Nara

Sunday, January 08, 2012 |

In Nara Park

During our stay in Kyoto, we traveled to Nara which was the Imperial Capital of Japan in the 8th century. Nara is famous for its scenery, architecture and well known Todaiji Temple and its Great Buddha. 


Nara's symbol is the deer (shika in Japanese). Shika are regarded as the messengers of the gods in the Shinto religion. So everywhere you go, they roam around freely. We were warned to be careful with our belongings - especially our rail passes and passports. If the deers were to eat them, we would NOT be reimbursed. Ain't that some ish?


Deer Crossing 




After strolling through the park and getting chased by the deer, we arrived at Todaiji Temple (largest wooden building in the world and UNESCO Site). 


Right outside of the temple, there's a pindola statue. The statue's hand signals "do not fear". He is said to be one of the 16 arhats who were disciples of the buddha and master of magical powers. People would rub the part of the statue and then rub the corresponding part of their own body that was in pain and the ache would go away.  It didn't quite work for me though. 



Weighing in at 550 tons and measuring 49 feet high, this Great Buddha has been around since 752 AD. It is stunning! 





Below are the 2 guardians statues that surround the Great Buddha and watch over him.



The hole in the bottom of this pilar is the size of the Buddha's nose! Would have loved to go through it but I'm sure I would have gotten stuck! 


Some more pictures of our Nara tour...







Special thanks to our amazing tour guide Takakamo for showing us around Nara! We had a wonderful time! 


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A Winter in Kyoto

Saturday, January 07, 2012 |


Kyoto was Japan's capital for over 1,000 years. It is the cultural center of the country creating a crossroad between both the ancient and modern worlds. 


Our 5 day stay in Kyoto was remarkable. Everyone in Japan kept raving about the foliage there and when we arrived, it took my breath away! The flaming maple trees where everywhere and even though they all looked the same, I had the urge to take a picture of every single tree there! 


We stayed at Hotel Gimmond Kyoto. It was small, very chic, comfortable and in a great location. We were 3 train stops away from the center of the city and a 2 minute walk from the train station. Everybody there was extremely nice and would bend backwards to accommodate you. Not to mention that the hotel had a couple of beer vending machines!!! 


Our Hotel
Our Room
Below are some random (but cool) pictures of the area near our hotel. 







 



Not far from the hotel was Teramachi Shopping Center - a maze of stores and restaurants where you can get lost for days! This magical place is where we spent most of our leisure time. There was a variety of stores ranging from arcades, movie theaters, clothes, shoes, hats, makeup, jewelry and just about any nick knacks that you can possibly imagine. Wearing comfy shoes to walk around and having a pocket full of yen is a must! There were even a few temples and shrines open to the public along the back alley ways. 


Below are some pictures of the shopping area...













Shrine
While strolling through the shopping center, we came across a pet store that had a fish tank outside the store containing the weirdest fish I've ever seen. They were called invisible fish and were extremely gross looking. No doubt about it that I had to take a picture. Try not to throw up!


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