Autumn color trekking in Kibune Kurama and Takao Shan

Japan is a country full of mountains and a trekking heaven, even a short hike would be refreshing to the soul.

In my first trip to Japan, I did 2 short hikes in 2 different outskirts of the country, one in the outskirts of Kyoto and the other, outskirts of Tokyo, both are well known for autumn color.

Kurama Kibune Hills are located around 1 hour from Kyoto. The easier trek starts from Kurama temple, passing by Kifune shrine, ending at Kibunegushi station. But I started from the opposite direction. The trek wines through the green forests with lots of tree roots on the floor. The whole trek takes about 3 hours.

A walk along a road before the hike

Rover by the road

Autumn foliage

Start of the hike at Kibune

Up and up

Kifune shrine

More autumn foliage

The serene trek

Time to rest

Kurama-dera temple

Kurama Town

Takao Shan is located around 2 hours from Tokyo. It is also one of the places where the red autumn color leaves can be seen. From the bottom to the peak, it took around 2 hours. The trail is a wider open trail with partial sheds from the trees. From far away, Mt Fuji stands majestically with snow capped peak. 

At the foothill

                                                                                    

Nearing the peak

Sea of people

Mt Fuji from afar

Spectacular autumn color

Exploring Treasures of North Myanmar

Bagan is a Unesco World Heritage site, well known for its thousands of temples and pagodas scattered across a big plain. The temples were built over 1000 years in red bricks and still stand strong today.

Bagan - Land of Pagodas

There are a number of prominent big temples to explore. One such is Dhammayanyi Temple, the largest in Bagan. Cycling or electric biking is the most enjoyable ride to explore the temples in a day. The temples could be few floors high on the ground. Viewing from the platform on the higher level provides a bird's eye view of the temples across the plain.

Horse rides for sunset

Dhammayanyi Temple from afar

Irrawaddy River 

The most enjoyable moment was standing on one of the temple tops to look out for a gorgeous orange sunset far away in the sky...

Sunset in Bagan

Another memorable place to explore is Inle Lake. We reached Inle lake via trekking from Kalaw after 2.5 days of trekking and a boat ride through the lake to reach the town.

Inle Lake Pier

Early in the morning, the misty view with bustling life around the open market in the canal was a memory to treasure. Big wooden boats were parked along the narrow canal while the workers were busy transporting the giant rattan baskets of vegetables and tomato into the vessel.

Tomato from the lake

Big basket of cracker

Traditional wood frying

Local produce leaving the lake

A boat ride around the lake to visit the fishing villages was exciting experience to have a glimpse of the rural life in the lake. One unique product from the lake is the hand made silk made from lotus weaving. I remember the bright sunny light shined upon the water that reflected a vibrant lake life. 

Monks in boats

Buddhist procession in the lake

A local market for tourists?

Enchanting lake

A village in the lake

Mini Bagan in Inle Lake

Traditional fishing method

Sunset in Inle Lake

Lotus weaving