The 1st time we were in Kyoto we missed the tour inside the Kyoto Imperial Palace. We only took some photo outside of the imperial palace and had a nice walk at the park, listening school children playing. This time we manage to register for their Free Kyoto Imperial Palace tour. One can only register 1 month in advance through this website ------> http://sankan.kunaicho.go.jp/english/guide/kyoto.html
we had Mos Burger(Japanese burger chain) for breakfast....yum...there was a chain near the Imperial Palace, how convenient. You don't see that much vege in McDonald !
after a nice breakfast we headed to the North West entrance of the Imperial Palace compound. Weather was a little big disappointing though
we reached earlier then we had planned
Seishomon gate is where the tour group gather to enter
one can also go to the Kyoto Office of the Imperial Household Agency to register for the tour in advance
finally the sun came out
once it's time the officer let the visitor enter one by one and they will check your passport and your registration slip
and you will be gather in the waiting room and a video of the tour will be played
This is Okurumayose, it was the entrance used for official visits by courtiers who had been granted permission to enter the Palace precincts
this time the English speaking tour guide, unlike in Tokyo we were only given a headphone.
Gishumon gate
beautiful wood carving of "Fuk Luk Sau" (Chinese gods of wealth)
next is the Shodaibunoma, waiting area for coutiers paying official visits to the palace
there are 3 rooms arranged fomr the highest rank to the lowest(east to west)
the highest ranked room is the Toranoma( Tiger room) painted by Gantai
2nd ranked room is Tsurunoma (crane room), painted by Kano Eigaku
and the 3rd ranked room Sakuranoma (cherry room) painted by Hara Zaisho
love all 3 design
Shinmikurumayose, was built as a new carriage entrance for the enthronement ceremony of Emperor Taisho in 1915
Gekkamon Gate
Jomeimon gate and Shishinden in the background, this one story building built in 1855 purely made of wood was used for important ceremonies such as enthronement ceremonies (enthronement of Emperors Taisho and Showa)
on the side of the stairs leading to the entrance, there is a Cherry Tree to the east and a Tachiban Orange tree to the west
this is the Tachiban Orange tree, a structure was built to cover the tree during winter to protect it, it's a rather old tree and is weak
right opposite of Jomeimom gate is Kenreimon gate
moving towards east
Nikkamon Gate
see the flower on the end of the roof tile? its Chrysanthemum flower with 16 petals , the imperial seal of Japan
Kenshunmon Gate located South East of the palace
in the old days the use of Japanese cypress tree bark for their roof was really popular
Shunkoden was built special to house the sacred mirror on the occasion of the enthronement ceremony of Emperor Taisho in 1915....i didn't saw the mirror but i bet it'a big one
Seiryoden was used as the Emperor's residence before Otsunegoten was built(slightly north east from this building)
the weather was rather gloomy the whole morning and at this point the finally rained....and i picked a good day not to wear my rain coat.....smart. I'm telling you the Japanese weather forecast is rather terrible
if i remember this correctly this was the Emperor's timetable on New year....very hectic schedule
it is said back in the day the court ladies in Japan wore Junihitoe. it has like 12 layers elegant silk kimono and it can weight about 50lbs(22kg)...imagine dragging this 50lbs all day long.....omg
and the last part is the garden area
this is Oikeniwa Garden
we were lucky there was a crane on the Keyakibashi Bridge, a rare sight indeed. Make up for the rainy day
up north of the palace is the Otsunegoten, where the Emperor lived when the Imperial Palace was restored
on the west side from Otsunegoten is this beautiful Gonaitei Garden
i wish i can have such a gorgeous scene to wake up to every morning
i think if i lived here...i would spend hours in this garden painting
old mural painting at Otsunegoten
red Japanese maple is my new favorite tree
Omima, this was used for unofficial ceremony such as the Star Festival and the Bon Festival
and that ends our 1 hour tour
and finally the rain stopped
one last look and we bit you farewell...arigato gozaimasu!
the tour guide suggested us to visit the Nijo castle, the residence of the Togugawa Shoguns and the the difference from the Imperial palace. I've been there before but Boon hasn't.
some shrine we come across while walking to Nijo castle
we decided to walked from the Imperial palace to Nijo castle which is not really that far but might take about 30-40 minutes walked. Walking is the best way to explore
Nijo castle is a UNESCO World Heritage site, one of 17 Historic Monument of Ancient Kyoto
Entrance fee is 600yen, and there is also English audio guide for those who are interested to rent cost 500yen. 500yen was too pricey for us plus there are some description inside the castle.
they repainted the entrance gate
so beautiful
Ninomaru Palace
photos are not allowed in the castle, but it's just as well, i can admire the beautiful mural painting more rather then snapping pictures non stop
it was rather dark inside because of the gloomy weather outside and there was no lighting inside. I would suggest to skip the castle when it's dark out and have bad eye sight
after we finish our visit inside the castle, visit to the Ninomaru garden is a must
the gardeners were busy covering the Cycads' truck up with rice straws. To protect it from winter.
They don't simply wrap it up.... it a work of art..... only in Japan
Honmaru Yagura-mon
Nijo castle is a big piece of land with a moat surrounding it and another moat surrounding the inner land, Honmaru Palace
Honmaru Palace
Honmaru garden
climbing up Tenshukaku Tower site for a nice view of Honmaru Palace
it was freaking cold and windy up there
the inner moat
there wasn't much Japanese Maple in the garden of Nijo castle
and that was it, Nijo Castle
here is the link to my previous visit to Nijo Castle and Kyoto Imperial Palace during summer -----: http://cemzie.blogspot.com/2012/09/kyoto-japan-part-2.html
a different feel from autumn
all this walking my burger from breakfast has long digested time for a heavy late lunch
initially we were planning to have some nice tempura here, a nice very good restaurant ( it's just next to Daimaru Shopping Center, but unfortunately we were too late for their lunch hour
so not knowing what to eat and was so hungry we just walked around and there was a ramen shop
award winning Ramen......hmmmm heck yes please! i was just a 2 minutes walk from the previous restaurant
and Ramen was oishi !!! when in doubt always go for Ramen! never fails to fill your tummy
after our late lunch we still had time and we though to see Kiyomizudera in the evening,
it was a good decision. It was a jammed packed with tourist both locally and international
i'll save this for my next post....it's too long already!!!
~ Ja ne ~
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