There was something absolutely magical about leaving Tokyo and going out into the Japanese mountains. Besides being a great way to beat the heat, it feels like visiting an entirely different country!
You had a great idea with this. It was definitely one of my favorite parts of the trip and made for some wonderful relaxation after the hecticness of Tokyo!
I'm so glad that you're enjoying the video series, and we still have a few videos we have left to put together on our time in Kyoto. To summarize the itinerary, we flew into Tokyo then went to Nagano Prefecture (Nagano City -> Obuse -> Shibu Onsen and the Monkey Park) then to Kanazawa (day trip) to Kyoto. We used Kyoto as a hub for the Kansai region which might have been a mistake since Osaka is better connected. We took a day trip to Osaka, a day trip to Hiroshima, spent a day in Arashiyama, and spent a day in central Kyoto. After Kyoto, we spent a night at a monastery on Mt Koya in Wakayama prefecture. We made our way back to Tokyo via way of Nara and Uji (which failed miserably because of rain and the weird hours things were open). If I were to do it again, I would remove the trip to Mt. Koya from the trip unless you're a practicing Buddhist because you won't understand anything there if you aren't (which would also free up 2 days of the trip). Arashiyama's (western Kyoto) natural features pale in comparison to what you see in Nagano, so it might be worth skipping that (since it's also super touristy). I would definitely do a day trip to Nara from Kyoto. I would also spend more time in Osaka (and nearby Himeji and Kobe) and a couple days in Hiroshima and Miyajima. Instead of taking the train back from Hiroshima, I would then fly directly back from Hiroshima or take a connecting flight back through Tokyo.
