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Teramachi Shopping Street

Teramachi Street (Teramachidori) is a historical street in Kyoto, Japan, running north–south from Kuramaguchi Street to Gojo Street, for about 4.6 km.

The street's name literally means "Temple Town", similar to English "Templeton", and reflects the large number of temples moved there during Toyotomi Hideyoshi's remodeling of Kyoto in the 16th century.

It is said that by lining up the temples, Toyotomi Hideyoshi actually wanted to protect the city from attacks coming from the east, as invaders would run into the sacred buildings first, making it hard for them to proceed with their plans and destroy the city.

During the Edo period, stores selling books, Buddhist rosaries, writing brushes and medicines began to flourish in the area; as well as the shops of paper and shamisen craftsmen, which eventually gave shape to the street of today.

Teramachi Shopping Street (Oike Street).
Nowadays the street runs on the east side of the Kyoto Imperial Palace, between Kawaramachi Street (east side) and Gokomachi Street (west side).

  • The section extending from Marutamachi Street to Nijo Street is known as Teramachikai and is lined with antique stores and galleries.
  • The section from Oike Street to Sanjo Street is a shopping arcade called Teramachi Shotengai.
  • The area extending from Sanjo Street to Shijo Street is also an arcade containing an assortment of shops and services, both traditional and modern, which receives the name of Teramachi Kyogoku Shotengai (Compasso Teramachi).
  • The section between Oike Street and Shijo Street is closed to vehicular traffic during the day and along with the shopping streets Kawaramachi and Shinkyogoku forms a pedestrian passage, which is currently a popular shopping spot in the city among young people and tourists as well.
  • The section between Shijo Street and Takatsuji Street has many electronic shops, receiving the name of "Teramachi Denkigai".

Antique bookshop.

Balinese mask on display in one of the stores.

Yata-dera Temple.
A temple nestled in a busy town.

  • The statue of Jizo Bodhisattva, which is the main object of worship, is called Daijuku Jizo, and it is said that it bears people's suffering instead.
  • The stuffed Jizo amulet hand-made by the chief priest and his wife is cute, and it is said to bring good luck such as good matchmaking, safe childbirth, and sound health, and is popular with women.

Takayama Restaurant.
One MICHELIN Star: High quality cooking, worth a stop!

  • «Inside a clean, white-themed space, chef Tadashi Takayama uses the entire dining experience as his canvas on which to paint a picture with colourful ingredients. He uses the world's top three delicacies, caviar, foie gras and truffles, to put a modern touch on carpaccio, pizza and pasta. The dishes are light and delicate, born of his own inspiration.» MICHELIN Guide’s Point Of View.
  • See more at Takayama Restaurant - Homepage.

See also

Source

Location

Location: Teramachi-dori, Kyoto, Japan