Travel Note of Kyoto for Cherry Blossoms Part 8: To-ji Temple (including evening illuminations) and Rikuson-no Shrine

[Introduction]

I traveled to Kyoto to view cherry blossoms for three days and two nights. Although the weather was not always good, cherry blossoms in Kyoto were marvelous. In this article, I will write about To-ji Temple (including evening illuminations) and Rikuson-no Shrine as part of Day 2.

[Series of articles]
* Day 1 (1) Heian Jingu Shrine and Okazaki Canal (Jikkokubune Boat Ride)
* Day 1 (2) Keage Incline and Nanzenji Temple
* Day 1 (3) Philosopher’s Path
* Day 1 (4) Takenaka Inari Shrine, Munetada Shrine, Shinnyodo Temple and Konkai Komyoji Temple
* Day 1 (5) Maruyama Park, Nene Road, Yasaka Pagoda and Kiyomizu-dera Temple (evening illuminations)
* Day 2 (1) Kyoto Gyoen and Kyoto Imperial Palace
* Day 2 (2) Honmanji Temple, Nijo Castle, Shinsen-en and Kiyomizu-dera Temple
* Day 2 (3) To-ji Temple (including evening illuminations) and Rikuson-no Shrine [This article]
* Day 3 (1) Arashiyama (Bamboo Grove), Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine, Gion Shirakawa and Kenninji Temple

[Travel Date]
2016.04.05-07

[Main Part]

 

After I left Kiyomizu-dera temple, I moved to To-ji Temple. Both of them are registered as a World Heritage site.

To-ji Temple

I arrived at To-ji Temple at 4:30 p.m. Since the temple was closed at 5 p.m., I had only 30 minutes to view it. So, I quickly walked around the temple.

One of the features in To-ji Temple was a five-storied pagoda and here are some photos of the pagoda with cherry blossoms.

Now it was 5 p.m. The night illumination was to be held from 6:30 p.m., so I left To-ji Temple for the time being.

Light Dinner

Quick dinner near To-ji Temple.

Rikuson-no Shrine

Before the night illuminaton at To-ji Temple, I visited Rikuson-no Shrine near To-ji Temple.

The sun was setting.

A couple for wedding photo taking.

Other snaps.

With a bullet train.

Night illumination at To-ji Temple

Now I revisited To-ji Temple to view night illumination there. I reached the venue 10 minutes before the start time, there was already a long queue.

Anyway, I entered into the temple.

Photos including a cherry tree and the five storied pagoda. This is one of the best view spots in To-ji Temple.

Unlike other temples in Kyoto, it was allowed to use tripods for photo taking, and there were so many photograhers around here. So, I moved to other areas to avoid crowds. Here are some photos without using a tripod.

Now there were less crowds, so I started to take photos with my tripod.

Reflection.

Around five storied pagoda.

The final shot was a colorful reflection.

Then, I left To-ji Temple and the Day 2 of my Kyoto trip ended.

[Closing]

That’s it for the article about To-ji Temple and Rikuson-no Shrine as part of Day 2. These two places were near Kyoto station, so they were easily accessible for both Japanese and foreign tourists 🙂

In the next article, I will write about Arashiyama (Bamboo Grove), Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine, Gion Shirakawa and Kenninji Temple as part of Day 3. For some reasons, I will write only one article for Day 3. So, the next article is the final posting as a series of Kyoto trip for three days and two nights.

[Related Link]
Kyoto Travel Guide (English)
To-ji Temple (English)