Kyoto Prefecture Specialties, Souvenirs, Shrines, Temples, and Travel | 47 Prefecture Guide

Kyoto’s specialties, crafts, and faith can all be explained by the fact that “demand was right nearby.” the imperial court, aristocrats, temples and shrines, and the tea ceremony were all there. The makers and the users were in the same city.

Specialties

Kyo-yasai vegetables are traditional varieties such as Kamo eggplant, Shogoin daikon, Kujo green onion, and Kintoki carrot. The Kyoto Basin is inland, making fish hard to obtain. That is why vegetables and dried foods became central to its cuisine.

Kyo-tsukemono pickles follow the same logic: senmaizuke, suguki, and shibazuke. Wisdom for preservation became a local specialty in its own right. It is a pattern we have seen many times in this series.

Uji tea uses covered cultivation, in which sunlight is blocked before harvest, to make gyokuro and tencha. While Shizuoka ranks among the top in Japan by volume, Uji developed in response to demand from the tea ceremony.

Souvenirs

Yatsuhashi began as a firm sweet made by steaming and baking rice flour, sugar, and cinnamon. Nama-yatsuhashi, made by wrapping sweet bean paste in the unbaked dough, is a relatively new form.

Kyo-tsukemono pickles, matcha sweets, Gojo shichimi spice. And Kyo-sensu folding fans and small Kyo ware plates If you want to take crafts home as souvenirs, this prefecture may offer the widest range of choices.

Shrines and Temples

Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine is, is the head shrine of the roughly 30,000 Inari shrines said to exist across Japan in total.

The torii gates of Senbon Torii were all donated by worshippers On the back of each pillar are carved the names of the people or companies who donated it, along with the date. That scenery was not designed; it is the result of wishes accumulated over time. Inari was originally a deity of rice, but over time became worshipped by merchants as a deity of business prosperity.

Kiyomizudera Temple has a main hall designated as a National Treasure. Its famous stage is a kakezukuri structure, assembled from wood without using a single nail It is the solution our predecessors developed for building on a slope.

Shimogamo Shrine and Kamigamo Shrine is, are shrines that existed here before Heian-kyo was established In other words, the capital came later. Tadasu no Mori at Shimogamo Shrine is a forest close to primeval woodland that remains in the city center.

Kinkakuji Temple, also known as Rokuonji; Ginkakuji Temple, also known as Jishoji; Ryoanji Temple; Yasaka Shrine; and Kitano Tenmangu Shrine, dedicated to Sugawara no Michizane, the deity of learning. Seventeen properties are registered as World Cultural Heritage sites under the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto.

Sightseeing

The bamboo grove path in Arashiyama, Hanamikoji Street in Gion, and the sake breweries of Fushimi. Fushimi is one of Japan's leading sake-producing areas, alongside Nada Gogo in Kobe The soft water known as Fushimizu gives the sake a gentle character.

Amanohashidate in Miyazu City is one of Japan’s Three Scenic Views. Kyoto Prefecture is not only inland; it also faces the Sea of Japan. This area is also a production center for Tango chirimen crepe silk.

Traditional Crafts

There are 17 nationally designated items, among the highest numbers of any prefecture in Japan.

Nishijin-ori, Kyo-yuzen, Kyo-kanoko shibori, Kyo ware and Kiyomizu ware, Kyo lacquerware, Kyo-sensu folding fans, Kyo-uchiwa fans, Kyo Buddhist altars and fittings, and more.

If we line them up, “wearing,” “decorating,” “worshipping,” and “welcoming guests” they fall into four groups. The name Nishijin-ori comes from the place where the western army set up camp during the Onin War, and where weavers returned after the war.

For details, see [VILLAGE Report vol.22] 17 Items, a Number on a Different Scale

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References: Kyoto Prefecture, Kyoto City, Uji City, Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Tax Agency, Association for the Promotion of Traditional Craft Industries -- Value Village Editorial Department