Nikko is in the mountains north of Kyoto.  It took about 2 hours to get there from Tokyo by express train, traveling through some interesting countryside.  It was quite warm in Tokyo but was really quite chilly and a bit grey in Nikko.  The autumn colours were tremendous though, the hillsides looking like beautiful tapestries of greens, yellows and reds.

Nikko is a world heritage site and has tons of wonderful temples.  The first temple, Rinno-ji, was founded in 766AD by the Buddhist priest Shodo Shonin as he was traveling to Mount Nantai.

    Dragon fountain outside Rinno-ji temple.

    Shoyo-en (stroll garden) in the precincts of Rinno-ji.  The style of this garden is typical of the Edo period.  It was especially beautiful due to the vibrant autumn folliage.

    Five storey pagoda.

    I'm not sure what this display at Toshogu Shrine means.  Any ideas anyone?  This is one of the more difficult bits of sightseeing in Japan coz there's not always English signs.  I've seen a lot of things that I haven't understood at the time and only found out later what they are.

    The three wise monkeys at Toshogu Shrine.  Everyone's heard of 'hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil', I didn't realise though that this is derived from the three major principals of the Tendai sect.  The figures are carved above a sacred stable and I was most impressed to see that the sacred horse inside was donated by the New Zealand government!  The only sacred horse of foreign origin in Japan.

    The entrance to Toshogu Shrine.  All these buildings were amazingly colourful and ornate

    Roof detail.

        Sacred spring.  This was a very beautiful and serene spot and I spent a very happy half hour just sitting here.

Unfortunately at this point the battery on my camera ran out, so no more photos!  I did go to some other shrines and temples, some of which were more lovely than the ones I had already seen.