NZ Reunion! Kyoto Sunday

Today I met up with one of my closest NZ friends! She and her family had flown in this morning. They were only holidaying in the Kansai area though, so that’s why I went down to Kyoto to meet them. Woke up at 8:30am, got ready and dressed, and then walked over to the hotel my friend was staying at to meet them. We then set off together back to Kyoto station, to take the train to Arashiyama! The weather was much warmer today, still cool, but it was gorgeous sunny weather. As expected, Arashiyama was crowded as usual. We walked around exploring the bamboo forest, the river area, and then had lunch at one of the many restaurants. Also had some matcha warabi-mochi, and the super nice yuba-cheese on a stick thing we had last time we were there (in 2016!). After we’d finished seeing Arashiyama, we took the bus back to the downtown area (Shijo) and walked around the shops there. Took some sticker photos, my friend bought some shoes, and their family (almost) all got new glasses at JINs (this JINs’ layout was very different from the usual interior, and was super trendy and fashionable!). After that we went to have dinner at a BBQ buffet place, and ate plenty of beef. We then called it a day and headed back to Kyoto station together. Took more photos, said goodbye, and then I headed to the bus stop for the 21:40 night bus back home. Was able to sleep much more this time round because I was so tired and also coming down with a cold.