Day 3: Tokyo, Japan to Kyoto, Japan via the Shinkansen

The itinerary for today included the bullet train ride to Kyoto, southwest of Tokyo. Since we weren't able to get the earliest train ride out to Kyoto, we ended up heading to the Tokyo Tower. On the way there, we came across the Zojo-Ji Shrine, where we found rows and rows of these small concrete statues. I later found out that these are called Jizo statues, typically adorned with bibs and red knit caps and are put there by parents of children that died young because Jizo is regarded as the guardian of children.

After we meandered through the shrine, we got to the tower, returned to the train station, and made a quick stop in Harajuku before going back to Tokyo station to catch the shinkansen (bullet train) to Kyoto. After arriving in Kyoto, we found our hostel and started exploring a temple close by. Rain drops came falling as we walked to find food and visit the Kyoto Tower and Kyoto Train Station. I loved the train station there - its huge and beautiful!