FINDING PEACE IN THE FALL: Rurikoin

Last year in early October before the full chill of autumn, we visited Rurikoin in Kyoto. 

The lush carpet of moss and ferns beckons from behind the gate, holding tightly onto the last of summer's verdant charm.

A few maple leaves have turned red, so insubstantial you could almost count them on one hand.

 Intermittent bird song is interrupted by the late-echoing chirps of summer crickets who forgot to die.

Water drops into a shallow basin from a bamboo pipe, the water slowly overflowing it's container.

 The soft gurgling of a tiny waterfall drips down a monstrous boulder.

 Intensely green moss starkly contrasts against the white rocks and smooth granite stones.

Last bits of summer in the crisp air.

Everyone holding their breath, waiting, waiting.

Visitor Note: Rurikoin is famed for its lustrous black lacquered floors, which catch the reflecting maple leaves, turning the main second story room into a glowing red and orange tunnel. Although we were a month too early to see that phenomenal orange glow, it was perhaps for the best...In the hour we spent wandering Rurikoin, we only met 2-3 other visitors. So if you are lucky enough to see this blog before the leaves change and the tour buses fill Kyoto like waves of locusts, consider yourself lucky. 

Rurikoin opens only from October 1-December 10th, so I recommend to go early in October on a weekday if you want the place all to yourself. The entrance fee is a bit steep, but highly worth it if you are looking for a secluded temple with less tourists in the off season. Actually, I would probably go again during peak maple leaf mania and brave the crowds; it's that beautiful.

(All photos taken with Konica ACOM1 on very expired film)