Kansai Japan

Kyoto Books

Kyoto is such a popular place in the Kansai region. Its probably the most popular from a tourism perspective. Kyoto for a first time visitor is a challenging experience because you need to take either the subway or a bus from the train station to a majority of the major sites. There are two that are [...]

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Ryouan-ji

Ryouan-ji is a temple that contains perhaps the most famous Japanese rock garden in the world. The reason being it was the first rock garden. The entrance fee is a little high in our opinion for what you get to see at the temple. Ryouanji is not very large and there is not much to see [...]

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Enryakuji Temple

On top of Mt. Hiei sits Enryaku-ji temple. The founder of the Tendai sect of Buddhism, Saicho established the temple in 788. Enryaku-ji is still a very active temple where monks practice. Monks at this temple have kept a sacred fire going for 1200 years straight. Popularity: 57% [?]

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Ninaji Temple

Reserved for Ninaji Temple. Popularity: 20% [?]

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Nijo Castle

Nijo Castle, or Nijo-jo, is a walled fortified castle surrounded by a moat. This castle gets very busy so you may want to arrive early in the day. Nijo Castle is a Unesco World Heritage Site. Nijo-jo was built for the Tokugawa Shoguns. The floors were built in a way to specifically make a creaking [...]

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Kinkakuji Temple (Golden Pavillion)

Kinkakuji Temple is known as the Gold Pavilion. However, its formal and true name is Rokuon-ji. If you look at Unesco’s list of sites they list this temple as Rokuon-ji. Kinkakuji was built in 1397 by Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and covered in gold to display great presence. Kinkakuji was destroyed by fire in 1950 and [...]

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