Fall into Tofuku-ji Temple

This would not the most dramatic display of autumn leaves in Japan, but at the time we didn’t know that.

We crossed the  Tsutenkyo Bridge–a breezeway over the turning maples that  chattering beneath us in a ravine. In the air you feel surrounded by color, busts of life turning towards exquisite death of a winter we would not be here long enough to see. Across the way, a covered platform cantilevers over the long shadow the bridge creates.

We come down, into the ravine, where the red leaves crinkle under our feet and the shadows turn cold and quiet. No one speaks, our eyes too full for conversation. Passing through the autumn cover, we silently head into the evergreen grounds to the temple.

Tags: Japan, Kyoto, Tofuku-ji Temple