Sanzenin

Sanzenin sits in the mountain village of Ohara, north of Kyoto, and traces its founding to 784 CE. The temple's famous moss garden spreads behind the main hall in a carpet of green that glows after rain, dotted with small stone Jizo statues half-buried under the growth. Summer brings hydrangeas along the approach path, and autumn turns the maple trees flame red against the dark wood of the structures. The village feels genuinely remote even though it's an hour from central Kyoto by bus, and the walk from the bus stop up the narrow stone lane lined with craft shops is worth the trip alone.