I visited an old temple located in Sagano district in Kyoto to observe autumn colors. I thought it would be a bit too early for color changes, but actually the timing was perfect. Leaves of Japanese Maples were turning scarlet and yellow, and there were many visitors - I expected the temple would be really quiet because it was just a weekday (Wednesday) and no special events were out there. Good to see tourists were coming back, attracted by autumn colors. The approach from the main gate to the inner gate is lined with Japanese Maple trees, and people call it "Maple Road".
Nison-in temple was originally founded in the mid-9th century by a Buddhist Abbot "Ennin" at the imperial order by the Emperor Saga. It was completely distroyed by fire during Onin civil war (1467 - 1477), but was reconstructed in 1521 in the age of Abbot "Ekyou". The temple is located near the popular Arashiyama district (well-known for Bamboo Grove pathway) - about 10 min. walk. So, when visiting Arashiyama area, you can make a little side trip to this quiet temple. In between this temple and Arashiyama, there are several other places to see such as Seiryo-ji temple where there is a Tofu specialized restaurant called "Chikusen".
I took a vide in Nison-in temple. You can see how beautiful the Maple Road and the autumn leaves are. It is a 360 degree video which can be viewed on PC or Mac. If you are viewing it on smartphone, click on "YouTube", then you can view it 360 degrees.
