The Sanmon gate
A viewing balcony.
663highland — CC BY-SA 4.0 · 663highland — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hyppolyte de Saint-Rambert — CC BY-SA 4.0 · 663highland — CC BY-SA 4.0 · 雷太 — CC BY 2.0
Nanzen-ji is a Zen Buddhist temple in eastern Kyoto, founded by Emperor Kameyama in 1291 on the site of his former detached palace. It is the head temple of the Nanzen-ji branch of Rinzai Zen and stands about 2.4 km from the city centre in a straight line. The temple burned several times over the centuries and was rebuilt. Its precincts are a national Historic Site, and its Hōjō gardens a Place of Scenic Beauty. It presided over Kyoto's five great Zen temples. Its highlight is the huge wooden Sanmon gate, whose upper balcony visitors can climb for views over the city; it features in a kabuki tale about the thief Ishikawa Goemon. In the grounds stands a red-brick aqueduct with rows of arches, built in 1890 as part of the Lake Biwa Canal. The grounds are wide and shady, and the maples turn red in late autumn. The temple sits at the southern end of the Philosopher's Path, so the two fit easily into one walk.
A viewing balcony.
Brick arches.
Red in autumn.
Sakyo ward, Kyoto, Japan
Heian ShrineA Shinto shrine in Okazaki, built in 1895 as a five-eighths scale reproduction o15 minutes walk4.5
Philosopher's PathA quiet footpath along a shallow, cherry-lined canal in eastern Kyoto, between G21 minutes walk4.7
Ginkaku-ji (Silver Pavilion)A Zen temple in Sakyō, eastern Kyoto, officially Jishō-ji, and a symbol of the H22 minutes walk4.4
Gion and Hanamikōji StreetKyoto's best-known traditional district. It began as an entertainment quarter in23 minutes walkYes; the gate and garden are paid.
The Philosopher's Path.