Nikko

Wednesday, August 1, 2007
We joined the JTB Sunrise Tour for a full day tour to Nikko. The cost of the tour is 13,500 yen per person, inclusive of a Japanese lunch.
Nikko is about 120km north of Tokyo and is most famous for the Toshogu shrine and Keugon Falls.
Because the journey to Nikko took about 2 1/2 hours, we had a brief rest stop to pick up on some snacks.


little doggie all dressed up

On the streets leading up to the shrine, there were a couple of vendors selling yakitori and grilled sweet corn. We tried the yakitori (500 yen) and it was delicious; nicely grilled chicken covered with a sweet sauce.

the stone torii gate

Toshogu shrine is Japan's most decorated shrine and is a mausoleum (tomb) of the first Tokugawa shogun. There were intricate carvings decorating the entire building of the shrine, including a whole series of monkeys, depicting the many stages of life from birth to death. And of course, there was the famous carving of the three monkeys ' hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil' engraved on the outside wall of the Sacred Stable (Shinkyusha).


The Niomon gate is guarded by 2 Nio figures, one with an open mouth (ah) and the other with a closed mouth (um).

'ah um'

hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil

stone lanterns
The five storied pagoda is 36m high and is located near the entrance to the Toshogu Shrine. Each storey represents an element - earth, water, fire, wind and heaven, in ascending order.


We then proceeded to the Irohazaka zigzag driveway up the mountains and to our utter delight, it started to snow. According to our tour guide, this was the year's first snowfall in Nikko (an early winter).




When we arrived at Lake Chuzenji, which lies at the foot of the Mount Nantai, it started snowing heavier and the whole place was covered with a thin blanket of snow.


Just a couple of weeks earlier, the trees around the lake were filled with autumn colours (and there was a huge influx of locals and tourists) but now most of the trees were bare. It was ok with us as we had seen the autumn colours in Kyoto earlier and we were more than thrilled to experience the 'first winter' in Nikko. It was truly a magical experience for me as this was the first time I have experienced snow fall.

After our Japanese lunch at one of the restaurants, we walked around the grounds taking more photos. When it got too cold, we popped into one of the souvenir shops for some warmth before venturing out again.

tempura lunch


We also braved the snow and cold (we were not dressed for winter) to capture a few shots of KeugonWaterfall. What a memorable way to end our trip in Nikko!

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posted by Co&Ji at 1:57 PM, |

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