Meals at Omuro Kaikan Hall

Occasionally guests who stay at Omuro Kaikan Hall are surprised to discover that the meals are not shōjin ryōri, Buddhist vegetarian cuisine. Although by staying at Omuro Kaikan Hall guests are staying on the temple grounds, because at Ninna-ji the goal is to offer guests the same comforts and atmosphere as that of a Japanese-style inn we offer traditional Japanese food instead of Buddhist cuisine.

If you stay at Omuro Kaikan Hall, or even if you just decide to eat at the restaurant for lunch during the day, you will be treated to delicious Kyoto cuisine, which includes fish and meat.

Here are some photographs of the types of meals served at Omuro Kaikan Hall, you can see a some other examples here and here.

        

Above: Breakfast (left) featuring boiled tofu and grilled salmon and dinner (right) that includes sashimi as well as famous Kyoto foods such as pickles and yuba (a tofu product).

Below: Another example of dinner, the exact items served vary depending on the time of year. No matter when you visit you can enjoy fresh ingredients and appreciate the Japanese sensitivity to the seasons at Omuro Kaikan Hall.

The restaurant in Omuro Kaikan Hall serves lunch from 11am to 1pm, so even guests who are not staying the night can enjoy traditional Kyoto cuisine during their visit to Ninna-ji!

For more information about staying overnight at the temple, please see this page.

Happy New Year!

There were many visitors at the temple today! The weather was sunny and mild for a winter day. I’m sure many people were glad for such nice weather as they went out for hatsumode (“first shrine visit of the new year”).

To celebrate the beginning of 2012 there were traditional decorations up at Goten. If you look closely at the photograph above you’ll see a tangerine hanging in the middle of the straw banner. Inside, kagami-mochi was on display next to a seika pine arrangement.

Open During New Year’s! And Some Snowy Weather

Just taking a moment to let everyone know that Ninna-ji is open during the New Year holiday! If you are visiting Kyoto during New Year’s be sure to come visit Ninna-ji! But make sure you bundle up, it’s cold.

There were snow flurries early this morning and this afternoon at the temple today! The weather is very chilly and it looks like we might get some snow this weekend, a snowy Christmas might be in store for Kyoto!

The picture below is from last year in January, I wonder when the first snowfall of the New Year will be…!

Final Fall Colors

Now that it is December Ninna-ji is operating on winter hours, from 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM. We close 30 minutes earlier than usual so be sure to give yourself plenty of time to see everything before closing!

Here are a few pictures of the fall foliage with some of the beautiful structures here at the temple! There are still some leaves on the trees, but the peak for foliage has passed.

  

The next seasonal pictures you can expect to see here are snowy ones!

November 13th Arrangement

This arrangement features chrysanthemums and a pine tree branch.

Autumn Scenery

The trees on the temple grounds are showing a variety of beautiful fall colors now! Be sure to visit within the next two weeks to get some great photos of the foliage!

On Location at Ninna-ji

This time a very famous TV show choose Ninna-ji as a set for an upcoming episode. Earlier this month the cast and crew of “Mito Kōmon,” a period drama now in its 43rd and final season, came to film some scenes near Kon-do. Here are a few shots from the afternoon of filming!

Some Fall Colors

It has recently become consistently colder here in Kyoto, and it is starting to bring out the fall foliage around the temple. There are still only a few places where the leaves have changed colors, but in the next few weeks we can expect to see more! This tree by the Five-Storied Pagoda has only changed color on a few branches. When the entire tree has changed color it will be very beautiful, but the contrast of the green and red make early fall foliage photographs like this one special.

Little Persimmons Near Kusho Myoshin

There are two persimmon trees near Kusho Myoshin and both are full of fruit! Little fruit. The persimmons that are commonly eaten in Japan are much larger. This variety of persimmon is called sarugaki (persimmon is “kaki“), or “monkey persimmon.” They are small enough to fit in the palm of an adult’s hand. These “monkey persimmon” are edible, but quite tart.

Some Foliage Near Kusho Myojin Shrine

This photograph was taken at the end of October, this little tree was very quick to change colors! In the background you can see the stone torii (archway along the path to a Shinto shrine) of Kusho Myoshin Shrine. Many Buddhist temples have small Shinto shrines within the temple grounds, Kusho Myoshin Shrine is Ninna-ji’s tutelary shrine. When you visit the temple you’ll find Kusho Myoshin Shrine near the Five-Storied Pagoda and the Sutra Hall.

Although Ninna-ji is famous for its cherry blossoms, the fall foliage is very beautiful as well!