Happy Halloween! Welcome to Nara! This place is all about the deer... First, we headed to the five-storey pagoda and the Kofukuji Temple. Next we visited the beautiful Yoshikien Gardens. Todaiji Temple came next, followed by time spent wandering the open spaces of Nara-koen. No matter where we went, it became about photographing deer at each location... We walked the park's paths to Kasuga Taisha Shrine, taking photos of the deer along the way. It became clear that Nara has been about its deer for quite some time when we examined the old lanterns & fountain station. We also walked around Nara-Machi, the Old Quarter of the city... In Nara, we stayed in a traditional room with tatami mats in a private home running a bed-and-breakfast-style guesthouse. The owners have a persimmon in the yard and were offering the fruit for free rather than allowing it to rot (as we had witnessed in other places throughout Japan). We ate several while there and the proprietors noticed, so they gave us a bag of persimmons to take with us. :)
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Happy Birthday, Lisa! We still had so much to see in Kyoto that I stayed up late mapping out how to see as much as possible today. We began by making our way to the far western reaches of the city to visit Tenryu-ji Temple. The landscape garden behind the main hall is one of the oldest in Japan, retaining its 14th century form. It was the first Special Historical Scenic Area named by the Japanese government and was designated as a UN World Cultural Heritage Site in 1994. Arashiyama district is famous for its Path of Bamboo & bamboo forests. We walked a lot today! We walked from Tenryu-ji all the way to Jojakkoji, then we walked to and up Saga-Toriimoto Preserved Street to reach Adashino Nembutsu-ji. Adashino Nembutsu-ji is situated high on a hill in an area where since the Heian period people abandoned the bodies of the dead, exposing them to the wind and rain. Now, some eight thousand Buddhist statuettes, which had been scattered around Adashino then collected about 1903, memorialize the souls of the dead. We then had to backtrack, walking all the way back to the train station, stopping to see the Nonomiya Shrine along the way. We took two trains to reach the far southeast portion of the city and Fushimi Inari-Taisha. Fushimi Inari is the most important of several thousands of shrines dedicated to Inari, the Shinto God of rice. Foxes are thought to be Inari's messengers, resulting in many fox statues across the shrine grounds. Fushimi Inari Shrine has ancient origins, predating the capital's move to Kyoto in 794. Fushimi Inari Shrine is famous for its thousands of vermilion tori gates, which straddle a network of trails behind its main buildings. The trails lead into the wooded forest of the sacred Mount Inari, which stands at 233 meters and belongs to the shrine grounds.
Next, we walked to Tofuku-ji, whose main gate is the oldest sanmon in Japan; it is a National Treasure of Japan. ^ This dragon painted ceiling is very impressive. We then traveled again by train to reach Sanjusangendo Temple, famous for its 400 foot long hall, awesome Indian-style gold Buddha, and 1000 other Buddha statues. It's said that if one looks long enough, one will find a statue that looks like him. Needless to say, I do not concur. After a short bus ride, part of the fun of visiting Kiyomizudera Temple is the approach to the temple along the steep and busy lanes of the atmospheric Higashiyama District. The many shops and restaurants in the area have been catering to tourists and pilgrims for centuries, and products on sale range from local specialties such as Kiyomizu-yaki pottery, sweets and pickles to the standard set of souvenirs. The temple is on a hillside with beautiful views of Kyoto. We continued our exploration of this scenic district on foot, enjoying the two picturesque stairways, Sannen-zaka & Ninen-zaka. The walk back to our guesthouse took us past the Ryozen Kannon with its enormous hillside Buddha, within view of Jishu-jinga's pagoda, to smaller shrines, down historic streets, back through Gion, and past major shopping. What a day! When I first visited Japan 25 years ago, the technology used on some "Star Trek"-like toilets amazed me - they often have heated seats, built in bidets and "showers", sound-effects and music, etc. This time I was impressed with designs that incorporate a wash basin to rinse one's hands while the tank refills each time one flushes the toilet. I was also amused by all of the tiny vehicles in Japan, particularly the trucks and vans. Who knew music has different colours? Why don't our barbers have robots?!? I've taken photos of a couple of similar signs while travelling elsewhere and still like it when they specifically feature soccer...
