It was the first time in more than a decade that I was in Kyoto and the first time ever that I was there with my entire family: wife our two early explorers.

As everyone who knows me well, Kyoto represents a special place in my hearts of hearts. It’s where my Japan experience started more than 27 years ago. Being able to reminisce even a little bit with my family was quite special. Without Kyoto, there’s no visit + 3 possibly.

We stayed near Kyoto station at a hotel call the Thousand; this small hotel has a big presence and was in a great, central location from all the happenings in this jewel city.

I reached out to my host parents who made my Kyoto experience possible but unfortunately did not hear back. The below text is what we sent to both Mama and Papa, who I fondly called them during my stay. I left the city feeling worried about their well-being : 大丈夫かなってずっと思ってた。

The highlight of our short excursion was visits to two major staples in Kyoto: the Golden Temple and Fushimiinari Shrine. It was extra special to visit the latter as I was able to ride on the Keihan Line — a major train line that connects Osaka and Kyoto. I can still recite all the stations but it has added a few more since living near the Uji line and Momoyamaminamigichi.

京都、おきに

I do hope to revisit Kyoto in the future and introduce my family to my host family; this would be a “full circle” experience that warrants a visit with perhaps better planning on my part.

パパとママへ

お久しぶりです。アメリカのマイクです。突然ですが家族と一緒に京都に来ています。せっかくいるので少しでも会えたらいいなと思って連絡をしてみました。よろしくお願い致します。

マイクより