Nikko National Park
On our second full weekend in Japan, we head to Nikko where there are a number of temples that some say rival those found in Kyoto. We spent Saturday in the world heritage village where there are five magnificent sites, including the ornate Toshu-gu shrine and the Rinnoji Temple. Megan's favorite part was seeing the original "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" monkeys.
Washing hands before entering Tosho Gu temple.
Reading about all the World Heritage Sites in front of the Five Story Pagoda.
We travel north to Yumoto Onsen ( onsen means `hot-spring') and got our first Japanese bathing experience. The sulfur baths were extremely refreshing, especially after a day of hiking.
We arrive in Yumoto Onsen about an hour later than expected due to a mix-up in the bus schedule. When we showed up the temple where we had made reservations, the attendant at the door pretty much told us to leave. So we did. Luckily the town is a ski resort town so their were plenty of other places to stay.
Unluckily, there were not places to eat since all of the inns had already served their guests dinner. Instead, our healthy dinner was put together at the one and only convenient store minutes before it closed.
We spent Sunday hiking in the Nikko national park. Our goal was to climb Nikko-Shirane-san , the highest peak in the park, but the looming clouds made us adjust our plans. We did climb about 1000 meters of elevation and saw a beautiful high altitude lake.
Looking down at Goshiki Numa after a long slog up the mountain.
We were caught in a refreshing rain storm while descending. The tropical vegetation and deep muddy ruts made going down much harder than going up.
Washing hands before entering Tosho Gu temple.
Reading about all the World Heritage Sites in front of the Five Story Pagoda.We travel north to Yumoto Onsen ( onsen means `hot-spring') and got our first Japanese bathing experience. The sulfur baths were extremely refreshing, especially after a day of hiking.
We arrive in Yumoto Onsen about an hour later than expected due to a mix-up in the bus schedule. When we showed up the temple where we had made reservations, the attendant at the door pretty much told us to leave. So we did. Luckily the town is a ski resort town so their were plenty of other places to stay.
Unluckily, there were not places to eat since all of the inns had already served their guests dinner. Instead, our healthy dinner was put together at the one and only convenient store minutes before it closed.We spent Sunday hiking in the Nikko national park. Our goal was to climb Nikko-Shirane-san , the highest peak in the park, but the looming clouds made us adjust our plans. We did climb about 1000 meters of elevation and saw a beautiful high altitude lake.
Looking down at Goshiki Numa after a long slog up the mountain.We were caught in a refreshing rain storm while descending. The tropical vegetation and deep muddy ruts made going down much harder than going up.
posted by Turnbull at 6:43 AM
1 Comments:
Ohaiyo gozaimasu!
Debbie, Chris, Marty and Bruce are viewing your blog over a Western breakfast at Tamarisk East. We love looking at your Japanese life and await the Sumo wrestlers with impatience. Debbie is particularly envious and can't wait for next year's birthday present (3 weeks in Japan)!
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