Day 6: May 25, 2025
With cloudy skies and light rains casting a quiet charm over Kyoto, we decided to skip the long walks. We hopped on the Kyoto Sky Hop Bus. What a wise choice it was!
We took both Blue and Red lines. We glided past a string of shrines, castles, and traditional districts. They were all wrapped in a cozy mist. The gentle rain added to the serenity. We rode through lush nature, peaceful streets, and historic landmarks like Kiyomizu-dera, Nijo Castle, Gion, and more.
Even though the drizzle made walking a bit tricky, the bus gave us a warm, scenic window into Kyoto’s soul. With limited time, we managed to have a glimpse but missed to walk through the soothing nature trails.
After two successful boardings in Shinkansen, we were confident about using the JR pass. We understood reading the reservation ticket and how to use both the pass and ticket together 🤠… And once used reservation gets canceled and you receive only JR pass at the end of the machine. May be it is common but I found it amusing… as the way even the used tickets have their way back into bin!!!
So boarded the Kodama 287 Shinkansen for Osaka. But Osaka’s massive station? An absolute maze. Finding our hotel became an accidental adventure. Google god was there to assist us. Translate was in place to help. Signs were in front of us for guidance. There were thousands of shops and people around us. And we were searching for our road to hotel.
I had never imagined such an exclusive underground mall…market…road…station ..Don’t know how to narrate that. It was a masterpiece.
Maps are excellent… but what about map-reading?
Three malls were located near the station. Each had an entry and exit right through the station. There were like thousands of roads leading to one exit. Once you get used to it, it will be routine. But for first timers, it was Sudoku. With nonstop questioning kids, huge buildings, and an on and off internet connection, it was challenging. The map showed a 7-10 minute walk. It turned into 40 minutes of window shopping with luggage. This made it an adventurous Osaka entry.
Eventually, we found hotel and our sanity.
Do read Japan Travelogue here,
- My Japanese Memories
- On toes in Tokyo
- Sky Hops and Matcha Stops
- Greenery and Games
- Riding in Shinkansen and Kyoto Clouds️
- Tracks, Trains and Robot service
- From Maze to Magic
- A Rainy Day in Nagoya Castle
- New memories brick by brick
** All photos by Author
Words panorama 