Kyoto, a city located on the island of Honshu in Japan, is renowned for its well-preserved history and classical Buddhist temples, as well as gardens, imperial palaces, Shinto shrines, and traditional wooden houses. It's also famous for its formal traditions such as kaiseki dining, consisting of multiple courses of precise dishes, and geisha, female entertainers often found in the Gion district. Kyoto was the capital of Japan for over a millennium, becoming the Emperor's residence in 794 AD and remained Japan's capital until the capital functions were transferred to Tokyo in 1868 during the Meiji Restoration. Despite its transformative history, Kyoto is known as the cultural heart of Japan, housing roughly one quarter of Japan's national treasures, countless shrines and temples, and 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Kyoto is surrounded by mountains on three sides and experiences a humid subtropical climate, which brings hot summers and cold winters, alongside beautiful seasonal changes that are celebrated in Japanese culture, especially the cherry blossoms of spring and the red maple leaves in autumn.
