上周二是日本的感恩节，我们去了趟京都，周一上午出发，坐新干线经过东京、名古屋，到京都的时候已是下午一点多了。天气不好，但游兴很浓，我们步行去了酒店附近的一个叫东寺的景点，这是一座有上千年历史的古寺。

We spent about two days in Kyoto in the last week. We went there by Shinkansen in morning of Nov 23. The train passed by Tokyo and Nagoya. It was a bit over 1 p.m. when we arrived Kyoto. We walked to a scenic spot called Kyoto Koji near the hotel. The weather was pretty bad.  It rained heavily. However, we had a lot of fun. 

进门后的左边是一片由小河环绕的园林 There is a garden surrounded by a river in the left side after entering the door.

可以看到寺中的古塔。There is an ancient pagoda, which is visible even outside of this temple.  

经过正殿，我们先去参观了古塔。We went to see the pagoda first. 

塔中供奉着四尊佛像，面朝东南西北四个方向。据说这是日本第一高古塔，是京都的象征和日本国宝之一。 在塔檐下可以避雨赏景。

Four Buddha statues are enshrined in the tower, facing four directions. This is the tallest ancient tower in Japan. It is one of the symbols of Kyoto and Japan's national treasures. We took shelter from the rain and enjoyed the scenery under the eaves of the pagoda.

之后才去了供有大日如来佛祖的正殿。  

Then we went to the main hall, where Tathagata Buddha is enshrined.  

之后去了西殿。 There are impressive array of buildings and an extraordinary collection of Buddhist art.

东寺原名是教王护国寺。寺中有很多古碑，上面都是汉字。