I spent my birthday (and accidental day off) at Sanjusangendo, which I had somehow managed to never visit even though I studied it in college, lived close enough to it that I passed it every day and have had it strongly recommended to me on numerous occasions. I had been meaning to go for a while and always not making it. It was an overcast, windy, overslept day when I finally set out.
It is hard to communicate the scale of the place. It is monstrous. I believe it is at least 120 meters long.
The white door you see in the background would have to be twice the height of a person. Probably more.
Unfortunately, the grounds are the only place where you can take photos. Fortunately, the grounds are lovely.
The name of the building in English means, "The Thirty-Three Bays." So there are thrity-three of these spaces between the beams. It is truly massive.
The site also has a natural spring which is heralded for its delicious taste and has a sign above it that says, "Not Potable."
A cold wind was coming in from the north.
This is the the west side of the building where they used to have archery contests. Competitors fired arrows from one end to the other. They could go for most out of 100, most out of 1,000 or most in 24 hours.
One of my favorite things about this location, as well as others in Kyoto, is that thye are surrounded by normal neighborhoods. So, if you have a third floor apartment around the grounds you have an amazing view all day, every day.
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