1000 Places to See Before You Die 21 - Kyoto’s Old Town, Japan
A trip to Japan is all about cherry blossoms, geisha spotting and zen gardens and you can get almost all of that in Kyoto. We spent a few days in the city and used it as a head quarters for day trips around the area too.
Kyoto abounds in temples and old houses and if you want to shop and experience the culture, Kyoto is the place to be, as it is the centre for old crafts like woodcarvings, silks, lacquer and paper goods.
Kyoto used to be the home of the imperial court and this of course meant that the city blossomed and was the centre of religion, music, theatre and dance, as well. The city experienced its heyday in the Muromachi period in 1334-1568 AD. Entire neighborhoods became dedicated to a single craft, the craftsmen delivering goods to the court and the feudal lords. The workshops of their descendants can still be found today in the back alleys of the old part of town.
Supposedly Kyoto is the home of 20% of all of Japan’s national treasures, such as more than 1700 Buddhist temples and 300 Shinto shrines. This is mainly due to the fact that the city was spared the Allied bombings during World War II. Wandering around you are almost certain to happen upon a temple or shrine of some sort, but if you want to be a bit more specific about it, there are a few sights not to be missed.
Among these are the Silver Pavilion (Ginkaku-ji). Ironically we missed it…It is a two story high building with a pagoda roof, surrounded by gardens created by an architect, focusing on meditative walks. The Silver Pavilion was inspired by the Golden Pavilion (Kinkaku-ji), which we did see.
This is a Zen Buddhist temple dating back to the 1300s. It was destroyed in an arson fire in 1950, set by a man who turned out to be suffering from mental illness. Today you can see a copy of the three story high building in the original spot amidst moss covered gardens. The two top stories are covered in gold leaf, hence the name, which is actually a nick name of sorts, as the temple is officially called Rokuon-ji, meaning Deer Garden Temple.
The gold leaf was meant to mitigate and purify negative feelings and thoughts, and it is a beautiful sight to see reflected in the pond on a sunny day. This temple is one of 17 locations throughout Kyoto making up “The Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto”, which in turn are World Heritage Sites.
This is a Zen Buddhist temple dating back to the 1300s. It was destroyed in an arson fire in 1950, set by a man who turned out to be suffering from mental illness. Today you can see a copy of the three story high building in the original spot amidst moss covered gardens. The two top stories are covered in gold leaf, hence the name, which is actually a nick name of sorts, as the temple is officially called Rokuon-ji, meaning Deer Garden Temple.
The gold leaf was meant to mitigate and purify negative feelings and thoughts, and it is a beautiful sight to see reflected in the pond on a sunny day. This temple is one of 17 locations throughout Kyoto making up “The Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto”, which in turn are World Heritage Sites.
30 minutes walk from the Golden Pavilion you get to Ryoan-ji Temple (The Temple of the Dragon at Peace) with its little garden of nicely raked pebbles and 15 large stones. This garden has become the symbol of zen and is considered one of the finest surviving examples of kare-sansui (dry landscape).
This is a specific type pf Japanese Zen temple garden consisting of rock formations arranged in a bed of pebbles which are raked into linear patterns to facilitate meditation. The garden is certainly the main attraction in this temple, but the garden you see today actually stems from the end of the 18th century. Before this time a different layout of the garden with only 9 stones was described in the early 1680s. The origins of the temple date back to the 11th century when a temple was first built on the site. The Ryoan-ji temple was first built in the 15th century and in quick succession it was destroyed and rebuilt, all in the 15th century. A number of emperors are buried here, in what would originally have been quite humble tombs. The present state of the tombs stems from a 19th century restoration of imperial tombs ordered by emperor Meiji. This temple and its garden is also one of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Tokyo and a World Heritage Site.
This is a specific type pf Japanese Zen temple garden consisting of rock formations arranged in a bed of pebbles which are raked into linear patterns to facilitate meditation. The garden is certainly the main attraction in this temple, but the garden you see today actually stems from the end of the 18th century. Before this time a different layout of the garden with only 9 stones was described in the early 1680s. The origins of the temple date back to the 11th century when a temple was first built on the site. The Ryoan-ji temple was first built in the 15th century and in quick succession it was destroyed and rebuilt, all in the 15th century. A number of emperors are buried here, in what would originally have been quite humble tombs. The present state of the tombs stems from a 19th century restoration of imperial tombs ordered by emperor Meiji. This temple and its garden is also one of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Tokyo and a World Heritage Site.
