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Nara YMCA English Goodwill Guides

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日本
Soraku-gun, Kyoto
Nara YMCA English Goodwill Guides

外国人観光客を英語で同行ガイドしています。主に奈良公園、奈良町、西? 歴史、文化、世界遺産の社寺や
庭園をご紹介し、奈良の良さを
知ってもらい、観光客に喜んで
いただけるよう、一年365日ボラ
ンティアとして活動しています。

28/05/2026

On May 25th Tea field experience was held under the guidance by Nishijima san , a member of ＥＧＧ Nara YMCA in Wazuka cho and
18 EGG members attended the event.
In Wazuka cho the tea plantation blanket the rolling hills and the middle of the mountains. Tea trees cover the hills in rows and tiers with black cloths to make shade and protect tea leaves from sunburn.
We strolled around the breathtaking vies of tea field and enjoyed tea leaves picking experience.
Then we visited Nishijima san’s home and he gave the lecture how to serve delicious tea. At first we brewed a sip of tea with very low temperature of hot water , next with average temperature of hot water and at last we poured hot water in to full of teapot. We were really surprised that these three temperatures of hot water brewed three different tastes!

It’s a wonderful experience for us.

Thank you for Nishijima san, your wonderful guidance and lecture made our days very enjoyable. And at home I cooked Templa with new tea leaves which I picked . They were fresh, soft and tasty 😊 FN

28/05/2026

Nara YMCA EGG is pleased to announce that several FREE virtual (online) tours of Nara are available
now by using Zoom application. The tour date will be posted on our Social Media (Instagram, Facebook,
X) and website every month. You can make the reservation of your favorite tour through our website.
Our 55-year experience as the volunteer guide for foreign tourists in Nara will make your virtual trip to
Nara more enjoyable and rewarding. You can enjoy our tour from your home anywhere in the world.
We look forward to meeting you online soon !!

20/05/2026

On May 19, I showed a lovely and refreshing Belgian couple around Nara. This is their first time to Japan. During their 3-week stay in Japan, they planned to visit Osaka, Koyasan, Kii-Katsuura, Nara, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Tokyo.

We started our tour at 2:00 p.m. and walked around Nara Park area for about 3 hours visiting Kohfuku-ji Tem, the rooftop observatory of Nara Prefectural Government Office, Nara Park Bus Terminal (the booth for Nara deer), Yoshikien Garden, Himuro Shrine, Okumura Commemorative Museum, Todai-ji Temple ( Nandaimon Gate, Great Buddha Hall and Nigatsudo Hall) and Kasugano-enchi Field.

Thanks to beautiful weather, we were able to enjoy a great view of Nara Park from the rooftop observatory. They were amazed by the imposing appearance of Great Buddha Hall and Nandaimon Gate together with many huge Buddhist statues inside them. Many school students visiting Todah-ji Temple made them surprised as well. It was fun for them to experience earthquake in Okumura Commemorative Museum. Collecting stamps made their tour more interesting. Above all, they were delighted to feed the deer although it was a bit scary experience.

They said that they found Japan amazing because of kindness of people, cleanliness of towns, efficient and comfortable public transportation system and excellent food.

I hope they enjoyed Nara and coud bring lots of wonderful memories of Japan back to Belgium.

AK

15/05/2026

On May 14, I happened to meet a cheerful Canadian family at the JR Nara Station Tourist Information Booth and then showed them around Nara.

They were in the middle of their one-month vacation traveling Japan, Hong Kong and Philippine. This is their first time to Japan. We visited Kohfuku-ji Temple, the rooftop observatory of Nara Prefectural Government Office, Nandaimon Gate, Great Buddha Hall and Kasugano-enchi Field.

They were surprised to see so many deer in Nara Park and were delighted to see many deer bowing to people. Feeding the deer was an exciting experience for them. They seemed to be very impressed by the imposing Great Buddha Hall and Nandaimon Gate.

I would like to thank them for sharing such a wonderful time with me in Nara.

I hope they had fun in Nara. I also hope they could enjoy the rest of their stay in Japan.

AK

30/04/2026

On April 29, I had a wonderful time with a lovely Italian family(father, mother and 3-year-old daughter). Their daughter was so cute, cheerful and energetic. She was curious about everything and never got bored running during the tour. Her every gesture was so cute and always made me smile.

I showed them around Nara Park area such as Ukigumo-enchi and Kasugano-enchi Fields, Nandaimon Gate, Great Buddha Hall (Daibutsuden), Yoshikien Garden, the rooftop observatory of Nara Prefectural Government Office and Kohfuku-ji Temple. I explained Buddhism and Shinto together with several Japanese curtoms related to these religions. In addition, I gave them a summary sheet of Buddhism and Shinto to foster their understanding about the differences between these two religions.

Surprisingly, they are both Japanese sake sommeliers and they also wanted to try unpasteurized Japanese sake, if possible，So. I took them to a Japanese sake restaurant (izakaya) after showing around Nara Park for about 3 and half hours. We spent more than ２　hours at the iyakaya restaurant trying to taste various Japanese sake brewed in Nara prefecture. I was very amazed by their deep knowledge about Japanese sake. Actually, in my 8-year career as a volunteer guide, this is my first time to meet a foreign tourist who is so well-versed in Japanese sake.

I hope they could enjoy Nara and Japanese sake. I also wish them every happiness in their future.

