Kyoto City has published a sightseeing map for walking around historical places from the turbulent final years of the Edo Period. The sites are all associated with Ryoma Sakamoto who is the subject of the next NHK historical drama series titled "Ryomaden," which will start in January, 2010.

The map introduces five walking courses; one is of the Kyoto Imperial Palace and the remains of the official residency for the Satsuma clan, where the peace pact for the alliance between the Satsuma and Choshu local governments against the then central government was concluded. Another includes the vicinity of Takenobu Inari Shrine in the Mibu area, where Ryoma was said to have dates with his wife, Oryo.

The curator of Ryozen Museum of History in Higashiyama Ward supervised so that people can consider that particular era as they take a walk with the map. In addition, it provides a brief introduction to the life of Ryoma and the history of the late Edo Period. The map is A-4 sized with eight pages, and 300,000 copies have been published. They will be distributed from November 2 for free at Kyoto City Tourist Information Office and other locations.