Exploring Kyoto

KYOTO IMPERIAL PARK

Kyoto Gyoen

Kyoto Gosho

Sento Gosho

As you step into Kyoto Gyoen, the park that surrounds Kyoto Gosho, the former imperial palace, you are likely to be met by the swish of a frisbee or barking dogs, their tails wagging as they appraise other canines out for a walk. This a far cry from the sounds one might have expected to hear just a little over a century ago. Until the 1860s, more than two hundred estates of retired emperors, court nobles, and aristocrats were located within this enclosed patch of green. Then the swish you might have heard would have been that of the silk garments of nobles on their way to court, while the barking might have come from the guns of imperial troops as they fought those defending the collapsing Tokugawa shogunate. Vestiges of that era, marked by scattered boulders and sign posts, offer a glimpse of Kyoto's past.

Originally, Hamagurimon ("Clam Gate;" the suffix "-mon" means gate) was always kept closed. However, a great fire swept through the city in 1788, and, as the flames neared, it opened, like a clamshell tossed on the fire-presumably to allow people to escape-and has remained open ever since.

The end of the Edo period (1600-1868) was a time of great political upheaval, ending in the destruction of the shogunate, the restoration of the imperial rule, and the relocation of the capital to Tokyo. In the midst of this turmoil, feuding clans and factions tried on more than one occasion to force their way into the palace to petition the emperor directly. In one such clash, which took place in the late summer of 1864 and became known as the Hamaguri Gomon Incident, invading forces from the domain of Ch shu were repelled by troops from Satsuma and Aizu defending the imperial court. The gate is still scarred with the bullet marks left by their struggle. Small round indentations can be found at eye level.

A large expanse of gravel surrounds the outer wall of

Judith Clancy has lived in Kyoto since 1970, writing and teaching about Japanese culture. Her books describe the many traditions of Kyoto, including music, tea ceremony, and ikebana, and acts as a guide and interpreter for groups and workshops. She is also the author of Kyoto Machiya Restaurant Guide, Kyoto Gardens, Kyoto: City of Zen, and The Alluring World of Geiko and Maiko. She lives in a 120-year-old converted weaving studio in Nishijin, Kyoto's weaving and dyeing district.

"Exploring Kyoto by long-term resident Judith Clancy is an excellent guide to exploring Kyoto on foot."-Lonely Planet Japan

Reviews of author's previous Kyoto Machiya Restaurant Guide

"Opens our eyes to the beauty of details.... In these days of digital tablet guides, it's heartwarming to find publishers still dedicated to producing books that have texture and spatial depth, the warmth that only paper, with its shadows and grain, can transmit."-Japan Times

"Judith Clancy has done a great job of making her expertise available to the visitor to Kyoto with this travel guide, in a small edition to fit easily into a bag or backpack."-Vegetable Japan blog