Kyoto, 1 March 2008

I’ve decided to quit being lazy and post the pictures before things get crazy.

At the entrance of Nijo Castle.
The castle was originally built in 1603, and completed in 1626.
(And Sir Stamford Raffles stepped onto Singapore’s shores in 1819?)

Ninomaru Garden, located in the castle.

Kitano Tenmagu (I think..).

This is one of my favourite pictures.
Plum blossoms. About 50% were blooming when we visited. I can imagine how pretty the place would be in April – cherry blossoms!

Kinkakuji Temple, also known as the Golden Pavilion Temple.

Another one of my favourite pictures.

Heian Shrine.
I cannot recall a single thing about its history, but based on the pictures I took, it has a really nice garden inside. Haha.
And yeah, the distorted ba zang standing in front of the shrine is yours truly – it’s proof that I have really been to Kyoto!!

Inside the shrine.

The little tree of wishes.

Another of my favourite pictures.
(At this point, the bf asked, exactly how many favourite pictures do you have?!)

The very nice garden.

Longest wooden building in Japan. Sanjusangen-do, better known as 三十三间堂.
The original temple building was constructed in 1164 but was destroyed in a fire. It was reconstructed in 1266, and survived more than 700 years! Was left intact even after the biggest earthquake in Kyoto, some time in the 90s.

The other side of the 120m-long building.
Have I mentioned that it houses 1001 statues of Buddhist dieties?

Kiyomizu temple. This temple is really high up in the mountains!
Caught the view of the entire Kyoto city, but didn’t manage to capture it with the camera.. 太高难度了~~ :(

Another part of the temple.

Top-down view.

Kyoto – parting shot.