It's unfortunate that I can't join one of Johnnie Hillwalker's world famous walks. His tours -- Walk in Kyoto, Talk in English -- are scheduled come rain or shine on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays (excluding national holidays). I am in the city for the weekend.
Still, we meet where his walk commences, in the sunken garden in front of Kyoto Station. There's no reservation system; you just turn up at 10 a.m. and after 15 minutes, Johnnie heads for his first point of call, Higashi-Honganji, where he puts Japanese religion into perspective. We, however, find privacy in Kyoto Tower. This proves exciting; he hasn't been to the top for "heaven knows how many years."
Johnnie Hillwalker is Hajime Hirooka. He coined the nickname sometime in the middle of his long career as a tour guide. "Sounding similar to my Japanese name, I thought people might be able to pronounce a Western name more easily than my own."