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Published: March 8th 2009
Kiyomizu Temple
Kiyomizu Temple, KyotoHere's some detailed information about the places we visited in Kyoto.
We visited the UNESCO World Heritage site Kiyomizu Temple in eastern Kyoto. The temple dates back to 798 and its present buildings were constructed in 1633. The temple is impressive! There is a veranda supported by tall pillars and it is built by the hillside. The view of the city is breathtaking. Hiroko told us there is a popular expression "to jump off the stage at Kiyomizu". We can now surely understand what it means!
The next day we visited Kinkakuji Temple, also known as Golden Pavilion. It was magnificent. The pavilion is covered in gold leaf and in sun shine it literally shines! The Golden Pavilion is a World Heritage site and is surrounded by beautiful gardens.
We also spend some hours in Toei Movie Land! What an experience! The whole place is a huge movie stage. We learned about ninjas and samurais and how ninjas use their sword. Also the place gave us an opporturnity to see how Japanese movies are made. It was a great fairground! The movie land is close to Uzumasa station and Koryuji Temple.
The wooden Togetsu-kyo Bridge in Western
Golden Pavilion
Golden Pavilion Kyoto's Arashiyama district offered us beautiful view over Katsura River. The bridge has been there for over four hundred years! For shoppers, there are several small stores by the roads near the bridge.
On Monday we visited Kyoto Nijo Castle. The castle and the gardens surrounding it are beautiful! There is a possibility to get a free guided tour in English and we joined the guided tour. Nijo castle dates back to 1600's and is a beautiful and historic place to visit. We recommend this place!
In order to visit the imperial grounds you must apply for a permit. We applied for visitor permits before our trip using an online application and I must say it is a very convenient way to do it. The online application can be found from here: http://sankan.kunaicho.go.jp/order/index_EN.html. We decided to schedule the visit for Monday afternoon. The Imperial Palace was gorgeous and so were the gardens too! The grounds around the palace are magnificent.
Before leaving from Kyoto, we went to Gyon Corner to "experience all about traditional Kyoto". Gion Corner is a popular night spot and tourists can experience here an overview of Japanese traditional arts and entertainment in a
Toei Movie Land
Toei Movie Land, Ninja fighters single setting: Chado (tea ceremony), Koto (japanese harp), Kado (flower arrangement), Gagaku (court music kyomai), Kyogen (comic play), Kyomai (Kyoto style dance) and Bunraiku (puppet play). This show is at Yasaka Hall in Gion. It was fun to watch the show! If you wish, you can take part in tea ceremony because they need volunteers for it!
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