Kyoto 19 The Saihoji (Kokedera) Buddhist Temple

 Waiting outside the gate

You have to make a reservation and pay online to get into this temple.  They open the reservations about a month before, so you have to be vigilant to make it early.  They opted for less tourism and a higher entrance fee.  I can see why.  When you are let in, you head straight to the temple, shoes off, and to an area with tatami mats and small writing tables.  They give you a calligraphy brush and a page with a sutra which you are supposed to copy.  So I sat and did my best to go over the light outlines of the sutra, my Chinese painting lessons from high school kicked in.  It's a way for the temple to get you to slow down before you enter the grounds.  The garden is known for their moss, and the temple is known as the Moss Temple, you'll see why here.

The limbs of the tree are being supported here with braces.

This is their grass

It is a magical place