Furniture shopping district - Ebisu-gawa-dori Street

This is a street for traditional Japanese antiques and furniture, from wooden screens and period items to bamboo kimono chests. Most first- or second-time visitors to Kyoto don't know this street, and even after ten years, I didn't know anything until I met Mr. Nakano, President of the Handicraft Volunteer Guide Association Kyoto. You can rummage here for hours uncovering all sorts of treasures and even more remarkable stories behind each article. First you come across a row of shops that only sell shoji, aka Japanese doors There are doors used in antique warehouses with hexagonal metal mesh windows to keep thieves out, room dividers , cabinet door. Just touch and smell these doors, feel the wood grain and imagine from the vestiges that history has witnessed. You can add characters to any house that has one of these doors. Then there are shops that only sell ceramics and shops that sell antique household items. You can even pick up a previously beloved Ebisu character for a bargain. Ebisu in traditional folklore symbolizes good luck for workers, so it is only appropriate that you see his appearance in Ebisugawa. Then there's the "string and scissors" store, which is an odd name for a place where you rummage through anything metal related. There is also a "new and second hand" shop In the heart of Ebisugawa dori is Miyazaki Emporium, a family owned company founded in 1856 that continues the tradition of wooden furniture. beautiful Japanese style, from kimono chests to everything a Japanese bride would love to furnish her home with. There is also a workshop opposite the Emporium in the north building, where you can see the master craftsman making these kimono chests. It takes weeks for furniture to be made, sculpted, sanded and air-dried. This is truly an heirloom masterpiece for generations to enjoy. Next to Ebisugawa dori is Teramachi, or Temple Street, traditionally a street lined with shrines, but now home to antiques, bookstores, and electronics stores.