An introduction to our two weeks in the City of Kyoto

桜 sakura is the Japanese word for cherry tree blossoms. It refers to the flowering of all the cultivars of ornamental cherry trees across the Japanese islands. 花見 hanami is the custom of viewing the ephemeral beauty of the delicate flowers. Couples and families gather under the blooming trees to share a picnic and sake. Sakura lasts only about a week in any given area, so the 桜前線, sakura-zensen, the “cherry blossom front”, which is announced by the Meteorological Agency of Japan, is observed very closely by people planning hanami with family and friends.

When we arrived in Kyoto on April 2, the wheeping cherry tree in the courtyard of our rental townhouse was barely budding. On our departure day on April 15, most of the sakura petals had already softly scattered, and the tree’s foliage was firmly established. We were privileged to have witnessed a full sakura cycle in our very own small garden.

Our place was ideally located within the city. Two blocks west of us, we had a train and a subway station, plus bus stops for city buses, as well as regional buses. Next to all these transportation links was a “restaurant” center with a dozen different dining options, while just north of the train station was a huge supermarket with a drugstore/pharmacy. A few minutes’ walk south from us was one of the covered, pedestrian shopping streets one finds everywhere in Japan. Even closer, we found a selection of small to tiny local restaurants serving just one dish, like okonomiyaki (omelets cooked on a hotplate grill) or ramen (noodles in broth).

On the cultural side, walking to or from home, we had a lovely view of the Nijo Castle Gardens across the street.

Two blocks to the East, on our side of the street, was the Shinsen-en Temple.