Beautiful Mount Koya
We hopped on a local train and took a tram up the mountain to Koyasan. Koyasan is a small mountain village that isn't very well travelled with foreign visitors. That's definitely one of the biggest draws to the place! While places like Kyoto and Osaka are full of tourists, Koyasan felt very quiet and peaceful due to the lack of anyone really walking around.
Checked into our beautiful temple where they served Matcha tea as you arrive. We arrived with another pair of Canadians from Montreal. Whoo, Canadian representation! More photos of the temple later.
We checked in and left immediately to make the most of the day in Koyasan.
Making Mila model for me around town.
Some of the beautiful temples in the village.
Just beautiful architecture all over the village. Almost everywhere you walk provides great photo opportunities.
The autumn colors were also gorgeous this time of year.
Still addicted to Pokemon Go at this point.
It's a must to stay at least one night in Koyasan at a temple. This is the main attraction of the small town for tourists actually as typically the price per night includes dinner and breakfast prepared by the monks. It's usually a vegetarian meal that is the same meal the monks eat themselves.
Some delicious Sake! Monks still need to wind down sometimes I guess!
So we ended up coming to Koyasan last minute and there were only 2 Ryokans still available. Both were very expensive and so we ended up spending a lot for the one night. It was about 35000 yen although this did include dinner and breakfast for the both of us. Our room was absolutely gorgeous for this price. We were in a large individual unit that was surrounded by stunning greenery. It was probably the most 'zen' like place we've ever had the pleasure of staying in. This photos above are taken from inside our room.
Sitting right outside our room.
The area surrounding our room.
Various temples and architecture around the village.
Walking around... and jump shots!
Found a random pathway of torii to follow.
They led us to this little shrine. Nobody around, just us!
Famous and gorgeous graveyard in the village. We saw the most tourists here, but even then there weren't enough to take away from the beauty of the surroundings.
Walking through the burial grounds.
Followed one of the labelled pathways to these beautiful empty fields. Stopped to take some drone footage and some photos!
Random shots around the village.
Koyasan himself! The official town mascot.