A couple of days ago, my dad, my husband and I went to Ishiyama-dera, which is famous for the author of The Tale of Genji, Murasaki Shikibu, to see leaves changing color. Unfortunately, we were a little bit early, but I took some photos to share with you. Since this summer was hotter than usual, the fall colors aren’t as vibrant as we might have hoped.

This temple has lots of Japanese maple tress, and some of them just have started changing their leaves' color.

We can see a lovely Japanese garden inside of this gate.

In the picture below, there's a bull cart from the Heian period.

You can observe the stages of leaves changing color: first, green leaves turn yellow, and then red. This tree shows all three different colors at once.

The doll represents, Murasaki Shikibu, the author of The Tale of Genji, . It's said that she wrote the story in the room.

This pagoda is called Tahōtō, and it’s the oldest wooden one of its kind still standing in Japan. It was built in the Kamakura period and one of our national treasures.

The temple was lovey and we enjoyed the fall scenery, but I'd love to visit another place to see deeper, more vibrant colors.

After that, we had lunch at a hamburg steak restaurant. My hometown, Shiga Prefecture, is a famous place for Ōmi beef. While it’s not as internationally well-known as Kobe beef, I believe its quality is just as good. The hamburg stake we had was made from Ōmi beef.

The chef grills the Ōmi beef hamburg stake for each of us individually.

In the picture above, from left to right: white mushrooms, eggplants, potatoes and hamburg stakes.

Pumpkin soup and a mall appetizer.

A bowl of salad with onsen tamago on top. I'm a huge fan of this soft-boiled egg because it pairs so well with any dish.

The last picture is Japanese curry and pickles. Thanks to the high-quality beef, the curry was incredibly delicious. We enjoyed the lunch, and I'd love to bring my mom and my daughter's family next time.

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