Arashiyama

People around the world tend to travel to see monuments and famous areas. In Japan it is especially often to travel within the country to go sight-seeing. I traveled to one of the many visited places in Japan, Arashiyama. It’s amazingly beautiful! I couldn’t believe the amount of people that were around the area. It was extremely crowded on the big streets.

There were many stores along the streets that sold things such as bamboo souvenirs. There are so many things to do! There was a music box museum, a place to rent boats, men pulling people in rickshaws, a monkey park, etc. My roommate and I climbed a mountain to get to the monkey park, and it was actually quite amazing (and tiring). One of the main attractions in Arashiyama is the changing of the colors of the leaves in the autumn. There is thousands of tress that go from a green hue to a red. It’s very beautiful. I felt like renting a bike because there is so much walking that one must do. I didn’t though because my Japanese professor had said that he had rented a bike there, but he didn’t recommend it because of the amount of people there are.

On the top of the mountain where the monkeys are, they have a feeding area. You go inside a building where it is wired all around and pay 100 yen for a bag of apples or peanuts. It’s actually kind of scary to feed them because they’re somewhat violent.  Some monkeys will snatch the food out your hand and others will take it carefully.

Another attraction is the bamboo forest. It’s one of the many attractions that are lit up for the winter. There are also gardens that you pay to get in. I didn’t get to see the illumination in the bamboo forest so I’m hoping I can go back before the event ends. It was an wonderful experience.

For more information: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3912.html