KYOTO—More than 10,000 visitors have already stepped onto the otherworldly grounds of Toji temple here in the week since the start of its “Toji Tsuki Kairou” (Toji moon corridor).
The light-up event incorporates tens of thousands of bamboo lanterns, both carved stalks and shaped anew, to transform the garden of the UNESCO World Heritage site in Kyoto’s Minami Ward.
In front of the five-story pagoda—the tallest wooden structure in Japan—are multiple bamboo “mari” balls suspended over Hyotan pond. The light from each one’s reflection creates the illusion that they are drifting through the air.
The event’s namesake is less metaphorical than descriptive. A crescent moon sculpture and “corridor of light,” also made of bamboo, are framed by the pagoda to create a photo opportunity that many visitors cannot resist.
The illumination event’s hours are from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Admission is 1,500 yen ($9.80) for adults and 500 yen for elementary and junior high school students.
Tickets are sold in front of the temple’s east gate. The event runs until March 11, and will be closed on March 4.
“It was a challenge to see whether we could create a nighttime tourism attraction during the cold season, but far more people have come than we expected,” said an organizing committee staff member.
The bamboo used was harvested from abandoned groves in Kyoto’s Nishiyama area. It will be turned into bamboo charcoal after the event.
AloJapan.com