Kamakura is a small town located about one hour outside of Tokyo and is easy to get to by train. It is a quiet town with a nice main street filled with shops selling authentic high end souvenirs. There are also several temples and shrines worth visiting that aren’t as crowded as the ones in Tokyo or Kyoto. The first shrine we visited was the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine and is located at the very end of the main street. This shrine is great because it is free to visit which also makes it one of the most crowded in Kamakura. While there, my friend Ayaka got her fortune for the new year but unfortunately it was a bad fortune so she had to tie it to a wire with the others to get rid of its bad omens.
* Ayaka getting rid of her bad fortune
* So many bad fortunes.
* Charms like this are hung along with wishes for the new year in front of the shrines and temples.
Next we were off to one of the most famous attractions in Kamakura, The Great Buddha (Kamakura Daibatsu), which resides at the Kotokuin Temple. The Great Buddha was cast in 1252 out of bronze and for only 20 yen you can go inside of it.
Our final stop for the day was the Hasadera Temple. The temple grounds sprawled up a beautiful hillside that overlooked the ocean. We got in right before closing time so it wasn’t very crowded while we explored.
* It is traditional to wash your hands before entering the temple grounds.
* One of the most somber parts of this temple where the miniature Buddha statues that represented miscarried babies.
