As regular readers know, I am a big fan of Kyoto’s machiya: the traditional wooden townhouses that once formed an integral part of this ancient city’s streetscape. As such I am always keen to support and promote local business that have wised-up to the great potential of these old houses as shops, restaurants, cafes, and hotels. I recently wrote about one such exciting venture; … [Read more...]
Shinkamanza Machiya Resort Named “Village Kiramachi”; New Photos from Our Stay
A few months ago I wrote about an innovative machiya townhouse revival project in the Shinkamanza district of central Kyoto. Under the supervision of local architectural company, Good Design Works, not just one traditional townhouse but a whole group of houses has been renovated and reinvented as a single integrated resort hotel. I have now been informed that the resort has … [Read more...]
Shinkamanza: An Innovative Machiya Townhouse Resort in Downtown Kyoto
Last year I was invited to view the ongoing work on an exciting machiya revival project in central Kyoto. Overseen by a local architectural company called Good Design Works the plan is to renovate not just one traditional townhouse but an entire unit of houses as a single integrated resort hotel. Machiya are the traditional wooden townhouses of Kyoto. Their dark lattice … [Read more...]
Matcha Tea & Machiya in Kyoto – Two Articles for GuideAdvisor
Whether you are interested in tea ceremony or traditional architecture, two pieces I wrote for GuideAdvisor earlier this year, offer my top tips for for your trip to Kyoto. The first article is on how to find the very best machiya: the traditional wooden townhouses of Kyoto. After decades of neglect and outright destruction, machiya have been undergoing something of a … [Read more...]
Ran Hotei Cafe – Vintage Taishō Romance & Excellent Cake
On Wednesday I took a walk over to the Sanjo-kai Shōtengai shopping arcade and popped into Randy Channell's machiya cafe Ran Hotei. Randy is well known as a master of Japanese tea ceremony, and he does teach a few tea ceremony classes at Ran Hotei. Mainly though he gives classes at a shrine near the Imperial Palace. So if you are not interested in tea ceremony, that's … [Read more...]
