Kyoto is not lacking for serene inns within the city’s historical neighborhoods, in sum emphasizing the city’s eminence as a crafts, arts, and design capital. Walking around Kyoto’s historic Shinmonzen Street in the Gion arts district, it’s easy to believe time passes with a more leisurely gait here along the area’s beautifully preserved buildings. The Shinmonzen distinguishes itself from the numerous traditionally designed machiya townhouses and ryokan inns lining the gentle flow of the Shirakawa River. Not openly so, as the hotel’s front facing architecture of dark latticed timber and kawara tile roofline presents a distinguished weathered simplicity. But inside…