Kinkaku-ji 金閣寺

Visited the very popular, and consequently very crowded, Temple of the Golden Pavilion in Kyōto. The Pavilion is a three-story building on the grounds of the Rokuon-ji temple complex and the top two stories of the pavilion are covered with gold leaf. The pavilion functions as a shariden, housing relics of the Buddha (however tourists cannot enter). The building is topped with a bronze phoenix ornament, which is my favorite element on the building. The Pavilion is set in a magnificent strolling garden that includes a pond that reflects the building.