Konnichiwa Kyoto!

 

Kyoto is a beautiful city in Japan. While the rest of Japan has adopted modernity, the old ways are hanging on in Kyoto. There are said to be over 1000 Buddhist temples here. You will find masterpieces of religious architecture. I first thought that Kyoto was a tiny village where I would be able to walk everywhere, but I was quite wrong. It’s a very big city, and all the sites are very spread out. Good planning is needed to be able to visit such beautiful sites.

 

I took the bullet train to Kyoto from Tokyo. It took about two and half hours to get there. On the way I was looking forward to take pictures on mount Fuji, but the weather was so overcast, that I didn’t get a chance, unfortunately.

 

 

Arashiyama Bamboo Grove is situated at western part of Kyoto. It’s a very magical place. The visual effect of the infinite stalks of bamboo is quite different from any forest I have ever encountered.

 

When I was there I could feel this kind of presence, as if I was about to meet a dragon, or a tiger. It was a feeling I could not capture in the pictures.

Next to the end of the Bamboo Grove, I ended up in this beautiful garden. Which looked very pretty and peaceful. I was lucky that I had really nice weather here, following all the rain in Tokyo.

 

 

Kinkaku-ji  is an eye catching place to visit. It’s very popular place. It’s situated in the north west of Kyoto. It looks like the main temple rises above its reflection pond like an apparition. You almost need sunglasses to like at it. The gold around the temple is very impressive, and reflects it magnificence really well.

 

 

Ginkaku-ji is everything a Buddhist temple is meant to be. It looks over a tranquil pond, and the gardens are sublime. The sand mounds form a Zen sand garden. It is unquestionably one of the most luxurious gardens in the city.

 

 

 

Nanzen-ji temple is one of most important Zen temples of Japan. Its spacious grounds are located at the base of Kyoto’s forested Higashiyama Mountains. You first came across the  Nanzen-ji massive Sanmon entrance gate. You also will come across a large brick aqueduct that passes through the temple grounds. It’s a very impressive place to visit.

 

 

 

 

Fushimi Inari-Taisha is one of the most spectacular shrines in Japan. It is also one of the most visited shrines. As you visit the site you come across hundreds of stone foxes. The Japanese traditionally see the fox as sacred, somewhat mysterious, capable of possessing humans by the favoured point of entry – under the fingernails.

 

 

 

 

 

My trip to Japan was amazing! I learned a lot about the cultural differences, and that Japanese people are very kind and polite. I loved it all the way.