Sunday, October 9, 2011

In and Around Kyoto

My previous post had pictures of the Heian Jingu shrine and the Ginkakuji shrine. There are TONS of shrines and temples here, one of the reasons Kyoto is famous, plus it is the old imperial capital.

We've also seen the Ryoan-ji Temple Rock Garden. The 15 rocks were placed so that you cannot see all of them at once (from ground level) unless you achieve enlightenment.
Fushimi Inari Shine.... I went by myself this morning, and lo and behold, ran into a fall festival on the grounds, so it was teeming with people. Loved the feel of the place though!
And the Moss Garden, also known as Saiho-ji. One of the most magical places I've seen! It was so serene. There are apparently 120 types of moss growing.
Today was a trip outside of Kyoto by a little more than an hour to the southeast to the IM Pei-designed Miho Museum.They literally cut away the mountain and built the museum into it, and then rebuilt the mountain. Over 90% of the complex is underground. You walk up a long path/tunnel to get to the main building. The architecture is really stunning.

 And a fabulous meal last night -- more on that later!