Matsui-san told us there were 1600 shrines and temples in Kyoto. He took us to Kinkaku-ji first and it is definitely the most beautiful. The Shogun had this pavilion built on his retirement estate in 1397. His house was up the hill and he could observe the structure and pond from above. His son converted the pavilion into a Zen temple housing Buddha's ashes. The top two stories are pure 24 karat gold leaf - you could not see the first story from above due to trees - and the structure is crowned with a gold phoenix which is of course believed to rise from its own ashes. The island with two trees is in the shape of Japan. Many other islands and stones depict the creation of Buddha. This structure was rebuilt after it was burned down by an insane monk in the 1950s. The lack of wind made the reflection picture possible. We were told that this weather condition is rare. 1599 temples to go!
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