Japan 2017 - Day 13 - Kamakura

For my last day of tourist activities I headed to the very historic town of Kamakura. I had 4 destinations for my day, and I hit them all. Kamakura is about 1 hour, by train, Southwest of Tokyo. It was were the Shogunate rulers governed Japan from 1192 to 1333 and has lots of historic temples and shrines. Today Kamakura appears to be mainly about tourism and fishing. What I hadn't expected to find was a large number of French patisseries, cafes, brasseries, and restaurants. My first destination was the Yabusame (horseback archery) event at the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine. There is a ton of ceremony that goes on before the archery actually starts and it was going to be very crowded. Fortunately a girl from Belgium that has attended the event before clued me in to get a good spot at least 1 hour before hand. I'm very glad I listened to her. It got extremely crowded. The participants yell for the entire run of the course, and the arrows they used aren't tipped with blades. Instead they appear to have a sort of ball on the end. But judging by the sound and way the wooden target splinters and flies apart when they hit it, I wouldn't want to get hit by one. It was pretty impressive, but took up about 2 more hours than I had anticipated. My second destination was the Great Buddha at the Kotokuin Temple. He is a 43.8 foot tall bronze Daibutsu said to have been cast around 1252. At one time was covered in gold leaf but other than one spot on his ear, that is all gone now. While he is almost as tall as the Great Buddha in Nara, he doesn't seem as imposing. I attribute that to his being out in the open, as opposed to inside a building. There did used to be a building housing him. The building was destroyed and rebuilt several times and when a tsunami destroyed it yet again 1498 they stopped rebuilding it. It is possible to go inside him but that was closed while I was there. I suspect the threat of lightning was the reason. It was another rainy day and I did hear thunder a couple of times. But seeing him in person is another check on my list. My 3rd destination was 2 cemeteries. They are out of the main tourist area but one of them is supposed to be where several important scenes take place in Elfen Lied, an Anime series that I like. (it’s very violent, so think twice before checking it out) And since I'd not yet gotten to wander around a cemetery in Japan, something I wanted to do at some point on this trip, I thought it was a good activity to add to my itinerary. I was unable to determine which of the 2 cemeteries is featured in the show, but the top section of one of them was closed off. I suspect that was the area I was hoping to get to. None the less I really enjoyed my time in both of them. And once again the rainy overcast day seemed to actually enhance the mood and imagery. And not just of the cemeteries, but of my whole day wandering around this cool little town. My last destination was a 2 for 1. It was Daisy's Cafe, a small beach side cafe that I found while looking around in Google street view. And it also happened to be on the stretch of the beach that featured very heavily in Elfen Lied. I was surprised to see how closely the beach actually looked to the way it was presented in the show. Especially since the show was done in 2004. Daisy's is a tiny little place with random things hanging on the wall and ceiling. I arrived there just after sunset and was ready for some dinner. And I was not disappointed. I had a great time chatting with a guy from Beaumont that was there as well. Which is a bit random since this is not what I would call a tourist draw. Especially on a rainy night. I found the entire day to be a wonderful end to a wonderful trip.

There were so many people that it was hard to get any good video. But here is a short clip of one of the contestants as he rode buy and successfully hit the last target.

Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū The main Tori Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Bridge looking up towards the main Temple Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū These drums were played continously for the 3 hours or so I was there Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Yabusame (Horse Back Archery) I dig the Japanese cowboy hats Couldn't find one to buy though. Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Yabusame (Horse Back Archery) Part of the cermony (Check out the shoes on the guy to the right) Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Yabusame (Horse Back Archery) Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Yabusame (Horse Back Archery) Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Yabusame (Horse Back Archery) Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Yabusame (Horse Back Archery) Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Yabusame (Horse Back Archery) Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Yabusame (Horse Back Archery) Kamakura - Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū Yabusame (Horse Back Archery) If you look to the left side you can see the arrow and target bouncing off the stand Kamakura - Kōtoku-in The Nio Gaurdian Kamakura - Kōtoku-in "The Great Buddha" (Daibutsu) Kamakura - Kōtoku-in "The Great Buddha" (Daibutsu) Kamakura - Kōtoku-in "The Great Buddha" (Daibutsu) This is the Incense burner infront of the Buddha Kamakura - Kōtoku-in "The Great Buddha" (Daibutsu) This is the Incense burner infront of the Buddha Kamakura - Kōtoku-in "The Great Buddha" (Daibutsu) This is the Incense burner infront of the Buddha Kamakura - Kōtoku-in "The Great Buddha" (Daibutsu) A small building behind the main pavillion Kamakura Kamakura - Cemetary The stairs leading up to the 1st cemetary I went to were quite steep Kamakura - Cemetary Kamakura - Cemetary Kamakura - Cemetary Kamakura - Cemetary Kamakura - Cemetary Kamakura - Cemetary Kamakura - Cemetary Kamakura - Cemetary Kamakura - Cemetary Kamakura - Yuigahama Beach Daisy's Cafe