For many of us, this is our first experience in traditional Japanese Kaiseki 懐石料理.

We all wore robes provided by the Hotel New Akao.

We love the variety of dishes and the Karaoke afterward.

For many of us, this is our first ride on the Shinkansen 新幹線 bullet train. We took snap shots of each other as we departed Atami. Two hours later, we arrived at Kyoto Station with its modern architecture.

Of the three types of trains, this is a hikari (medium speed) with stops at some small stations. According to my GPS tracker, we reached a top speed of 268 km/hr (or 166 miles/hr) on 12:23pm, somewhere between Nagoya and Kyoto in Fuwa District, Gifu Prefecture 岐阜県 不破郡.

After lunch, we came down from Isetan 伊勢丹 on the Grand Staircase 大階段.

We were awe-struck by the architecture of the Kyoto Station.

After we all got our photos of the classic Ninomaru Garden, we headed off to see the rest of Nijō Castle 二条城.

In the heart of the Kyoto’s shopping district, in front of Hankyu Dept. Store 阪急 at the intersection of Kawaramachi 河原町 and Shijo 四条通, our guide John showed us where to shop, as we consulted our maps to make sure we know our way back to the hotel.

After arriving at the Torokko Arashiyama Station トロッコ嵐山駅 by narrow gauge train , we were surprised to see a rickshaw. Some of us posed with it. As it turns out, rickshaws for hire are quite common in tourist areas of Kyoto.

Here is a couple near the romantic Moon Crossing Bridge 渡月橋.