Kyoto 2017: Arashiyama (嵐山)

Before leaving Kyoto I went out to Kyoto’s western region to visit the Arashiyama district. In this part of Kyoto the landscape changes from urban to rural and you can see where the city touches the forested hills to the west. I had a bit over an hour in Arashiyama before I needed to leave and I started by getting some photos at Togetsukyo Bridge. Before crossing the bridge I took some photos from the rocks below it, which was a bit precarious and maybe I wasn’t supposed to be down there. I then went across the bridge and back, heading next to the bamboo groves near Tenryuji Temple. For some reason I thought I could cut through the temple grounds to reach the bamboo groves but of course this was not the case and I had to take the long way around to reach the east entrance of the groves. There were a lot of people walking around the groves that day but it was still a pleasant walk and I went all the way to the west end before turning back to make my way to JR Saga Arashiyama station. When I’m back in Kyoto this year I’m hoping to spend at least part of a day further exploring the western part of the city and seeing more of what’s out there.