Last week, I stopped by Kyoto on the way home from my parents' house. It was very hot, and it's getting tougher for me to visit my parents because of the brutal summer weather. To stay motivated, I try to find something enjoyrable to look forward to, and this time I visited an art museum. I'll write about that in another journal entry, and I'd like to focus on the summer scenery in Kyoto.

When you visit Kawaramachi, a center of Kyoto, you'll see these scenes in the summer. I love the sight of willow trees standing the riverside. It definitely reminds me of summer in Kyoto. Although it was very hot that day, the scene made me feel a bit cooler.

You also see lanterns hanging in shōtengai, which advertise one of the biggest festivals in Japan called the Gion Festival. People in Kyoto feel that true summer finally starts through the festival. I went to university in Kyoto, so I always enjoyed attending that festival. When I was younger, most of the visitors were Japanese, but now we see lots of foreign visitors. This festival has become one of the most popular attractions among foreign tourists.

When you walk around the city, you often see a decoration called chimaki handing beside the entrances of homes and shops. It also relates to the Gion Festival, and it's a part of tradition in Kyoto. The festival is closely associated with Yasaka Shrine , and during the festival season, people in the area receive it when they visit there. It's an amulet and is considered to protect each family from bad spirits and misfortune.

At the end, I spotted a unique vending machine that I usually don't see in other parts of Japan. It's something you'll only find in Kyoto, so of course, I had to take a picture.

These days, attending the Gion Festival can be quite challenging because of the crowds and the intense heat, but if I get a chance, I'd like to attend it someday. Until then, I'd like to share a youtube video about it, so you can experience a little of its atmosphere. Enjoy.

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