Kodaiji Temple

Kodai-ji Temple sits among the wooded hills east of Gion in Kyoto, built in 1606 by Nene, the devoted widow of the legendary warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi, as a memorial to her late husband. The temple grounds feature exquisite gardens designed by the celebrated landscape architect Kobori Enshu, including a raked sand garden and a pond garden that reflects the surrounding maple trees. Two tea houses within the complex, Kasa-tei and Shigure-tei, are decorated with elegant lacquerwork inlaid with gold leaf from Hideyoshi's era. The temple is especially magical during autumn, when special nighttime illuminations transform the gardens into a luminous display of crimson and gold reflected in still water.