AK

30/04/2026

Luckily, I was able to meet an Australian tourist group of four people at JR Nara Station on April 28 and showed them around Nara. They were enjoying their 3-week trip to Japan and had already been to Tokyo, Lake Kawaguchi, Takayama, Shirakawago and Gujo Hachiman.

They requestedme to visit Great Buddha Hall and to feed the Nara deer. According to their request, we took a bus to Todai-ji Temple. First, I took them to Ukigumo-enchi Field and explained the history of Nara and Nara deer. They also enjoyed feeding the deer there.

Then, passing through Kasugano-enchi Field, we visited Nandaimon Gate. In front of the gate, I explained Buddhism and Buddhist deities before showing them around two huge deva king statues inside the gate.

Next, I took them to Great Buddha Hall where they were eager to visit. They were amazed by the imposing temple building and Great Buddha Statue. They worshiped the Great Buddha diligently and offered incense and candle to the Buddha as well. It seemed to me that they greeted and honored the Great Buddha wholeheartedly.

After visiting Todah-ji Temple, we took a bus back to JR Nara Station since they wanted to go to Kyoto without visiting any other places in Nara.

I hope that I was able to offer them what they really expected in Nara.

AK

26/04/2026

On April 25, I happened to meet a wonderful Australian couple at JR Nara Station and showed them around Nara. During their 6-week vacation, they visited Taiwan first and then came to Japan.

They had already been to Osaka, Hiroshima, Miyajima and Kyoto. They planned a day visit to Nara while they stay in Kyoto. After Kyoto, they are going to visit Takayama, Kanazawa and Tokyo before returning to Australia.

First of all, they were excited to see Nara deer bowing to people. They were amazed by the unique structure of pagoda and were overwhelmed by the imposing Great Buddha Hall and Great Buddha Statue. Visiting a traditional Japanese garden, "Yoshikien Garden", made them relaxed and they were curious about the anti-seismic device they saw at Okumura Commemorative Museum. They were also impressed by a magnificent view of npara Park from the rooftop observatory of Nara Prefectural Government Office.

They said that they really enjoyed travelingJapan because of kindness of Japanese people, cleanliness of Japanese town, easy access to many and clean public bathrooms and variety of delicious Japanese dishes.

I hope they will find their trip to Japan enjoyable, informative and rewarding.

AK

19/04/2026

On April 17, I had lovely guests in Nara. They were a couple from the Netherlands. The day we met was the second last day of their 2-week trip to Japan. During the trip, they stayed in Nikko for 4 nights. They said that they were very impressed by the historical value and the natural beauty of Nikko.

They were cheerful and energetic. So, I was able to show them around all major sightseeing spots in Nara Park area within 5 hours on foot.

This is their first time to Japan and they found Japan fascinating because of the following reasons；
First, Japanese culture is quite different from the one of the Netherlands. Second, the historical value and natural beauty can be found even in or near the big cities.

They told me that nothing was different from their expectations during their stay in Japan since they had learned a lot about Japan prior to their visit to Japan.

I hope their trip to Japan will be a memorable one.

AK

12/04/2026

On April 11, three tourists who happened to drop by at Kintetsu Nara Station Tourist Information Center asked for a free guide while I was trying to find a guest at JR Nara Station. So, I was called to show them aroud Nara.

They are from Denmark and Brazil. This is their first time to Japan. During their 3-week trip to Japan, they visited Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka and Kyoto. They came to Nara as a day trip from Kyoto. After Kyoto, they are going back to Tokyo and will leave for their own countries.

We visited Kohfuku-ji Temple, Yoshikien Garden, Himuro Shrine, Okumura Commemorative Museum, Nandaimon Gate and Great Buddha Hall (Daibutsuden). In addition, they enjoyed a panoramic view of Nara Park from the rooftop observatory of Nara Prefectural Government Office. They were relievd by the tranquil setting of Yoshikien Garden and were amazed by the imposing Great Buddha Statue and Great Buddha Hall.

They said to me that they found Japanese people very well organized. They also told me that they were very surprised to see so many trains running in the city. Since they were eager to eat "TONKATSU (Pork Cutldt)" according to the recommendation of a certain guidebook, I took them to a restaurant that is popular for pork cutlet at the end of the tour, which seemed to fulfill their wish as well.

AK

04/04/2026

On April 3, I showed a cheerful Mexican family around Nara. Their daughter had been eager to come to Nara to see cherry blossoms and Nara deer at the same time.

On a beautiful spring day, numerous cherry blossoms in Kasugano-enchi Field were in full bloom and the deer were busy eating cherry blossom petals.

They were so excited to see Nara deer and beautiful cherry blossoms in full bloom. They took so many photos of Nara deer and various cherry blossoms during the tour. After the tour, they were going to go to Yoshino to stay overnight there.

I hope they can bring lots of wonderful memories of Japan back to Mexico.

04/04/2026

On April 2, I had a pleasant time in Nara with a lovely German lady. She had been enjoying her first visit to Japan while walking Kumano Kodo and staying overnight at Koyasan, etc.

It seemed that she tried to challenge as many new things as possible during her 3-week stay in Japan and it looked like she had been enjoying her challenges. She was also planning to ride a bike on Shimanami Kaido from Onomichi to Imabari over the Inland Sea.

She felt that traditional old things and new modern things have coexisted beautifully in harmony in Japan, which made her amazed so much. Luckily, she was also able to enjoy beautiful cherry blossoms in full bloom in Nara Park and began to understand why Japanese people love cherry blossoms so much.

I hope her trip to Japan will open up a new horizon for her.

AK

住所

Soraku-gun, Kyoto