Yesterday's cross-city bus ride was enough to let us know that Kyoto's many sights are spread far and wide and that it would be impossible to see them all. In typical fashion, we decided to take our best shot and see as many of the touristic highlights as possible in two very busy days. We walked the "Philosopher's Path" from Ginkakuji south to Nanzenji Temple, following the small canal past several shrines. Established in 1291, Nanzenji is a popular temple complex with a distinctive two-storey entrance gate (sanmon) and an ancient aqueduct. While walking around and looking for the correct bus stop, we saw the Shoren-in and Chio-in Temples and other sights. We managed to get to Kinkaku-ji while it was open today! "The Golden Pavilion" is a shariden, a Buddhist hall containing relics of Buddha. The sites garden and buildings were said to represent the Pure Land of Buddha in this world. ^ Kara-mon Gate ^ Ninomaru Palace Wall Paintings ^ Ninomaru Garden ^ Seiryu-en Garden The rest of the day's sights could be seen by walking from our guesthouse. We headed to the Yasaka-jinga Shrine and discovered that its surrounding complex is larger and nicer than expected and was very busy during the early evening. We walked around the Gion district, tried another restaurant, and then eventually went back to our room.
Today was primarily a travel day as we made our way all the way to Kyoto. This required multiple shinkansen ("bullet trains"), subway connections, and a local train. ^ a typical Japanese family home with a persimmon tree in the yard. By the time we made it to the Khaosan Kyoto Guesthouse it was late afternoon. We then made our second transportation error of the trip... we took the correct bus to our desired location, but didn't realize how long a journey across the city it was. By the time we arrived at Kinkakuji Temple, it had just closed for the day. We made the long trip back, walked around the area a little, found a recommended restaurant for dinner, and then returned to our room to enjoy some Japanese whiskey.
We left our bags in a coin locker at the station so that we could explore the streets of Nagano unencumbered. After just a brief visit, it was back on another train to continue to Matsumoto. Our hotel was very convenient to the station and Matsumoto is small enough to easily explore on foot. It's picturesque and compact Old Town features two main tourist streets: Nawate Street and Nakamachi Street, known for its black and white geometric design "Namako-Kabe" on the old Kura storehouses. Matsumoto-jo, nicknamed "Crow Castle" due to its black colour, is Japan's oldest existing castle. It's a "hirajiro" - a castle built on plains rather than on a hill or mountain. Matsumoto-jo is unique for having both a secondary donjon and a turret adjoined to its main keep. The castle structures, in combination with their characteristic black wainscoting, give off an air of grandeur and poise. The wooden interior of Matsumoto Castle provides an authentic experience unlike that felt at many other castles rebuilt of ferro-concrete. Interesting features of the castle include steep wooden stairs, openings to drop stones onto invaders, openings for archers, as well as an observation deck at the top, sixth floor of the main keep with nice views. Matsumotojo's main castle keep and its smaller, second donjon were built from 1592 to 1614. Both these structures were well-fortified as peace was not yet fully achieved at the time. In 1635, when military threats had ceased, a third, barely defended turret and another for moon viewing were added to the castle. We also visited Kyu Kaichi Gakko, the oldest elementary school in Japan (1873).
Our train passes took us to the seaside town of Kamakura today. Being Japan's administrative capital from 1185 to 1333 has left this area with 19 Shinto shrines and 65 Buddhist temples. We distinctly remember elements of our trip through the wooded region and visiting several temples, but which sights were at each site is no longer perfectly clear.
Next stop... Tokeiji Temple, which was founded in 1285 by a nun. At the time, women had no right to seek divorce, but the Shogunate designated Tokeiji as a sanctuary for women petitioners, declaring that they could obtain a divorce after spending three calendar years at the temple. It is for this reason that Tokeiji is nicknamed "The Divorce Temple". The first ranked of the five great Zen temples of Kamukara was our next visit. Kencho-ji, completed in 1253, is the oldest Zen training monastery in Japan. We stopped for a snack outside the Hojo (Main Hall) overlooking the Teien (Garden) to reflect upon the words of the temple's founder, Rankei Doryu: "If you have lost your true self, all phenomena bring you nothing but annoyance. If you discover your essence of mind, you can follow nothing but the true path." The much smaller Enno-ji was our next brief visit. Tsuru-ga-oka Hachiman-gu, has a much larger complex. Hachiman shrines are dedicated to the god of war and this one was built in 1063 and moved to this location in 1191. We were fortunate to visit during a wedding that featured a traditional tea ceremony. Exiting the temple complex led directly to the main street of Wakamiya-oji which goes directly through town and to the train station.
The Hasedera Temple was next on the agenda...
Today we activated our Japan Rail Passes and took a daytrip to Nikko. Our first visit was to Rinnoji Temple. Tosho-gu Shrine is known for many famous features. It has a beautiful pagoda, several guarded gates, and wonderful detailed carvings. The "Three Monkeys" carving on the Sacred Stable is another favourite. Tourists, including us, line up to photograph the "Sleeping Cat" carving above the Sakashita-mon ("Gate at the Foot of the Hill"). Taiyuin-byo Shrine is guarded by four guardians at Nitenmon Gate: Kendara (white), Umarokya (blue), Bidara (red), & Abatsumara (green).
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