Selina's Djournal

Kyoto is loaded with cultural heritage sites, that makes Kyoto become Japan's most important cultural tourism destination. One of the popular sites is Kinkaku-ji (The Golden Pavilion Temple), and this place is on my must visit place list in Kyoto. Brief History Kinkaku-ji, officialy named Rokuon-ji Temple is a shariden, a Buddhist hall containing relics of Buddha. Rokuon-ji is a Zen Buddhist temple, in the Shokokuji School of the Rinzai Sect. Kinkaku This area was originally the site of a villa called Kitayama-dai and owned by a statesman, Saionji Kintsune. Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, the 3rd shigun of the Muromachi period, took a liking to the area and acquired it from the Saionji familu in 1397. He then built his own villa, which he named Kitayama-den. The garden and buildings, centered on the Golden Pavilion were said to represent the Pure Land of Buddha in this world. The villa also functioned as an official guesthouse, welcoming Emperor Gokomatsu (Father of Zen...

Kitano Ijinkan Kitano Ijinkan is located in Kobe , the city near Osaka . You can take train from Osaka for about an hour to reach Kobe . In my one day tour to Kobe , Kitano Ijinkan is the first place that I visit. So, What’s kind of place is it? Let’s check it out! Brief Introduction Kitano Ijinkan Kitano Ijinkan is located in Kobe , Hyogo Prefecture , Japan . Kitano Ijinkan is a historical district which contains a number of foreign residences from the late Meiji and early Taisho eras, some still serving as residences, while the others opened to tourist. The amazing appearance of this unique historical construction will definitely enchanted you. Kitano Ijinkan is a place that can show you fully and lively about how the foreign culture was brought into Japan and how exactly it looked like at that time. One of the residence in Kitano Ijinkan Kitano Ijinkan was established in 1867, following the opening of Kobe Port for for...

Osaka Castle, once you heard it you already know, that this is a castle in Osaka, and it's a must visit place when you travel to Osaka. In this post I will write a brief introduction about Osaka Castle itself and my opinion about this place. Brief History Osaka Castle Osaka Castle is a Japanese castle that located in Osaka. This castle construction started in 1583 on the former site of the Ishiyama Hoganji Temple, but was destroyed by Oda Nobunaga. Later Toyotomi Hideyoshi rebuilt Osaka Castle and want it to be the center of a new, unified Japan, that time Osaka Castle was the largest castle. However, a few years after Hideyoshi's death, Tokugawa attacked and destroyed the castle in 1615. Osaka Castle was rebuilt by Tokugawa Hidetada in the 1620s, but its main castle tower was struck by lightening in 1665 and burnt down. In 1931 the reconstruction of the castle tower was built, and in 1997 it's been repaired and the castle now is entirely m...