Nara – Citadel of Peace

We explored this ancient city (Japan’s first capital) which has some amazing temples and buildings. Nara Park has over 1000 tame deer roaming around, which are very friendly (until you have food). The deer are considered to be the messengers of the Gods. The Todai-ji Temple is a massive complex, and home to the massive Buddha (Great Buddha Valorcana) – 16m high. We made our way through the park to the Kasuga Grand Shrine, a famous Shinto site. Most impressive were the over 3000 lanterns inside and around the shrine.

Todai-ji Temple

The giant Buddha

A few of the many, many lanterns

Barrels of Sake, I think.

Inside the front entrance to the Kasuga Grand Shrine

Karl & the deer.

Mount Koya

After Nara, we headed by train to Koyasan high in the mountains in the heart of the Kii Peninsula. The train kept climbing and houses started disappearing as the cedar forests grew thicker. We finally reached the end of the railway and took a cable car up the mountain. At the top, with sprinklings of snow everywhere, we entered the village of Koyasan which is a one stop mecca for pilgrims who make their way to this sacred Shingon-Buddhist site. Today there are 123 temples on the mountain, though there was over a thousand at one stage (mostly destroyed by typhoons and fire). We found the temple where we are staying, Sekishoin, and were helped by a monk to our beautiful room which overlooks the gardens. In the afternoon we wandered through the town and tried to guess what sub-zero temperature it might be. Really enjoyed the heater under the table when we got back!

The Temple where we are staying, just unbelievable.