Rainy Day In Kyoto - Shirakawa Lane 

My first stop outside of Tokyo was Kyoto. It was probably my favorite place during my entire trip. The locals were all very nice and welcoming, many of them asked me where I was from and what I thought of Japan. Unfortunately it rained pretty heavily on my first day there and I got pretty wet. I spent most of the day just trying to get my clothes dry. This was my first mission when I arrived, walking along Shirakawa Lane up to the Heian-jingu Shrine. This path is very underutilized by tourists outside of blooming season for the trees. I found it to be very peaceful and a great snapshot of daily life in Kyoto, while still providing picturesque scenery and grand cultural staples. I look back on this day very fondly despite how wet and uncomfortable I ended up.