Japan Day 3 - Kyoto, Nara by Gordon, Fushimi Inari Shrine, Nara Park 伏见稻荷大社，奈良

Kyoto, Nara

- Gordon

Kyoto Day3, Nara Day 1:

Fushimi Inari Shrine 京都伏见稻荷大社

Nara Station 奈良火车站

Nara Park 奈良公园

Nara Day 1:

Nara train station 奈良火车站

Nara Park 奈良公园

Kofukuji Temple 兴福寺

Doe Park 鹿苑

Kasuga Taisha Shrine 春日大社

Nigatsu-do Hall 东大寺二月堂

Great Buddha Hall 东大寺大佛殿 (Daibutsu-den Hall)

Great South Gate 东大寺南大门 (Nandai-mon Gate)

       It was our third day in Japan. That was the day we moved on to Nara. On our way to Nara, we stopped at the Fushimi Inari Shrine 伏见稻荷大社.

Pretty scene when the sunlight hit the torii gates

Fushimi Inari Shrine 伏见稻荷大社

Entrance to Fushimi Inari Shrine 伏见稻荷大社

Torii gate and God of Rice messenger foxes

Temple inside Fushimi Inari Shrine 伏见稻荷大社

The torii gate led the way to the top of sacred Mount Inari

A fox statue standing

besides the building

Left

A fox statue standing

besides the building

Right

    The Fushimi Inari Shrine 伏见稻荷大社 was built in February, 711. It is the most important shrine dedicated to the god of rice. Foxes are believed to be the messengers， so the fox statues are everywhere. It is the home to 10,000 torii  gates 千本鸟居 (the orange gate). The torii gates are built along the trail behind its main buildings. All gates and buildings were restored in 2011 and bright red color came back.  The trail is four kilometers long. It leads into the forest of the sacred Mount Inari. Follow the torii gates, people can hike to the 233 meter high mountaintop. You will get a beautiful city view of Kyoto from high up. If you are lucky enough, go there during the golden hours to see the sunlight hit the vermilion gates. It was so pretty.

Kyoto Train Station

JR Train to Nara

    Saying farewell to the ancient capital Kyoto 京都, we rode a JR Train to another ancient capital Nara 奈良. Actually it is the first capital of Japan, before the capital moved to Kyoto. Nara was in rain when we arrived. The city service center was nice enough to provide all visitors with free umbrellas. The Nara Park 奈良公园 is very close by the Nara Train Station. After 20 minutes of walk, we started seeing deer. There are deer everywhere. Even the city symbol is deer. I was for sure that I am in Nara Park already.

Doe Park 鹿苑

Feeding the doe at the Doe Park 鹿苑

Picture at Doe Park

Deer on the street

    We went to the Doe Park 奈良鹿苑. It was full of doe with their mom but where were the daddies? The males are sent out. On the way to the park there is a street called Deer Aware Road 鹿出没. People believe that the deer are the god’s messengers. So the deer were allowed to roam Nara Park freely. The park provides acorns to feed the little ones. We also bought some grass balls. The deer mom ate most of them. Only once did the baby got it.

Deer at Kasuga Taisha Shrine 春日大社

Entering Kasuga Taisha Shrine 春日大社

The stone lanterns along the way to Kasuga Taisha Shrine 春日大社

The bronze and gold lanterns hanging inside the shrine

A traditional Japanese wedding in Kasuga Taisha Shrine 春日大社

The person who works at Kasuga Taisha Shrine 春日大社

Deer statue squirts out water to clean hands

    Here we come, Kasuga Taisha Shrine 春日大社! Deer and stone lanterns can be found everywhere. There is also a deer statue that spews out water. The water is used to clean hands. The shrine is well known for its lanterns. The lanterns are made of all sorts of things such as stone, bronze, and even gold! There are swelling amounts of lanterns. The 3,000 stone lanterns are just a little bit. The festivals were all hosted there because all the lanterns were lit up while getting dark. Its night is always as bright as daytime. Kasuga Taisha Shrine has not been touched since Nara was capital. Everything we saw today was the original!

若草山

Left: hand wash at 二月堂， Right: 东大寺钟楼

手向山神社

The entrance of the Great Buddha Hall

the Todaiji Temple

The Great Buddha Hall of the Todaiji Temple 东大寺大佛殿

The world's largest bronze Buddha was housed in
the world's largest wooden building 东大寺大佛殿

The Great Buddha Hall 东大寺大佛殿

Crawl the beam through to get good luck

The South Gate of Todaiji Temple 东大寺南大门

The entrance to the Great Buddha Hall

    The Todaiji Temple 东大寺 is big. The temple was first constructed in the year 728 by Emperor Shomu and is dedicated to his son who died about a year after his birth. The temple's 8th century construction included two pagoda 佛塔 that were 100 meters tall. These were the second tallest structures in the world at the time after the Great Pyramids of Giza. Sadly, the temple's pagoda were both destroyed in an earthquake shortly after they were completed. The most well known place of the Todaiji Temple belongs to the Great Buddha Hall 大佛殿. The current Great Buddha Hall was constructed in 1709 is far smaller than the 8th century original. It is the world’s largest wooden building. The world's largest bronze Buddha statue （500 tons） is sitting in the middle of the hall. The bronze Buddha was recast 8 times due to various reasons. In 855， its head suddenly fell off and was promptly repaired. That is why the bronze Buddha's head color is darker than its body. The Great Buddha Hall has a hole at one wooden beam that people could enjoy fitting through. It was said to give you good luck. It was so easy for me to crawl through! Too bad, some parents were so big to fit in!

     On our way out, we passed the Nara National Museum in Nara Park (Nara Koen). It is full of old works that have strong connections to Buddhism. But it was the time to catch our train to Osaka 大阪. Next time for sure, I will visit here and learn more history about the ancient capital Nara. 

Feeding deer with deer crackers

     Many deer crackers were sold along the way in the Nara Park. It was enjoyable to see people feeding the deer with the crackers. The deer goes anywhere you go! It is said to be more than a thousand deer here in Nara Park. Why don't you go and try to count the deer! 

    Saying farewell to the ancient capital Nara, another popular city Osaka is waiting for us to explore.