Nemu Ise

... still ambivalent about organized religion, but it was a rather nice awkwardness-cleansing my hands and mouth at the purification fountain, and bowing/clapping at the shrines--I even said a prayer (for safe travels) at one of the public shrines. Not a bad day in all; even got up the nerve to ask a Japanese man to take my picture on a bridge leading to the auxillary shrine Kazahinominomiya.

Tomorrow...Nara.

... it) to get up at five in the morning to see sunrise above meoto-iwa. We were not the only ones. Many others had woken up at the crack of dawn to place their tripods and the brave the cold. After sunrise we quickly hurried back to bed to catch a few more hours of sleep before heading off to Toba. In my earlier entries I described Toba as grey, rainy sort of place however this time around there was only sunshine and we gladly ...

... We went to the Geku shrine at around 12ish I think? It was cool, took lots of pictures, then we went to the main shrine, which was AMAZING! The bridges were awesome! And the koi were HUGE! Although it was a bit freaky how parts of this shrine looked exactly like Geku. I think I'm all shrined out for now, I have now seen three ...

After an action packed day of Temple sightseeing to the max in Nara, I headed south west to a tiny fishing village near Ise, which is known solely for its shrine. My hostel looked out over a foggy bay, which I predict harbours a Japanese Loch Ness-esque creature. I went to the Ise Shrine, which was very simple and minimalist, but what really stood out was the amazing woodlands it was in. They ...

So Here I go, Leaving Osaka on my way into the Smog of China for a transfer. Hope everthering goes well! Bernz told me about his crazy story transfering in Gounzhou so I hope I don't get held up and miss my flight because I don't have a passport or something crazy.

Arrived in Japan after a 12 hour (!) delay in Kuala Lumpur. Was very excited as soon as the plane touched down. When we arrived in the city, I was jumping around and felt like shaking hands with everyone that walked past. Quirky stuff was everywhere. Things that caught my eye and made me giggle: 1. A cartoon of a cute cuddly dog on a ...

... One was a beautifully sculpted wood pagoda. There were Buddha statues made of limestone and all sorts of cool stuff. If I was rich, I definitely would've bought something there. Yves was telling me about these pilgrimages people can do. There is a 33 temple pilgrimage and an 88 temple pilgrimage. You buy these scrolls (or shirt) with each temple's seal on it...and as you visit the temple, you get it signed by one of the monks there. Some people spend years doing these ...

Well, we've taken off. The flight is supposed to take 3 and half hours. We've hardly been in the air 15 minutes, and the attendants have already run by with a cart to offer everyone in this cabin drinks. I think I'm going to get something to settle my stomach a bit. That last flight still has my stomach protesting. I asked them what they recommended for my stomach, and the woman said maybe chamomile tea. So we'll see how it helps. They handed me a menu. As far as I'm aware ...

Construction on Osaka Castle (Osakajo) started in 1583 on the former site of the Ishiyama Honganji Temple, which had been destroyed by Oda Nobunaga thirteen years earlier. Toyotomi Hideyoshi intended the castle to become the center of a new, unified Japan under Toyotomi ...

The island of Miyajima (literally: shrine island), located 40 minutes from the city center by train and ferry. The island is beautiful with lots of greenery and surprise.. penguins . Hiroshima was the first city in history to be the target of the first ever atomic bomb. August 6, 1945, US ...