Saturday in Kamakura

Saturday we took the train to Kamakura, about an hour away from Tokyo. There are many temples and shrines to see - we made it to 3. The first, the Engaku Temple, was a large complex with 18 buildings and the Great Bell, a National Treasure that was cast in 1301. It was quite a trek up the stairs to see the bell but what a view (we could see Mt. Fuji from the top).

Next we saw the Great Buddha (Daibutsu). It was quite amazing. You can wait in line to enter his stomach but we passed on that.

The last temple we visited was Hase-Dera, my favorite of the temples we visited. It had several small ponds with fish; waterfalls; the largest carved wood statue in Japan (figure of Juichimen Kannon - the goddess of mercy); a cave where visitors may dedicate candles in memory of children lost; a golden statue of Yakuyoke (Protector of Evil Spirits); and a great view of the ocean from the top (pictures not allowed of the statues).

Louis did very well hiking with Derek in the backpack and he loved running around at the temples. He learned to quietly bow at the statues. We were exhausted from all the walking/climbing and ordered pizza when we got home. Japanese pizza is a little different from American - we thoroughly enjoyed it. Not much tomato sauce - they used some kind of mustard tasting sauce, which strange as it sounds, went perfect with the pizza.