Our Top Memories of Kyoto

We spent six days in Kyoto and saw just about everything on our list...but we could have spent a few more days there.  Maybe some day we will go back.  It was good to get out of Tokyo and see a different side of Japan.  Kyoto gave us that.  It also gave us a lot of Japan's history and culture.  It was crazy to see temples and restaurants that were founded way before America was even discovered! People in Kyoto also dressed a little differently....many more kimonos, but also more relaxed clothes than what we regularly see in Tokyo.  The women still LOVE their heels and ankle boots, but we saw more jeans than we have seen in Tokyo.  We didn't feel quite so out of place because of our attire.
I asked everyone to give me their TOP 3 places/memories in Kyoto.  Here's what they told me:

Dad:
1.  Kiyomizu-dera Temple
2.  Adashino Nenbutsu-ji Temple (8,000 buddhas)
3.  Imamiya Shrine and the 1,000 year old mochi shop

Mom:
1.  Kinkakuji Temple
2.  Imamiya Shrine and the 1,000 year old mochi shop
3.  Nijo Castle.....and I have to also give a shout out for everything we saw and did at Arashiyama!  That's four!  All well, the kids couldn't keep it to three either!

Caitlin:
1.  Arashiyama, definitely, was my most favorite. 
2.  Kinkakuji Temple.  And Nijo Castle.
3.  The sunset that we saw at Philosopher's Path our last night in Kyoto.  And the bikes were good.  I loved the bikes.  And the mochi that we had at the 1,000 year old mochi shop at Imamiya Shrine, that was really, really good.

Tayla: 
1.  Driving around Mt. Fuji on the way was really cool.  I really liked it in Arashiyama, and everything that we did there--the monkey park, the bamboo forest, and the 8,000 buddhas.  I especially liked feeding the monkeys and being able to stand so close to them.  The mini buddhas were so old and looked as if they could tell a story of what happened in the years they had been there.
2.  The Kinkakuji Temple because it was really, really, really, really, really pretty and when the sun shone on it, it was gorgeous! 
3.  I really liked Fushimi Inari, both hiking with Mom and with Dad.  With Mom, it was really cool because it was really late at night and it was really dark, except on the toriis that were lit up.  I was climbing a mountain in the middle of the night, and I think that's cool.  I liked going with Dad because it was fun to see the same place during the day and watch the sun go down.  The sunset that evening was really pretty. I was able to see that there was bamboo around the toriis, and I hadn't been able to see that at night.  I liked seeing the toriis during the day as well.  I also really liked Nijo Castle.

Christopher: 
1.  One of my favorite memories of Kyoto was when I was going down the spiral stairs in our rental with Audra. She was scared to go down them, so I helped her down.  Caitlin and Tayla started reaching through the gaps in the stairs at Audra's legs to tease her.  Later on, as I went up the stairs, Audra scared me by reaching through the gap to scare me--and she did scare me, I screamed! 
2.  I loved Audra on the front of the bike with her helmet, because she was cute. 
3.  My two favorite places were Fushimi Inari Shrine and the Heian Shrine...oh, and I also like Kinkakuji Temple.  And Nijo Castle!

Logan: 
1.  One of my greatest memories is the rainy day (Sunday) when we went to the Botanical Gardens.  Inside, the roof was leaking and the rain was getting on all the plants.  It made it feel like a rainforest, and I really liked that.
2. I really liked the Heian Shrine, especially the buildings with four little towers and one big tower in the middle
3.  I really liked Nijo Castle.  And the Kinkakuji Temple.

Nathan:
1.  The restaurant, that they brought out the burner under the food.  I really want to go there again because the food was yummy.
2.  The Iwatayama Monkey Park.  I liked hiking and the first time we saw a monkey he was all alone so I felt bad for him.  I liked it when we fed them.  I liked playing on the playground--the slide was awesome!
3.  My favorite temples/shrines were Fushimi Inari and Kiyomizu-dera.  Oh, and I liked the Botanical Garden.  And the 1,001 golden statues at Sanjusangendo Hall.  They were really cool.

Audra:
1.  The monkeys!!! 
2.  Riding on a pink bus!
3.  Riding bikes with Mom!