Kiyomizu-dera

Given its stature of this celebrated and historic Buddhist temple, Kiyomizu-dera is perhaps the most visited temple in Kyoto. A walk through the narrow streets in the Higashiyama district leads to this temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which is known for its wooden stage structure that was built without a single nail. The wooden stage is located just outside the main hall and visitors standing on the wooden stage are offered an expansive skyline of Kyoto. Inside the main hall of Kiyomizu-dera sits the statue of the god of Kannon. A walk to the bottom of the temple is the Otowa Waterfall with 3 separate streams of water with each stream believed to have a different benefit. Visitors stand in line to get to the waterfall and on their turn, they take a metal cup that is attached to a long pole, hold it out to one of the streams to collect some water, pour it into their cusped hand to drink a sip of the water. Drink only from one stream of your choice as drinking from all 3 streams is believed to bring bad luck. Kiyomizu-dera is an architectural feat especially when it was built in the 1600s. The temple is a sight to behold any time of the year but it gets even more beautiful in the spring when colors from the surrounding trees spring to life.