Built in A.D. 794 on the model of the capitals of ancient China, Kyoto was the imperial capital of Japan from its foundation until the middle of the 19th century. As the centre of Japanese culture for more than 1,000 years, Kyoto illustrates the development of Japanese wooden architecture, particularly religious architecture, and the art of Japanese gardens. It is a city of 1.4 million with tremendous cultural assets, where the past still lingers on, where there are more than 2000 temples and shrines, where it is possible to glimpse a few Geishas in the streets. The historic monuments of ancient Kyoto are a
UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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