We employed a new tactic in Kyoto…we chose popular places we wanted to visit and got up early in the morning to tackle those, followed by less-traveled spots.

We started the day out with a bus ride to Kinkakuji, the famous golden temple, to arrive there before it opened.

Next we headed back on the bus, discovering this older man, who decided all the foreigners needed help navigating the bus system. When Mike told him we were headed to Mt. Hiei next, he thought we were crazy! It’s not much of a tourist spot.

To get to Hiei, we took a bus, followed by a special train, and then a cable car and ropeway up the mountain.

Mount Hiei is a holy land full of Enryaku-ji Temple buildings and thick cedar groves. It’s a World Heritage Site and the headquarters of the Tendai sect of Buddhism. It presides over gorgeous views of Kyoto and the surrounding area and Lake Biwa, Japan’s largest lake. It’s not generally visited by tourists. My friend Debbie and I visited in fall 1986, and I’ve always wanted to return. It was incredibly peaceful!

When we got off the cable car, we had a choice to take a bus to the temple complex, but we decided to hike instead. The terrain was a lot rockier than we expected, but it was a nice hike.

I’d read about a vegan restaurant on Mt. Hiei, which serves traditional Buddhist vegan food. We were excited to find they were open and not crowded at all! The restaurant had a to-die-for view of Lake Biwa.

When we embarked on the other side, we had a long walk to the train station, and it was one of those unexpected lovely walks in Japan!

When we returned to the hotel, I expressed interest in eating something besides Japanese. We ended up at a Balinese place.

A very successful day in Kyoto!