Kyoto - Day 1 - Golden Pavilion

On our first day in Kyoto, we woke up early to get a head start out of the day. Still, the plan didn't quite work out anyway, as we had to take a local city bus to get to the first stop of the day. The city buses in Kyoto, or Japan in general, are VERY crowded, and it took almost an hour to go there with lots of stops on the way. 


Kinkakuji (金閣寺, Golden Pavilion) is a Zen temple in northern Kyoto whose top two floors are completely covered in gold leaf.

Formally known as Rokuonji, the temple was the retirement villa of the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, and according to his will it became a Zen temple of the Rinzai sect after his death in 1408. Kinkakuji was the inspiration for the similarly named Ginkakuji (Silver Pavilion), built by Yoshimitsu's grandson, Ashikaga Yoshimasa, on the other side of the city a few decades later.

The Kinkakjui is one of the most visited buildings in Japan, so there is always a crowd and to visit it during the Japanese vacation time, American school's Spring Break and the general tourists visiting Kyoto during Cherry Blossom Season - there was a crowd alright. On the buses, trains, streets, and all the sights..Still, except the buses, it was manageable, and we got to see what we wanted without having to wait in line too long.

Recognized by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage, 

Kinkaku-ji is one of the historical buildings most representative of Japan.

After walking through the temple grounds for awhile, we finally saw it - the Golden Pavilion. It was a clear day, but the pond was not too clear, maybe due to all the rain we had previous days. Therefore the reflections of the temple in the water wasn't the best, but still, the gold was shimmering

Fudo Hall, a small temple hall which houses a statue of Fudo Myoo, one of the Five Wisdom Kings and protector of Buddihism.

Watch and learn...

Finally her turn to ring the bell.

Ben did it so fast I didn't get a picture of it.

Ema - wooden plaques that are sold at the shrine.

"Ema (絵馬 picture-horse) are small wooden plaques on which Shinto worshipers write their prayers or wishes. The Ema are then left hanging up at the shrine, where the Kami (spirits or gods) are believed to receive them. They bear various pictures, often of animals or other Shinto imagery, and many have the word gan'i (願意), meaning "wish", written along the side. In ancient times people would donate horses to the shrines for good favor; over time this was transferred to a wooden plaque with a picture of a horse, and later still to the various wooden plaques sold today for the same purpose.

Ema are sold for various wishes. Common reasons for buying a plaque are for success in work or on exams, marital bliss, to have children, and health. Some shrines specialize in certain types of these plaques, and the larger shrines may offer more than one. Sales of Ema help support the shrine financially."

Ofcourse we tried our luck to see what our fortune would be like. We all received "Excellent"..

After our visit to the Golden Pavilion, we took a break to have a snack and cold drinks before walking down to a small train station, to visit our second stop of the day.