We got up, got fluffy pancakes from Blue Fir Tree Cafe, a super cool, retro-American diner that played classic rock. Suitably fed, we made our way west to meet up for our bike tour. Our guide Michael gave up being a social studies teacher to do guided bike tours, and was both entertaining and informative. He led us to the Golden Pavillion, the Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, and Otagi Nenbutsu-ji, a cool little Buddhist shrine with about a thousand carved stone statues, each carved by the followers of Nishimura Kocho. We then some ice cream next to a pond!
We made friends with one of people on the tour, and the three of us took Michael’s rec for a ramen shop just down the street from the bike shop. Following dinner, we turned in for the night.