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Located at the northern end of the broad and fertile Kansai plain, Kyoto was the capital of Japan for over a thousand years, and as a consequence has an unusual abundance of temples, shrines, gardens and other points of historic and cultural interest. With a present population over 1.5 million, it remains one of the largest cities in Japan. This page covers a few of the many sights located in Kyoto's eastern hills; for other Kyoto pictures, click here.
My nephew and sometime traveling companion Steve was visiting Kyoto from his residence in Tokyo at the time of my visit. |
The Silver Pavilion (Ginkaku-ji) was originally part of a much larger complex built in the 15C for the inept Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa as a villa. It became a Zen temple in 1490. |
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| An extensive necropolis (above) lies just outside the Kyomizu-dera temple complex in the southeast part of Kyoto. | |
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| Three views (above, right) of the Kyomizu-dera temple complex, one of the most visited in Kyoto. First built in 778, most of the buildings today date from 1633. | 
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A common sight around the New Year holiday are women of all ages in their beautiful kimonos. |
Another view of the main pagoda at Kyomizu-dera looking toward Kyoto city. |
A view of the main street leading up the hill to Kyomizu-dera. |
Steve gets his bearings on Ninen-zaka (Two-Year Slope), a characteristic old lane in Kyoto's eastern hills. |
This elegant small pagoda lies in a side lane just off the Ninen-zaka. |
The Ryozen-kwanon commemorates Japan's war dead, and was unveiled in 1955. It has a height of just over 24m. |
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| Two views (above) of the Heian-jingu shrine, completed in 1895 to commemorate the 1100th anniversary of Kyoto's foundation. | |
Steve writes his wish and ties it to a rack with many others at Heian-jingu. |
Map of the Kansai region courtesy of Kyoto University. |
Japan map courtesy of Mapquest. |
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