A WEEK TOGETHER IN KYOTO

What Brings the World to Kyoto? When Japan's rainy season began, my Filipina wife arrived at our home in Kyoto with several relatives. The house suddenly became lively, as if they had blown away the damp, heavy air that always accompanies the Japanese rainy season. That evening, we headed to the neighborhood supermarket to buy ingredients, stopped by a 100-yen shop to look for sandals, and ended the day with beer and a homemade pot of Sopas, a classic Filipino comfort food. ... Both the Philippines and Japan are rice-eating cultures. Both enjoy meat and seafood. Yet the differences in taste are remarkable. During their stay, they barely touched sushi, eel, pickles, soba noodles, miso-based dishes, Kyoto cuisine, obanzai, Japanese sweets, or even ordinary tonkatsu—except for the famous chain "Katsukura." In short, food that Japanese people consider distinctly Japanese or distinctly Kyoto simply did not appeal to them. Although garlic and chili are common ingredients in Filipino cooking, they dislike food that is excessively spicy, as well as dishes dominated by vinegar or salt. Instead, they happily ate grilled meat, fried chicken, shrimp, crab, oysters and other shellfish, and of course Jollibee, the country's beloved soul food. Watching them made me wonder what foreign visitors to Kyoto actually eat. Even dishes proudly served by five-star restaurants may often remain almost untouched by overseas guests. As a result, dinner at our house became Filipino cuisine every night. Being omnivorous myself, I could happily live like that for six months. On top of that, they enthusiastically took over the housekeeping. I simply watched from the sidelines. ... Fast food is one of their greatest pleasures. After bringing home McDonald's, the games immediately began. The loser of rock-paper-scissors had to run to a distant point and back, while the winners enjoyed chicken nuggets during the race. Ridiculously simple, yet everyone laughed. The Philippines is full of party games like these. Whenever people gather, the games begin naturally. ... On Sunday, we planned to attend Mass and look for the local Filipino community. But attending church meant everyone had to shower, change into their best clothes, and spend quite some time getting ready. "If it's that much work, let's skip it today." Oops. Instead, we went to Kyoto Yodobashi to browse smartphones. Afterward, we settled into their favorite open-air terrace for dinner. Even though Japanese cuisine rarely suited their taste, they genuinely enjoyed pub food such as chicken dishes and kebabs. Well, those are perfect companions for beer anyway. Then it was off to karaoke. To my surprise, the song selection included an impressive number of Tagalog songs. Japan's karaoke industry is truly remarkable. ... When the rain briefly stopped, we bought boxed lunches and ate beside the Kamo River. On the way home, we picked up the cake they had requested. The flavor wasn't really to their liking, so most of it remained in the refrigerator. Naturally, it became my afternoon snack. ... Since they had come all the way to Kyoto, we decided that some sightseeing was in order. On the final day, we joined a city sightseeing bus with a multilingual guide. It proved to be the right decision. The tour efficiently covered Fushimi Inari, Arashiyama, Ginkaku-ji, and Kiyomizu-dera despite the limited time. However, upon reaching Arashiyama, someone complained, "My feet hurt." Our walk around Togetsukyo Bridge, shrouded in passing rain showers, was abandoned. That's perfectly fine. Tenryu-ji is at its best during the autumn leaves anyway. Overall, they showed little interest in Japanese history or traditional culture. Kyoto's famous landmarks were not viewed as cultural treasures but simply as backdrops for photographs. Whether it was Fushimi Inari or Kiyomizu-dera, the point was not the history itself, but having a picture that said, "I was in Kyoto." ... Every country possesses its own history, culture, and cuisine. There is no particular reason why international visitors should be deeply fascinated specifically by Kyoto's history or its traditional food. For many people, Kyoto cuisine and obanzai simply do not suit their palate. Walking around temples can be exhausting, and their quiet atmosphere may even feel rather dull. So why do they come to Kyoto? Certainly, some visitors are genuinely attracted by its history and culture. But the weaker yen, the city's safety, its family-friendly environment, convenient shopping, and familiar food options are often even stronger motivations. Compared with Kyoto's regional particular solutions—its unique history, culture, and cuisine—it is the universal general solutions shared by cities around the world, such as safety, shopping, and fast food, that attract a far larger share of international visitors.