Kiyamizu-dera Temple

We joined up with friends of mine from the Summit to go back to Gion District to the Kiyamizu-dera Temple. The streets that wind their way up to the temple on the mountain side are lined with shops selling every imaginable curio and craft - far too good for any of us to resist and we spent the afternoon on the way up exploring all kinds of things. We tried all types of delicacies, all of which I had never seen before in my life. From Green Tea Ice Cream to Soy Milk donuts to Red bean paste sweets, it was a real tasty adventure! Karl got himself a beautiful Katana sword and was happy for the rest of the day.

Catherine, Sunny and I below one of the entrance gates to Kiyamizu-dera temple

One of the temples through the forests

Fresh - and ice cold - mountain spring water to wash your hands before entering the temple.

The temple at the top was well worth the walk and has breathtaking views of Kyoto. The entire structure is made of wood without using a single nail.

Not a single nail!

Here you can buy a thousand different types of blessings, charms or prayers. There was even a waterfall where you can drink the purest of waters straight from the mountains.

After all the exploring, we camped out in a welcomingly warm tea house until the sun went down and the lanterns went on. At the moment there is a festival of lights on in the evenings during which the temples and streets are all lit up. It was just breathtakingly beautiful and worth every freezing moment!