Kyoto (Living), Mie, Nara, Osaka, Kobe
English, Japanese (Native)
Less than an hour
2 days ago
Hi. My name is Yoshihisa. Call me "Yoshie", please. It means good or O.K. in Japanese. I live in Joyo City, Kyoto Prefecture, located just in between Kyoto and Nara. I was born and raised in Iga, Mie Prefecture. Iga is a birthplace of ninja and a renowned haiku poet, Matsuo Basho. I might be a descendant of ninja. I aim at becoming a linguistic ninja, following a part of Basho's lifestyle with the incorporation of seasonal changes into my tours. In addition to visiting famous temples and shrines, I invite you to lesser-known places of historic interest.
Once in a month I go hiking or mountain climbing with some friends mainly in mountains surrounding Kyoto and Nara basins. Recently I have got intrigued by the charms of Buddhist statues, which are manifestations of people's wishes and prayers. I also like izakaya (Japanese-style taverns) hopping, tasting delicious dishes and locally brewed sake at reasonable prices. Especially I like communicating with people from home and abroad, talking face to face. Some of the above-mentioned elements are included in my walking tours. I hope you will discover new aspects of cultural and natural beauty in Kansai area through one of my tours which you could never gain otherwise.
One of my favorite phrases that come from Zen Buddhism is Ichigo Ichie or this meeting-but only once in a lifetime. My interpretation goes this way: This place and this moment never cross again. Each and every good encounter, however, lingers on like the sound of a temple bell. Won't you explore a deeper world of Japanese culture in Kyoto, Nara and Osaka with me?
We had some trouble finding Yoshie to begin with, but we quickly made up for lost time and after that it was a great experience! With his insider knowledge we had a really smooth trip and learned a lot, and he saved me a lot of trouble in trying to find my way around sale breweries in an unfamiliar city. He managed to find us the best steak we've ever had too! I'd highly recommend Yoshie :)
Hi Shannon. Thank you very much for your nice review and the souvenir. I was inside of the west gate of the station, just in case you would be at the west side of the central gate. Anyway I am pleased that you all liked the Kobe beef steak lunch and the visit to the two sake breweries in Nada. I hope you will have lots of fun during your stay in Kyoto and return home safely. With warmest regards, Yoshie
Our U.S. family of 5, including 3 teenagers, spent 3 days touring Kyoto, Hiroshima, and Miyajima with Yoshie. He was fabulous! His English is impeccable. He was gracious and welcoming, kind, and extremely knowledgeable. He planned our days at a nice active and efficient pace. My teenagers voted him our “best guide ever.”
Hi Diane. I really appreciate your kind words of gratitude for my three-day tour in Kyoto and Hiroshima. I am very pleased to learn that your children, too, enjoyed it a lot. I hope you will return home safely with lots of nice memories and souvenirs of Japan. Next time you have another chance of visiting Kansai region, be sure to get in touch, please. With the best wishes, Yoshie.
Yoshihisa-san is one of the rare gems you will ever meet during your trip, especially if you love learning Japanese history and culture. I had read a lot about Japanese history before but during our tour Yoshihisa-san made us understand so much more. Myfamily had a booked a 2 day tour with Yoshihisa-san and as usual, we wanted to visit the famous tourists sites of Kyoto. These were more of the typical spots you find on a "Top Ten" places to visit in Kyoto. Thankfully Yoshihisa-san convinced me to see some other places as well, which we have no regrets and in fact feel so lucky to have visited them. Some of the places he took us to allowed us to catch the amazing Autumn fall of Kyoto. My family and I will never forget our experience at the Jojakkoji Temple where we saw the most amazing autumn colours. We were surrounded by the most surreal environment where your eyes just can't believe the beauty of the temple and its nature. We took so many pictures there, that we got exhausted of taking pictures for the rest of the day :) Yoshihisa-san also told us many interesting stories of the places we visited, I recall the story of Buddha turning back to tell the priest "You're late!" at the Eikando Temple which was an interesting narrative. Also we were fortunate enough to hear and learn several Haiku Poetry from him and understand the beauty of its meaning. The two days we spent together went by so fast and when our tour ended on the 2nd day, it was hard for us to part. We had taken so many pictures together and these are fond memories we will always treasure. Thank you Yoshihisa-san!
Hi Abilash-san. It is a great honor and a pleasure to receive such a supreme review for my two-day tour in Kyoto. Your deep interest in Japanese history and culture made my job very rewarding and worthwhile. Through this tour I made a new discovery about the temple, Eikando, you visited, thank you so much. Personally I also enjoyed spending the two days with your family a lot. Your wife and child were most lovely during the whole two days. I hope to see you someday in the near future, maybe in our cherry-blossom season. With the warmest regards, Yoshie
Yoshi gave us a lovely guided tour of the Kyoto shrines. He planned the day very well and gave us a great deal of information about the culture and history of the spots we visited. We had lunch at a local restaurant and dinner at a restaurant at the Kyoto station before departing. It was a great day overall!
Hi David. I am sorry to have been late in answering your review. I was away from home for the past four days on a trip. Thank you so much for your heartwarming comment on my tour in Kyoto. I am pleased to learn that you enjoyed the tour and the meals in Kyoto a great deal. Next time you have another chance of visiting Kansai region, let me guide you more leisurely, please. With kind regards, Yoshie