Day 3
Higashiyama, from Kiyomizu to Gion
Morning
Kiyomizu-dera
Founded in 778 around a spring, hence its name, the temple of pure water. Its terrace, thirteen metres above the slope, rests on a timber frame of zelkova pillars assembled without a single nail. The Japanese expression for taking the plunge, literally jumping from the Kiyomizu terrace, comes from here: two hundred and thirty-four jumps were recorded in the Edo period, with an 85% survival rate. Below, the Otowa waterfall is drunk from a ladle.
Sannenzaka, Ninenzaka and Yasaka Kōshin-dō
Two paved, sloping lanes lined with wooden houses and shops, listed as a preservation district: tradition says that tripping there brings bad luck for three years or two years, depending on the street. The small Yasaka Kōshin-dō, in the middle, is covered with thousands of coloured cloth balls, the kukurizaru, one wish per ball and one desire to give up in exchange.
Afternoon
Yasaka-jinja and Maruyama Park
Founded in 656, the Gion shrine has organised the Gion Matsuri since 869, the largest festival in Japan, born of a vow to stop an epidemic. Its lanterns carry the names of the restaurants that fund them. The neighbouring Maruyama Park is the oldest public park in the city and its historic hanami spot.
Chion-in
The headquarters of the Jōdo school, founded in 1234 on the spot where the monk Hōnen died. Its 1619 Sanmon gate, twenty-four metres high, is the largest wooden temple gate in Japan, and its 1636 bell weighs seventy tonnes: seventeen monks ring it together at New Year.
Kōdai-ji and Entoku-in
The Kōdai-ji was founded in 1606 by Hideyoshi's widow: a garden by Kobori Enshū, a thatched-roof tea house, period lacquerware. The Entoku-in next door keeps its painted sliding doors and a remarkable dry garden.
Evening
Shirakawa Canal
The Shirakawa canal in Gion, lined with willows and wooden houses, is Kyoto's most photogenic corner without being the busiest: it is best walked along at dusk, when the restaurant lanterns light up.
