Kyoto Photo Diary

 The Sanjusangendo Hall is home to the 1001 carved wooden statues of Kannon , otherwise known as the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy. The hall’s name literally translates to ‘hall with 33 spaces between the columns”. The hall measure 120 metres long and is the longest wooden structure in Japan. As the hall is very sacred, photos are prohibited indoors hence the outdoor photos.

Featured in the centre of the hall is Japan’s national treasure, a giant 1000 armed seated Kannon. She is surrounded by 500 standing Kannon on either side, 10 rows wide, 50 columns long. In the very front row are the temple guardians and deities. It’s an incredible sight!

Some snaps of a palace and castle in Kyoto.

Officially the yummiest  Japanese pancake ever. You can get cream or custard filled ones in all different shapes and sizes. The most common ones are in the shape of a fish!

A snowy temple in Kyoto that we run into along the way while we were searching for the Sagano bamboo forest. Yes, our feet were soaked by this stage but the sun was out and the snow made it very pretty.

Sadly, the Kiyomizu Temple was partly under renovation when we went to visit. However, it was still bustling with people and young women were dressed in their finest kimonos for a visit. The main hall was open and many locals offered their prayers to the Eleven Headed and Thousand Armed Kannon. On the verandah of the main hall there were spectacular views of Kyoto’s city centre.