Karma came round to bite me on the arse! After mocking the Japanese sock and flip flop ensemble, my only pair of pumps were still soaking wet from the trip to Nara the day before, and I was forced to look like a total and utter retard of a tourist by wearing my jeans with running trainers! Nightmare. Little did I realise at this point, that things were to go from bad to worse…

I arrived at Kyoto station, made a b-line for the tourist information office to grab a map to maximise my time here and then walked the short distance to the Ryokan (traditional Japanese guesthouse) that was to be my home for the next two nights. By now, my running shoes, which are perfect for running, but apparently cause blisters when simply walking, forced me to change my shoes. The problem being now that all I had left to wear in my self-restricted luggage allowance was sandals or flip flops (I told you this story went from bad to worse). Alas, I was forced into wearing a pair of sandals with tights (and jeans over the top). The only saving grace being that it was already dark outside and people would be unable to see the full extent of the footwear horror.

After settling in to my room, I looked over the map and saw a small advertisement for walking tours around Kyoto which took place on Wednesdays and Fridays. I had no idea what day it was, but after a quick calendar check in my phone I realised, luckily enough, that it was Wednesday. So without missing a heartbeat I was straight out into Kyoto to explore and find the meeting point for the walking tour at 6pm.

The guided walk with our tour guide Mia took place in the Gion district of Kyoto famous for Maiko and Geiko (apprentice and qualified Geisha girls). Mia was friendly, informative and good fun. I feel like I learnt a lot on the tour, including some random facts (such as Japan has around 5.5 million vending machines and also that kimono-wearers in Kyoto are entitled to a 5% discount in shops and restaurants in order to encourage the wearing of traditional garments), yet it wasn't too information-heavy. We were also lucky enough to catch a rare sighting of real life Maiko and Geiko in a couple of different spots amongst the narrow streets of Gion (a few years ago there were as many as 3000 Maiko and Geiko in Kyoto, but this figure is closer to 300 today). We also visited some of the locations used in the film Memoirs of a Geisha (which incidentally is despised by most residents of Kyoto for its falsification of the life of geisha girls).

The next morning, my pumps were still soaking wet due to the lack of heating in my room (I slept in quite a few layers!), so I was stuck with the sandal and tight combo for another morning, as I decided the best idea would be to venture to the nearby temples before walking north for a couple of blocks to the shopping area.

My morning, therefore, consisted of a whistle-stop tour of central Kyoto, from Toji temple in the South up to Umekoji park, Nishi-Hongaji temple via the shopping arcades, where I picked up a new pair of pumps and immediately changed in to them. Then I made for Kyoto Imperial Palace, where I happened to stumble upon a gathering of Japanese people waving Japanese flags. It turned out, through a sign-language and broken English conversation, that the Emperor and Emperess of Japan were to make a visit to Kyoto. So I was promptly handed a flag and joined the crowd. We were encouraged to shout something, which sounded remarkably like "Banzai" three times and madly wave our flags upon the Emperor's arrival before shouting "Arigato Goimasz" to thank him for coming. He drove past the adoring crowd, in a police escorted limousine, waving through his open car window.

The next few stops were Heian Jingu shrine, the Museum of Art, and Kyoto Zoo. Then it was back to Gion and the narrow street of Pontocho (another Geiko district - and where I caught another rare glimpse of a Maiko girl) where I stopped for a rather extravagant lunch - I had Kobe beef. Well, when in Rome, or rather Japan…

In the evening I went to Gion corner, for a performance of traditional Japanese art forms including flower arrangement and Imperial Court music alongside Kyoto style dancing, puppetry and Ancient comic plays. And after the heavy dose of culture, which I thoroughly enjoyed, I took a walk back to the Ryokan via Higsahi Hongagi temple and shosei-en gardens, saw Kyoto Tower at night and the Christmas lights at the railway station.

For my final day in Kyoto I took the "if you cant beat them join them" attitude and hired a bike. I rode (on the pavements - because you are allowed to here!) from my hostel to Nijo Castle, where lots of school children stopped me to practice their English, and then on to the Manga Museum, which features a history of Manga, an archive of Manga comics including small collections in English, Spanish, German, Korean etc, a Manga drawing workshop as well as a collection of iconic Manga images. With half a day gone already, I grabbed some snacks for my train ride, before giving back the bike, picking up my bag and walking to Kyoto station.

I have found an appreciation for even the smallest things in Kyoto, such as the replacing of ordinary bleeping sounds at pedestrian crossings for bird tweets and even little tunes, or the covering of unsightly air conditioning or heating points outside homes and shops with cute little bamboo housing units. For me Kyoto successfully combines new with old - holding on to the traditions and history that define the city, whilst embracing all the best things that modern life and technology have to offer.

I don't think that I am entirely able to capture the essence of this amazing place in a short blog post and some photos, but what I can say is forget "I left my heart in Tokyo", Kyoto (same letters, different order, and totally different city) has wound her charismatic arms around me and will, I'm sure, be an extraordinarily difficult city to beat for some time to come.