Lungshan Temple

After a short visit to Tianhou Temple, we took a quick train ride to Lungshan Temple. It was very busy at the temple that day since it was a weekend. We walked around the temple grounds and even did my fortune. You can read it up top. It made me chuckle that I got that fortune. How fitting! 

The temple was pretty big. It even has a man made waterfall. And a lot of decorations outside the temple grounds. I really loved the intricate dragon statues decorated above the temple roof.

We walked around the temple before going to a small market to sample street food. It was a fun day to spend my birthday.

Tianhou Temple Taipei

When I started to feel better, it was already my birthday. I ventured out my room and walked around Ximending with my boyfriend. He took me to Tianhou temple. It is located in an unassuming building and you can't really tell it's a temple until you go inside. 

I loved the lanterns that were hung on the ceiling. The lights just reflected off the lanterns making it glow. 

The temple was very quiet. I barely saw anyone coming in. It was perfect because Ximending is such a busy and loud area. You can come here if you need some peace.

It's a small temple but it has a lot a koi pond, garden, and a mini waterfall. I really enjoyed visiting this temple!

Daikaku-ji Part II

After walking around inside the temple, we wanted to explore the surroundings outside. It was a beautiful autumn afternoon! Right outside the temple is the Ōsawa Pond  (an artificial lake). We sat on the dock watching the fish and ducks. I loved it! The leaves on the trees were starting to change and it was beautiful! We decided to walk around the pond. I didn't know if we were trespassing but we found a path and followed it.

We saw a lot of vegetable gardens along the path and we stumbled upon a bamboo forest. I was glad we didn't rush going to Arashiyama because we had our own private bamboo forest. It was deserted!

We also found the pagoda while taking our walk. And I loved how we found a vending machine next to it. You will never be thirsty in Japan!

We circled back to the temple and took our bus back to Kyoto station. Buses are so popular in Kyoto and the day pass is about $5.

Daikaku-ji

I needed to get away from the bus tour group after Kinkaku-ji. We were originally planning on going to Arashima bamboo forest but we felt we didn't have time so we decided to go to another temple. 

We ended up at Daikaku-ji temple. It was by far one of the best decisions we made in Kyoto. It was so peaceful and quiet inside the temple. No crazy tour bus crowd. It was surprisingly empty!

I had the chance to take my time walking around the temple. I loved all the gardens and use of wood throughout the buildings. I am so impressed on the preservation of all the buildings/temples in Japan. They really protect their heritage and history. And everything is super clean.

If you want a quieter place to explore, I highly recommend going to Daikaku-ji.