If only I could read Japanese and the trains were occasionally late, things would be easier. The express train from the airport to the city of Kyoto. In Japan, every foot of space and land is used. Most people associate this with the Tokyo area, but utilization of space is high throughout the country. Many urban families grow their own vegetables.
Bicycles play an important part of everyday life in a city such as Kyoto.
There are more bicycles than people - it's true. People from age 8 to 80 ride bicycles to do almost everything. This is the middle of a busy shopping district in central Kyoto. Obviously, nearly everyone came and must have brought their second bicycle. The downtown markets seem to sell just about everything, including these mushroom looking things.