Japan - Byōdō-in Temple in Kyoto

I must tell you that I enjoy receiving Asian cards more and more :) I've never been to Asia and I'm not even very familiar with Asian culture, traditions and mentality, but they all seem to be so different from what I've seen in Europe and that's why they fascinate me. I hope to go to Asia someday and I can't tell exactly, which country would I visit, if I could choose just one. Perhaps Japan, Thailand or Malaysia... I would also not refuse to visit North Korea, but it's more for because of my interest in politics and the influence of propaganda on the society. Oh yes, it reminds me of my social science exam that I'm going to write tomorrow ;) Anyway, I would be more than happy to visit any Asian country and I believe that everything is possible :)

This wonderful card, which I received in the UNESCO tag, shows the Byōdō-in Temple in Kyoto, which has been a World Heritage Site since 1994.


Some of the stamps on this postcard are very old (1967 and 1970) :) I wonder, if they're still valid and you can use them now or if the sender just added them to make this card look even more beautiful, while only the new "50" stamp is valid? I received another card from Japan today and the postage was 70 (with new stamps), so I guess the old stamps must be valid! In Poland it would be impossible, we've had too large inflation since that time :))

Byōdō-in (平等院) is a Buddhist temple in the city of Uji in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. It is jointly a temple of the Jodo Shu (Pure Land) and Tendai sects.

This temple was originally built in 998 in the Heian period as a rural villa of Fujiwara no Michinaga, one of the most powerful members of the Fujiwara clan. This villa was changed to a Buddhist temple by Fujiwara no Yorimichi in 1052. The most famous building in the temple is the Phoenix Hall (鳳凰堂 hōō-dō) or the Amida Hall, constructed in 1053. The only remaining original building is the Phoenix Hall, surrounded by a scenic pond; additional buildings making up the compound were burnt down during a civil war in 1336.