A RARE QUIET IN KYOTO (DAY 1)
Location: Kyoto
Date: March 2020
Camera: Canon EOS 6D
Lenses: Tamron 24-70mm f/2.8
The spring of 2020 was, as many politicians so vaguely and repetitively put it, a “time of uncertainty.”
By late January, the corona virus had been declared an epidemic. Over the course of February, social interaction grew tense and began to dwindle. Finally, in early March, the epidemic was recategorized as a pandemic. For some, it was something to fear. For others, it was something to casually monitor. And yet for others, it was an exaggeration or even a full-blown lie—possibly a conspiracy. Either way, it became a politicized plague.
I didn’t really know what to make of it all; all I knew was that life was changing with the emergence of this “new normal.”
Masks, ever a common sight in Japan, were suddenly seen on the overwhelming majority of folk out and about. Toilet paper, soap and hand sanitizer flew off pharmacy and supermarket shelves. Remote working, called teleworking in Japan, swiftly became standard. Small business owners and restaurateurs grew fearful. Flights grew less frequent. Hotels emptied out. Tourism abruptly became a thing of the past. As a result, while working out at the gym, I saw on TV that Kyoto was suddenly—relatively speaking—rather empty. This was later echoed in English on a news site just a couple days later.
To me, this presented a great opportunity.
I first visited Kyoto in the late spring of 2018, courtesy of my parents, whom I travelled with. It was my first time to visit the Kansai region and the old capital. I was grateful for the trip and very pleased with the company. However… it was an immensely crowded and muggy weekend. Distant scenery was obscured by overcast skies and thick, humid air, each and every storefront and temple wall was obscured by buzzing swarms of tourists, Fushimi Inari Taisha was as much a sea of selfie sticks as torii, and the magnificent main hall of Kiyomizu-dera was completely hidden by scaffolding. In short, the visit left something to be desired.
Now, in March 2020, it seemed that I could have a "revenge" trip, as Japanese folk would call it. Moreover, Kiyomizu-dera’s renovations, which I unfortunately witnessed two years earlier, were finally complete after just over three years.
Nonetheless, travel was not encouraged. The consensus seemed to be that it was not particularly responsible, considerate or even safe to travel while this new pandemic continued to spread… The irony was, of course, that if there was ever a time to do so, it was then. Kyoto streets, temples and shrines devoid of tourists? Kiyomizu-dera in its restored glory? The cool temperatures of early spring as opposed to the uncomfortable temperatures of late spring? It was impossible to pass up. I simply had to go.
So, I booked off work, ordered a new tripod, invited my good friend Hai, made an itinerary and before long, we were on a bullet train heading west.
Once we had arrived and gotten a quick bite of the local cuisine—McDonald's at Kyoto Station—we hopped back on the train. Our first stop was Chohoji, commonly referred to as Rokkakudo. Said to be...
A trip to Heian Jingu followed. I had never been there...
Munetada Shrine
Just after, we stumbled upon something not on our itinerary; the torii-lined path of Yoshida Shrine, leading to
Takenaka Inari Shrine
Shinnyodo Temple Hondo/Shinshō Gokurakuji (Shinnyodō) Temple
Yasaka Shrine
Ninenzaka, Yasaka no to
Hotel + dinner
Fushimi night
