Kyoto - Tofukuji Temple, Toji Temple, Niojo Castle

We arrived in Kyoto and headed straight to the hostel. This was the first time on our trip so far that I had to embrace the wonder of a shared dorm. But we got lucky in that we had the entire room (8 beds in total) to ourselves as nobody else was checked in. By the time we got to the hostel it was after dark so not much sight seeing to be done at night so we did the laundry - how very rock and roll. To be honest it was kinda nice just to relax for a bit

Next day (1st Dec) we headed out and since there were a couple of temples located pretty close to our hostel, we decided to check them out. We walked for about 30 mins and came across Tofukuji Temple


After Tofukuji we headed for Toji Temple. By this stage the temples were starting to look the same, all very large, historical and stunning in their architecture but so samey.


With that in mind we decided to heard for a castle. We jumped on the subway and arrvied at Niojo Castle in Kyoto.

Inside the castle there is a palace which boasts "nightingale" floor boards. As you walk along throught the palace the floor boards squeak and make a noise that is like a nightingale apparently - this was warn residents of people sneaking up on the. You need a bit of pressure to make them squeak which my weight and boots managed with no problem much to Jacquie's dismay - she had to practically jump up and down to get a tiny squeak. The setting of the palace inside the castle is surrounded by stunning zen like gardens.