A visit to Japan is going to be packed full of raw fish, overly polite locals, interactive toilet seats and temples. Japan is full of some magnificent temples and the Kinkaku-ju Golden Temple is no exception, (but when is a temple covered in gold ever an exception?) It is also debatably the most beautiful landmark in the traditional (and now touristy) Japanese city of Kyoto.

Built as a temple at some point between 1185 and 1332 it was  eventually taken over by a retired shogun who turned the temple into a ‘recreational villa’. He obviously had a heightened sense of importance and added the gold leaf gilding due to aspirations of becoming a dynastic figure. In 1422 it became a much more modest buddhist temple, which it remains today (just replace the calm ancient monks with manic tourists).

Apparently there is a much more dramatic recent history to the temple that involves a  22-year old suicidal monk burning down the pavilion in 1950 before attempting his own demise. He and the pavilion both managed to survive the incident, the pavilion is said to be more spectacular after the fire (but Hayashi the monk had seven years ugly prison life and a diagnoses of schizophrenia/extreme paranoia/dementia). Spectators believe that Hayashi found the temple “too beautiful”, especially compared to his “evil, ugly, stammering self”, as he described in his trial.

But don’t worry, if you find the temple so gorgeous that you simply cannot resist destroying it and yourself, you will struggle. Elbow to elbow in a crowd of selfie sticks and frightened and confused children there is hardly room to light a match. Do not be deceived by my misleading spacious solo photo, it is evidence of patience and luck in even the most disgustingly tourist infested destinations.

KINKAKU-JI (GOLDEN PAVILION)

1 Kinkakujicho, Kita Ward, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture 603-8361, Japan Tel: +81 75-461-0013 Website: shokoku-ji.jp Operating Hours: Mon-Sun, 9AM-5PM Admission: ¥400 (roughly USD 4) Suggested Length of Visit: 2 hours HOW TO GET THERE: Kinkaku-ji can be accessed from Kyoto Station by direct Kyoto City Bus number 101 or 205 (40 minutes, ¥230). Alternatively, you can take the Karasuma Subway Line to Kitaoji Station (15 minutes, ¥260) and from there take a taxi (10 minutes, ¥1000-1200) or bus (10 minutes, ¥230, bus numbers 101, 102, 204 or 205) to Kinkaku-ji.