting in the middle of the path, seemingly lifeless. After some poking and prodding, a different scream shattered the silence of the temple - the critter was well alive and none too pleased at being disturbed.
Rarely do you ever get the opportunity to wander across a scene right out of your wildest imagination. I wish my painting skills were at a level where I could do this scene justice.
After a morning of walking in the sun, we were all withering under the heat, and I spotted the yuba-tofu ice cream stand.
As we sat on the bench eating our cones, we saw a rare sign in English informing us that the "famous beef sandwich" was a mere 200m away. Intrigued, we followed a few signs that redirected us a couple of times before we found the stand.
We started back towards the other side of the Katsura River. After finding the cutest shops and the mochi-on-a-stick, we were well-replenished for more hiking.
When we arrived at the monkey park, there were plenty of signs warning us of monkeys grabbing at cameras, so we put ours away for the hike up.
As we reached the peak, we began to see more of the creatures monkeying around.
There was an area where you could go inside to feed the monkeys. Ironically enough, we were the caged ones while the monkeys came towards us for food.
The monkeys were raring to go; bananas, apples, and other treats were available for purchase, but I decided to simply observe.
We bid our goodbyes to the monkeys and started back down to the station, towards Inari.
A lunch of chilled kitsune udon later, we were ready for the long hike up Fushimi Inari Shrine.
The shrine was incredibly packed. Both of our destinations had recommended an early arrival, but as our time was limited, we decided we could continue hiking up the entire shrine, which had the promise of emptying out the further you climbed, whereas the bamboo forests had no such option.
The hordes of people continue until shortly after the paths diverge; then they begin slowly emptying out, and it is possible to snag a photo of the path, devoid of tourists.
As we were climbing, a monk ran full-speed past us. Soon enough, we realized why. A tree had just fallen into the path of the shrine, closing that section. It caused quite a confusion, as we were afraid we were not allowed to continue, until one of them pointed us to the dirt path nearby, that would allow us to join back on the trail later. .
We reached a resting point, and decided to get ice creams to cool off.
The path is seriously gorgeous. I have rarely been surrounded by so much orange, and the most beautiful shade of orange complemented by the surrounding greenery. My once-vibrant orange shoes, now covered in dust, looked like a sad, fading peach in comparison.
The further up you get, the less food options there are, and the prices on the vending machines slowly tick upwards. Be prepared and take a lot of liquids with you - I drained my Pocari Sweat and hiking bladder.
We finally found the "scenic lookout", which took us towards a damp path downwards. After realizing that daylight was quickly disappearing, we turned back.
Along this damp, dimly lit path, I passed by these oddly blue plants. The eeriness of the area felt like, once again, slipping into a Murakami novel.
Thoroughly tired, we began our descent down. After locating a missing cap, we passed by a few cats, a must when visiting shrines in Japan.
I must have been insanely tired after this, as we had another unfulfilling izakaya visit, grabbed some CoCo Curry to go, and I passed out the minute we got back.
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