11/1/23 Weather: 73 degrees and sunny
Started off with Kiyomizu-dera temple founded in year 778
Kiyomizu-dera was founded in the early Heian period.[2] By 778, it was owned by the Buddhist Kita-Hosso sect under Enchin Shonin. He was a priest from Nara (capital of Japan from 710 to 784), who received a vision to construct the temple next to the Otowa spring.[3]
Lots of school tours here. They all look so cute!
Got my first “Go Cougs” just two hours after leaving the hotel, at a temple no less. Perhaps we should have said a prayer for the football team.
Massive complex. Just the sheer strength of the wood in these places boggles my mind. Main building “The Hondo” built in the 1600s. Wood buildings lasting 100’s of years. Wild.
About 2-3 weeks early for peak fall colors but they are starting to change.
Carrie doing the sacred waters ceremony.
Went back to our hotel for just a moment. This is where we are staying.
Fish on a stick…….
Next was Ginkaku-ji temple aka silver temple.
Literally the most beautiful garden I’ve ever seen. Now I know why Japanese own good cameras. They have a lot of beautiful things to take photos of.
The material is like a light gravel, not quite sand.
I mean, seriously, this moss? It’s like out of a movie or something.
The rocks represent something, couldn’t understand the explanation
This is the Silver Temple, we weren’t able to go inside.
Temple #3, Nanzen-ji. Biggest temple gate in Japan.
Inside the gate going up. Steep!
Many, many young girls and guys dressed in kimonos. All around Kyoto. More at temples.
Photo ops. This is below a Greek style aqua duct built in the 1800s. Still at Nanzen ji temple.
These girls were getting a picture of their backs taken so I took one from the front so they just laughed and waved.
Entrance to Kyoto National Museum
Some sort of grilled crepe pancake gilled with cheese. Sign me up.
Yasaka Shrine….shrines have the orange gates.
Carrie was fetti g ready for dinner so i walked to grab a beer (hotel bar opens at 7?!) and stumbled upon a non descript temple a block away……….just points to how many there are.
We had reservations for oden which is like boiled tofu but bailed because it didnt sound appetizing so went for steak instead. This cuisine is called yakiniku. Grill in the middle of your table and you cook your own steak. Wagyu beef, beef tongue, etc but we asked for a substitute for the intestine.
This is the entrance. Never could figure out the name. Even using google translate.
Season your own grill with a cube of fat.
Most expensive dinner we’ve had. Out the door for $85 including drinks! People say food is so expensive here. It can be, there are over 200 Michelin starred restaurants in Kyoto (by contrast Seattle has zero, 72 in New York City). But those all take reservations weeks to months in advance and apparently some are reasonably priced. I think there is a market stall in a tent somewhere in Japan who has been named with a coveted Michelin star. Just shows the quality of food here in Japan.
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