The Golden Pavilion

We checked out of our lovely hotel this morning. But first, we shared our last meal with Jack and split a plate of banana pancakes from the same place we went a few days ago. Then we packed up and said our goodbyes. :( We miss you already, Jack!

Matt and I took the train to Kyoto where we're staying in an airbnb the next two nights. Our host was kind enough to meet us at the train station and walk us to our apartment. It's a very compact place but it has all the necessities. We quickly dropped off our stuff and then walked to the Kyoto train station to go to The Golden Pavilion.

The Golden Pavilion's real name is Rokuon-ji Temple, but is commonly called Kinkaku-ji Temple (or the temple of the Golden Pavilion). It is a Zen Buddhist temple and it used to be a villa owned by a statesman but was converted into a temple when he died according to his will. The beautiful gardens and buildings were said to represent the Pure Land of Buddha and it reached it's height of glory as trade with China prospered during the Muromachi period. It was registered as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1994. It looks like how it sounds: a temple made of gold. It's gold foil on lacquer which covers the upper two levels and it has a Phoenix which sits on top of the roof. It's also in a beautiful setting, with the surrounding pond and gardens and forest. I was disappointed that we weren't able to actually go in the temple, we were only able to walk around the grounds.

After we left the temple we were walking back towards the train station when we stumbled on Sakura Paradise Park completely full of cherry blossoms which were perfectly bloomed. They are just barely starting to have their petals fall off so it's the perfect time to see them. So we took a detour and strolled through the gardens. There were street vendors and lots of tables and mats that you could rent and hang out beneath the cherry blossoms. The blossoms were gorgeous; I just wish pictures could do it justice but I did my best.

When we got off the train we found a grocery store where we attempted to find food for dinner for once, since we do have a mini kitchenette. Our first thought was tacos, but we couldn't find any tortillas or taco seasoning, and we could barely find any ground beef (most of it was ground with pork). We walked around trying to come up with other options but we didn't really know what anything was or how any of it should be prepared so it was a challenge. We ended up getting a couple of things of ramen noodles (similar to ramen noodles back home) and Matt got a bento box, which is a big thing here. It's a pre-made meal in a box and you can just pop it in the microwave. It's interesting how many pre-made meals they have in convenience stores and even grocery stores, and it seems like there is less un-cooked options to actually make your own food. I'm sure it's out there but I just haven't seen much of it.

I think we're planning to check out several more temples tomorrow!