Kyoto

Kyoto is just a 30 minute train ride from Kobe. Back in the day, it was the capital city of Japan before Tokyo. Today, it is an obligatory tourist stop due to it's historic buildings and artsy reputation.

The photo at top is the golden temple. The photo below is a Zen rock garden. I'm not quite sure of the rock garden. They tell me that if you ponder it long enough, it will give you spiritual insight. But where I come from, they would be parking cars on it.