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considered by the Japanese to be one of
Japan's three most beautiful gardens. It Kyoto
was originally the garden of the outer resi- Kyoto was Japan’s imperial capital for
dence of the nearby Kanazawa Castle, and over a millennium and is still one of its
was enlarged in 1774, completed in 1822, best-preserved cities, with thousands of
and opened to the public in 1875 after the shrines, temples, palaces, and gardens. We
Meiji Restoration. The many paths through recommend a minimum of three days in
the park go past stunning landscaped gar- Kyoto, including a day trip to Nara. Kyoto
dens with ponds, teahouses, bridges, and is home to invaluable treasures and is a
carefully manicured trees – a photogra- repository for examples of the best of Ja-
pher’s dream with so many contrasts, an- panese art, culture, religion, and philoso-
gles, shapes, and changing light. phy. The city boasts 17 UNESCO World
After breakfast and checking out Heritage sites, the greatest concentration
the next morning, we walked to nearby of any city in the world.
Kanazawa Station for our train journey to Kyoto was our favorite city on this trip
Kyoto. We stopped in Kaga-Onsen, a beau- because of its size (1.6 million), lower den-
tiful area known for its hot springs and sity 4,568 people per square mile), and
quaint towns, and for lunch at Alla Contad- deep culture. Unlike Japan's other major
ina, a wonderful bistro featuring Italian/ cities, Kyoto's moderate density reflects
Japanese cuisine. We tried salads and as- its role as a historic, cultural center rather
sorted pasta dishes, with the pasta made than a modern commercial hub. It is com-
fresh daily and imaginative tomato, fennel, parable in size and density to Munich, Vi-
and other sauces. Back on the local train, enna, Adelaide, Calgary, and Dallas. All
we changed at the rural Tsuruga Station, in these cities share Kyoto's characteristic of
a pretty beachside town, for the one-hour being significant regional centers with
train ride to Kyoto.