The Kiyomizu-dera temple is built on a wooded slope and provides a breathtaking view of Kyoto from its wooden veranda. This is a Buddhist temple founded in 778 AD, in the Heian period, and the present buildings date back to 1633.
Amazingly, this entire temple was built without the use of nails. The name stems from the waterfall in the complex, kiyomizu meaning clear or pure water. In the Edo period (1603 to 1868) a tradition said that if you survived a jump from the veranda (13 meters) you would be granted a wish. 234 jumps were recorded and about 85% of jumpers survived. This jumping is now illegal.
Instead you can drink water from the Otowa waterfall beneath the main hall, which is believed to have the same power to grant wishes as the jumping. In the complex there are several other shrines, including the Jishu shrine, dedicated to Okuninushi, god of love and “good matches”. In this shrine there are two “love stones” placed 18 m apart. If you can walk from one to the other with your eyes closed you will find true love. In 2007 Kiyomizu-dera was one of 21 finalists in the running for the New Seven Wonders of the World. In the end it was not picked, but it remains one of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto and a Unesco World Heritage Site.
Amazingly, this entire temple was built without the use of nails. The name stems from the waterfall in the complex, kiyomizu meaning clear or pure water. In the Edo period (1603 to 1868) a tradition said that if you survived a jump from the veranda (13 meters) you would be granted a wish. 234 jumps were recorded and about 85% of jumpers survived. This jumping is now illegal.
Instead you can drink water from the Otowa waterfall beneath the main hall, which is believed to have the same power to grant wishes as the jumping. In the complex there are several other shrines, including the Jishu shrine, dedicated to Okuninushi, god of love and “good matches”. In this shrine there are two “love stones” placed 18 m apart. If you can walk from one to the other with your eyes closed you will find true love. In 2007 Kiyomizu-dera was one of 21 finalists in the running for the New Seven Wonders of the World. In the end it was not picked, but it remains one of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto and a Unesco World Heritage Site.
If you get tired of visiting temples, you can always just take or wander around the historic neighborhoods, for example the Gion neighborhood in front of the Yasaka Shrine, which is one of the primary places for geisha spotting in town. This is one of the most exclusive and well-known geisha districts in Japan, but the women do not actually call themselves geisha. Instead they refer to themselves as geiko. Geisha means artist or “person of the arts” while geiko means “a child of the arts” or “a woman of art”.
You can also pay a visit to the Nijo Castle, another of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto and a World Heritage Site to boot. The castle dates back to 1626 AD, and was built as a residence for the Tokugawa Shoguns. In 1788 the inner part of the castle was destroyed by a fire that ravaged the city and it remained empty until 1893, when a prince built his residence there instead of at the Kyoto Imperial Palace.
Kyoto is always worth a visit, but if you can plan your trip to coincide with one of the yearly festivals, it will be well worth the effort. On the 22nd of October Kyoto’s inhabitants participate in the Jidai festival. This is a newer festival, started just over 100 years ago. The participants parade from the palace through town dressed in costumes from the dynasties ruling Japan from the 700s to the 1800s.
The Aoi festival stems from the 500s and is probably one of the world’s oldest surviving festivals. It takes place on the 15th of May and participants don the clothes of the imperial court and the procession heads for the Shimogamo temple to pray for the city’s wealth.
The popular Gion festival takes place on the 16th and 17th of July and here you can see 31 massive floats in a procession meant to draw protection for the city. It was held for the first time in the 800s when the city was struck by a plague.
As you can tell there are tons of things to do and see in Kyoto, and this is just the tip of the iceberg. If you get tired of the city itself there are a number of day trips you can take out of the city. We went to Nara, famous for its deer, and this is yet another World Heritage Site. I did a post about it a little while ago which you can read here. We also went to Himeji to look at the castle there, which is regarded as the finest surviving example of prototypical Japanese castle architecture. This is yet another World Heritage Site, the first of its kind in the country, listed in 1993.
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| Himeji Castle |
I would definitely recommend Kyoto as a destination in itself, as there are so many things to do and see in the city itself and the surrounding area that you could easily spend a good week or more based here.
All facts are from “1000 Places to See Before You Die” by Patricia Schultz and Wikipedia.
Golden Pavilion: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinkaku-ji
Ryoan-ji Temple: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryōan-ji
Kiyomizu-dera Temple: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiyomizu-dera
Nijo Castle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nijō_Castle
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