I am in Kyoto at the moment, returning from a weekend trip to Nara, which was awesome. Last weekend in Kyoto was great too: I went to all the temples etc on the first day, then up into the mountains for a bit of a hike and a natural hot spring bath. You sit in the steaming hot water and look out across the valley, snow covered trees, hills, etc.

Nara is gorgeous too. Almost a quarter of the city centre is a huge park, and there are deer just roaming around (some have been so overfed by the tourists that they seem to have difficulty staying on their feet). Yesterday I went to see Toudaiji: "East-Big-Temple", an appropriate name, considering that it is in the east and is the largest wooden building in the world. It's HUGE! Inside is Big Buddha, who is rather impressive also. At the back of the temple is a pillar with a hole carved out at the base: if you can climb through the pillar, you are said to be guaranteed enlightenment. When i got there there was an old lady stuck halfway flailing her arms about while the rest of her 50-strong tour group lined up for their chance at enlightenment.

That night, i went to a lantern festival at another shrine which celebrates the beginning of spring (you wouldn't know by the 7 degree air though). The priests do a dance and make a big fire, then a pathway of hundreds of lanterns is lit. Nice. Today i went for a long walk along the old highroad to the city from Yagyuu, another town to the east. The trail passes through forests and farmland, so there was some gorgeous scenery. I really don't think that my photos are going to do half of these places justice.

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