Kiyomizu-dera

Yesterday, my parents came to Japan! They're staying for a week - which is all too short if you ask me. It's a looong flight and there's too much too see in just 7 days.

I stayed in my parents' hotel room for the first night. We got up bright and early this morning to meet up with my friends Mai and Nozomi. We had plans to visit a famous temple in Kyoto called Kyomizudera - a temple that I had yet to see!

Nozomi suggested that we eat at a famous Soba restaurant in Kyoto before heading up to the temple. Lunch was delicious, and we were treated to Kyoto わがし (japanese sweets).

As we walked to the temple, we came to this corner. My dad started raving about how he'd seen it in a guide book and totally loved it. So here's the obligatory photo.

And the obligatory photo-of-the-photo.

Today was a holiday, so the temple and the surrounding shops were flooded with people. My dad took a lot of artistic shots of people with umbrellas, but I'll spare you. The temple gate was absolutely beautiful - it just sort of appears just as you clear the shops.
The temple is famous for its gorgeous view. Built into the side of a mountain, it's particularly pretty in the autumn when the leaves turn red. (Maybe not quite so pretty in the rain.)

I lied, here's one umbrella picture.