Page 45 - Koi Net - On-Line Koi Magazine - Issue 30

historical sites and gardens – it’s certainly easy to lose
all track of time! But like most of Japan’s cities, Kyoto
has its modern side too, which is most evident in
GINKAKUJI central Kyoto.

IS A LOVELY As we have said there is loads to see in Kyoto, so here
is a selection of some of the sites and places we have
ZEN TEMPLE visited, which we hope will help give you an insight into
what Kyoto has to offer…
SET IN
Ginkakuji (Silver Pavilion)
BEAUTIFUL
Ginkakuji is a lovely Zen temple with beautiful grounds
GROUNDS and is located along the Higashiyama mountains in
eastern Kyoto. The temple can be reached by bus
direct from Kyoto station which takes about 40 minutes.
Also, taking about 35 minutes Ginkakuji can be reached
by walking from Nanzenji Temple via the Philosopher’s
Path. When we visited, we had decided to make
Ginkakuji our first stop of the day, and so in the morning
we took the bus from Kyoto Station to the temple.
Ginkakuji was built in 1482 by a shogun Ashikaga
The paths flowed through
the Ginkakuji Gardens with Yoshimasa as his retirement villa and was modelled
its impressive moss garden after his grandfather’s villa, Kinkakuji. His villa in 1490
and ponds with an array of was converted into a Zen temple after his death, of
shrubs and trees.
which today Ginkakuji consists of several temple
buildings including the Silver Pavilion.
After taking the bus Ginkakuji is only a short walk from
the bus stop, and after paying the very reasonable
Upon entering the grounds,
we faced the meticulously 500 yen (£3.50) entry fee, as soon as we walked into the
raked dry sand known as grounds there were fantastically meticulously raked dry
the ‘Sea of Silver Sand’.
sand known as the ‘Sea of Silver Sand’ and a large sand
cone named ‘Moon Viewing Platform’. We continued on
the footpath around the raked sand and passed some
temple buildings, the paths then flowed through the
Ginkakuji impressive and beautiful moss garden which
featured ponds with islands, bridges, streams and an
array of shrubs and trees, including azaleas, pines and
maples. The path climbed up into the hillside behind the
buildings and to a stunning viewpoint where the entire
temple grounds can be seen with Kyoto city in the
background. From there the path meandered back
down to where we could get a much closer view of the
Silver Pavilion, and a great spot for a photo or two!
A map showing the sites of
Ginkakuji (Silver Pavilion). From there the path led to the exit of the grounds.
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