Things you don't see at home every day: The Golden Temple

I had expected peace, introspection, wilderness, pure beauty. As you can see, it's all there. But the Golden Temple (Kinkaku-ji, in North-West Kyoto) was full of surprises.

First of all, it's on the outskirts of the city: you're on a bus (205 or express 101) through the suburbs, and then, there you are, you're dropped at the entrance to the temple complex. I had expected that we'd be going through gardens or other temples, then as a reward at the end, we would see the pavilion emerging from the mist. But no, it's there, in your face as soon as you've paid your entrance fee.

And we got to share it with hundreds of secondary-school students, most of them with an assignment to talk to a foreigner, any foreigner, willing to engage them. After 2 groups of students (one of the groups with quite good English. The ones in the picture were not so fluent, but very keen to get their picture taken with me all the same), I put on my stern and serious face, and avoided eye contact. As there are few Westerners in Japan these days, I guess quite a few of these kids got home with a fail for that assignment, but, hey, there is only so much I can do! And those who got their interview with us have their work cut out trying to pronounce both our names (There is nothing harder than an English "R", and then add to that the confusion of a French name).

But all of that said, even on a grey day, the Golden Pavilion is gorgeous, with its reflections in the still lake that surrounds it. And somehow, the path full of school kids weaves its way around it in such a way that it looks like there is no-one else there.

Hold on to your ticket, though, because you'll probably want a second look at it when you find yourself outside the main compound and you can't turn back in. If you go back to the entrance with your ticket, they'll happily let you in again.