JAPAN: Last Day in Kyoto

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Before making our way back to Tokyo, we took the morning and afternoon of our last day in Kyoto to visit Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion) and finish some last-minute shopping. The Golden Pavilion was originally built in 1397 as a retirement home for an ostentatious Shogun. However, it was subsequently burned down twice, and finally rebuilt to its current state in 1955. The Zen Buddhist temple is a three-story building, which houses various Buddhist relics including Buddha's ashes. The top two stories of the photogenic temple are covered in pure gold leaf making it sparkle and shimmer against the backdrop of its Japanese gardens.




On our way back to the guesthouse we took our time wandering around Gion to admire the old Japanese atmosphere one last time before entering the city of neon lights. We stopped for lunch at Holly's Cafe, an obvious choice, and then said a sorrowful goodbye to the city of mystery and intrigue.




Through one of these closed windows is where we faintly saw the geisha the night before.

Look at all the wires overhead! It's strange to see the old buildings flanked in telephone lines.

There's Holly's Coffee in Korea and Holly's Cafe in Japan. I might go on a quest in every country I visit for some restaurant with my name on it.





1 comments:

LACarroll said...

Do you think they would have those shoes in my size?

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