We ended up waking up early at the Hyatt Place Kyoto and headed out to Kiyomizu-dera, hoping to beat the crowds. We were successful but the morning light wasn’t great due to the proximity of the mountains. We ended up visiting three times throughout the day hoping for better light! Later, in the afternoon, we walked over to Kodai-ji and stayed for their nighttime fall illumination event.
Continue reading “Daytime Kiyomizu-dera and Evening Kodai-ji”Koraku-en and the Meiji Jingu Inner Garden
After breakfast, we checked out of the Prince Sakura Tower Tokyo, dropped off our bags at Shinagawa Station, and headed to Koraku-en, a garden near Ueno. After walking through the garden, we had lunch nearby and then visited the Meiji Jingu‘s inner garden. We then had an afternoon snack in Omotesando before taking the Shinkansen to Kyoto where we checked into the Hyatt Place Kyoto.
Continue reading “Koraku-en and the Meiji Jingu Inner Garden”Cheese and a Castle in Gruyères
We headed out in the morning to Gruyères, home of Switzerland’s Gruyère cheese. As the forecast was calling for rain in the afternoon, we first headed to the castle atop a small hill near the small town. After exploring the castle and having lunch in a nearby restaurant, we returned to town to check out the Gruyère cheese museum and shop.
Continue reading “Cheese and a Castle in Gruyères”Fall Foliage at Catoctin Mountain Park
When we last visited Catoctin Mountain Park, it seemed that peak fall colors would probably occur in a week. So, we headed out there again today. The best colors seemed to be at medium elevations and particularly on the eastern side of the park.
Continue reading “Fall Foliage at Catoctin Mountain Park”Local Fall Foliage
We took a look at some of the local fall colors today. We saw some good colors here and there, though overall it isn’t as far along as what we saw yesterday at Catoctin Mountain Park.
Continue reading “Local Fall Foliage”