japan day 8 -- kyoto: Kinkaku-ji (Temple of the Golden Pavilion)

we've pretty much wrapped up the city portion of our vacation and are now in the heart of japan's historical capital.  we visited a lot of temples yesterday, each of which deserves to be highlighted in its own post.

our first stop was to kinkaku-ji, which we've visited over 10 years ago.  i can quote the pamphlet but it would seem very disingenuous.  from what i've gathered it's a buddhist temple and the temple is obviously beautiful.  but what i enjoyed the most were the grounds and gardens -- tranquil, mossy and serene.

plant on the left is japanese andromeda