Founded 593, Shitennō-ji is one of the oldest Buddhist temples in Japan, although only the big stone torii (Shintō shrine gate) is original, the oldest of its kind in the country (1294). Shitennō-ji's best visited for the lovely strolling garden, Honbō Teien , just northeast of the main precincts. Otherwise, the grounds are a somewhat desolate expanse of raked gravel, but there's a five-storey pagoda, which (unusually) you can climb up.
On the 21st and 22nd of each month is a very good flea market outside the temple, with antiques and secondhand goods, including old kimono.
