Lake Ashi and Mt. Fuji to Nanzenji Temple. As well, if you are not too tired, you may want to visit the Shinto shrine of Fushimi Inari Taisha, which is one of Kyoto’ s oldest and most revered shrines. Fushimi Inari honors the god of agriculture( rice and rice wine) and prosperity. You will be amazed at the walking path that leads through a tunnel of torii gates which are made of wood and painted orange and black. There are also a few restaurants along the way, which feature pieces of aburaage( fried tofu) said to be a favorite food of foxes. The connection between Fushimi Inari Taisha and foxes is that foxes are thought to be Inari’ s messengers, so as well as many statues dedicated to this Shinto god, you will also see many fox statues across the shrine grounds.
We encourage you to consider a trip to Japan. See the cherry blossoms drift lightly in the wind, do some major sightseeing and shopping in Tokyo, and then immerse yourself— body and soul— into the Ryokan hot springs, and the Shinto shrines and gardens of Kyoto. It’ s a spectacular place to visit.
GETTING THERE
Daily nonstop service from Dulles International Airport( IAD) to Narita International Airport( NRT) on All Nippon Airways( ANA) and United Airlines( UAL).
A NOTE REGARDING TRAIN TRAVEL
The train stations in Japan do not have porters and there are also only small luggage compartments on the trains— hence it is preferable not to have suitcases that are too large. You will need to handle your own pieces of luggage. We suggest you take suitcases that are on wheels and modestly sized. The stations mostly have escalators, but occasionally you may encounter a few steps. There is the option to have excess luggage shipped to an onward destination. This can be arranged directly with your hotel.
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