Sunday we took a day trip out of Tokyo to the town of Kamakura. During the 12th century, Kamakura was the capital of Japan. During this period, the influx of Zen Buddhism from China took root. In Kamakura, there are numerous Buddhist Temples and Shinto Shrines, in fact, too numerous for an almost 5 year old to tolerate. Hence, our goals were modest and the main mission for the day was to see the Daibutsu (Great Buddha) and trek the 2.2km Daibutsu hiking course. The Buddha was magnificent, the trail refreshingly secluded in green trees, the sky blue, and the temperature perfect. At times, the trail required some rigor and when I suggested to Roo that he could sit down and have a rest he rebuked my offer by commenting “If I sit still people will think I’m a Buddha”. Later at the restaurant, where Ryan and I enjoyed a tonkastu (fried pork cutlet) lunch and Roo a home packed bento, I asked Roo to explain his favorite part of the trail. He said “I got to walk in the big chunks of mud”. We made a quick stop at the Zeniarai Benzaiten Ugafuku Shrine, where a tunnel in a rock leads to a natural spring in a cave. Here, money is washed in the hope that it will be doubled. Later, after a quick view of the beach and a treat at Baskin Robbins, we headed home. It was a good day!Looking at ants on the trail through a magnifying glass.
We climbed over many tree roots on the trail.
The torii gate at the entrance of the Zeniarai Benzaiten Shrine.
The entrance to the cave that contains the natural spring water.
Roo washing yen coins.
1 comment:
Looks like a lovely day! I once went there in April and saw a peony (boton) exhibition. Never done the hike behind the big buddha, next time will have to try it.
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