Japan Day 5: Kiyomizu-Dera, Kinkakuji and Ginkakuji

Continuing on my posts about Japan 2013 while I am still in the spirit of blogging. Maybe coz I am still on my CNY leave from work. Most people are starting work on Monday but I took one more extra day, up to Tuesday. I am still debating if I had done the right thing. Lol. Even taking leave also makes me in a dilemma T__T.

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Waking up to a beautiful morning from a good sleep at Kyoto Royal, we had our breakfast at a noodles shop. Cannot remember the name but it was a small shop with a vending machine that was supposed to take your orders. We had to select our menu which was written on the buttons, placed our money and then a ticket would come out. So, we have to hand this ticket to the person in charge who will then prepare our meals. But because we could not read the Japanese names on the buttons, the person in charge asked us to just choose from the menu and she will take down the orders for us lol.

 

My beef soup udon only 390 yen (~RM14). Nothing beats the feeling of eating a hot bowl of noodles during the cold winter.

Our first stop of the day is to Kiyomizu-Dera temple, part of UNESCO Heritage Site. I have seen pictures of this temple in many blogs and websites so I was quite excited to see it.

But first, we had to figure out how to get there. It was quite easy from the map given, we knew which buses we had to take and transfer but the flaw with the map was it didn't tell us which bus stop on which side of the road we have to go to. So, the first bus we took went in the opposite direction that we thought it will go. Although eventually we did reach our destination but it took us much longer than expected.

 

To go to Kiyomizu-Dera, we have to walk up a sloping hill. This really tested our stamina. Along the slope, we noticed a really pretty and quaint Japanese traditional house with an equally beautiful garden.

And this shop was selling all sorts of crafts with little monks theme like these statues outside the shop.

There were also a mix of traditional and modern designs for wooden fans.

Ninenzaka and Sannenzaka are the names of streets that surround Kiyomizu-Dera. These streets are filled with Japanese traditional design houses/shops that are still preserved till today. Now, they are mostly used to sell traditional food and snacks or souvenirs to the public.

Admission fee for vising the temple is 300 yen (RM10.50).

At the entrance of Kiyomizu-Dera

The amazing view from the lookout balcony

A pagoda structure near the entrance

A small road off the main path leads to a place where you can visit the love stone.

You can also purchase amulets for love here

 

There are two love stones here. According to the story, you have to walk from one love stone to the other one without opening your eyes. If you can touch the love stone on the other end, then you will meet your other half.

We tried but we only managed to touch it by listening to directions from friends. So, our conclusion is that we need friends to find our other halves lol wtf.

This is the best view ever. The temple was built without the use of any nails. I am sure the view will be even better during summer or autumn but I am still so happy that we are here:)

This is the waterfall where you can drink its water for health, longetivity and success.

After exiting Kiyomizu-Dera, we are greeted with more beautiful Japanese garden sceneries.

Our next stop is to one of the most famous attractions at Kyoto, which is Kinkaku-ji or better known as the Golden Pavilion. Admission fee to visit is 400 yen (RM14). 

When I saw the golden pavilion and its reflection in the pond, I was blown away by how breathtakingly beautiful this view was.

The golden pavilion under the sunlight. We had a short walk around the pavilion and my friend even joked about how she should have brought a knife to shave all the gold off lol wtf.

Afterwards, we had to rushed to our next destination, which is Ginkaku-ji or Silver Pavilion because it closes around 5pm.

The admission fee is 500 yen (RM17.50) and the tickets come in the form of these amulet papers.

Ginkaku-ji is not really made from silver lol. I didn't know that and thought it was the wrong pavilion. Only afterwards when I google-ed I found out that it was a Zen temple modelled after Kinkaku-ji and Silver Pavilion was merely a nickname to differentiate it from Golden Pavilion.

There are many places to visit within the temple grounds but we didn't get a chance because when we arrived there, it was almost closing time. But we are still glad we managed to make it in time.

After exiting Ginkaku-ji, we walked around the nearby shops and stalls. Since I am such a huge fan of matcha ice-cream, I cannot resist buying one. Although after taking a few bites, I started to regret because it was so cold. It was almost sunset and the weather was much cooler. 

And guess who we stumbled upon! A geisha! Not sure if she is a real one or not but this sure compensated last night. We kept looking at her, wondering if she was a geisha or not until the shopkeeper asked us to go take photos with her lol.

Beef rice = 700 yen

We were so hungry after all the running and rushing that the moment we saw this restaurant nearby Ginkaku-ji, we decided to go in. Unfortunately, it was closing time but the lady was so nice she allowed us to order. Right after we ordered, she turned the "Open" sign to "Closed". She said we are lucky last customers lol.

Clara's soup ramen

Saw this trio goofing around had to capture this pic

After that, we returned to Kyoto Station again for last minute shopping since we are leaving for Tokyo the next day.

Mei Chen and Beng Beng

It was also a special day as it was MC's birthday. We didn't have any luck finding cakes in Kyoto Station to surprise her. Luckily, a cafe was still opened so we got a piece of chocolate cake. And we got another pastry from the bakery. Hopefully she liked our small surprise and also happy belated birthday to my ex-roomie BB!

Okay, end of this post. OOTD for Day 5:

leather jacket: Japan; purple sweater: Mom's; lace blouse (worn inside): Sixth Sense (online); jeans: Unbranded; bag: Prada; shoes: Hush Puppies

Bought this jacket the night before from one of the shops at Kyoto Underground Mall. Really love this jacket, it has a lace hoodie but not visible from the pic. BB also bought the same one hehe. But it doesn't really keep you warm still had to bring my winter jacket out with me.

Recently I have developed a love for all things with spikes and studs. Bought this new spikes necklace to add to my spikes collection. I also have a spikes bracelet, spikes headband and spikes ring C: I wanted to get a spikes cap soon but still in broke mode.